Amazon Seller Support

Get an "A" in Listing Textbooks 101

Back-to-school textbook season is a busy time of year! Save yourself the hassle of cancelled listings and returned orders by following a few basic rules when you list your textbooks.

List your textbook by ISBN, not by title

Avoid listing your textbook against the wrong detail page by using the ISBN and not the title. One title can have several editions, and each one could have a detail page in our catalog. You'll need to match the book to the exact ISBN, title, author, edition, binding, publisher, and publication date that is listed on the detail page. Even if the title and author of your book appear on a detail page, you will be listing the wrong edition or cover type if the ISBN of your book does not match the one on the page. Learn more about Listing Items.

Use the search fields on the main Textbooks store page on Amazon.com to find the right detail page for your textbook. If you search for your book's ISBN and don't find an exact match, you can create a new catalog page for your book (Pro Merchants only). If you are an Individual seller and cannot find a detail page for your book, you may not sell that book on Amazon.com.

Describe your book accurately

Check each book you list for wear, such as marks, highlighting, worn binding or jackets, and so on. Use the listing comments to add notes about the book's condition. When you describe your book’s condition accurately, you reduce the chances of buyer disappointment and returns.

Don't list prohibited editions of textbooks

Most editions of textbooks are fine to sell on Amazon.com, but some are prohibited. For example, teacher's editions and international editions of textbooks are prohibited. Listings for prohibited textbook editions will be cancelled by Amazon and can result in the suspension or removal of your selling privileges. Learn more about our Textbook Selling Policies.

Amazon Marketplace – Top Selling Textbooks

With the summer term over, textbook sellers are making plans to list and sell on Amazon Marketplace for the upcoming fall term. To help you decide which used and new textbooks to include for sale on the Amazon Marketplace, we are providing the following list of bestselling textbook titles.

These textbooks were the Top 100 textbooks sold by Amazon Marketplace sellers during the peak weeks of the Spring 2012 textbook season. Please remember that due to seasonality, books that are big sellers for the spring term (January 2012) may not be indicative of the books that will sell in the fall term (September 2012). Also, historical sales on Amazon Marketplace may not be indicative of future sales, as used textbooks have a limited lifespan.

When listing textbooks, it is important to note the publication date and edition. For the best buying experience, sellers should be careful to match the ISBN of the textbook they're listing to the exact detail page on Amazon.com to ensure that the title and edition are correct. Sellers should also note differences in cover art when checking for matches.

For example, one of the top selling textbooks on this spring's list, Understanding Business, is the 9th Edition published October 6, 2009, ISBN 0073511706. The 10th Edition of this textbook, ISBN 978-0073524597, was published on January 5, 2012. While older editions of this textbook have value and can be sold on Amazon Marketplace, demand for the most recent edition will likely increase. (You may notice that several of the top-selling textbooks on the Spring 2012 list have upgrade editions.)

For additional information on each title, click on the image to see the product detail page in the Amazon catalog.

The table below shows the top 10 bestselling textbook titles from Spring 2012.

Click on the following link to download a full table:

Top 100 Textbook ASINs - Spring 2012

For comparison to the earlier lists, click on the links below:
Top 100 Textbook ASINs - Fall 2011
Top 100 Textbook ASINs - Spring 2011

We hope that providing information about top-selling textbook titles will help sellers be more successful in the upcoming Fall 2012 and Spring 2013 textbook seasons. If you have feedback about this effort, feel free to write to textbook-selling@amazon.com.

Thank you for selling on Amazon.com.

Dealing with negative feedback

When you sell at Amazon.com, you should work with buyers to resolve any differences. Communication is usually the key--simply explaining a delay or reassuring a buyer puts most issues to rest. But sometimes an order results in the seller receiving negative feedback from the buyer.

If you receive a feedback comment that you are not happy with, we encourage you to contact your buyer, and work with them to resolve any order issues. Your buyer could then remove the feedback if they feel it would be appropriate.

If the buyer has indicated that they're willing to remove the feedback, here are simple instructions to give them. They are also available on our buyer Help page, Leaving Feedback.

1. Go to http://www.amazon.com/your-account
2. Under "Personalization," in the "Community" column, click "Seller Feedback Submitted By You."
3. A list of all of the feedback left by you will display. Click the "Remove" link next to the feedback would like to remove.

(If there is no "Remove" option next to a comment, this means the 60-day removal period has expired.)

Amazon will remove feedback only in the following cases:

1. The feedback includes obscene language
2. The feedback includes personally identifiable information
3. The entire feedback comment is a product review
4. The entire feedback comment is regarding fulfillment or customer service for an order fulfilled by Amazon

When you receive negative feedback, put it in perspective. A 0-2% negative feedback rate is great! If your negative feedback rate is greater than 5%, you may want to review your business practices. Remember that you can do a lot to avoid receiving negative feedback by providing great customer service!

Learn the Basics of Buyer Feedback

Feedback is important to both sellers and buyers because it is a metric by which Amazon measures seller performance and a resource to buyers when making purchasing decisions.

Buyers can leave feedback for up to 90 days after their transaction. Once a buyer leaves feedback, it cannot be edited, but the buyer can remove it for up to 60 days. Learn more in our Buyer Help page on feedback.

You are allowed to contact buyers about their feedback. Remember, though, that ultimately it's the buyer's decision whether to give feedback, what kind of feedback to give, and whether they remove negative feedback. Respect their decision, and always be courteous in your communications.

To contact buyers, use the Feedback Manager tool in your seller account. You can also use this tool to leave a response on your own Seller Profile to feedback buyers have left.

In general, good feedback rewards sellers who:

• list their products correctly (in the correct category, accurate condition notes, etc.)
• communicate well with buyers (politely, proactively)
• ship orders promptly (on time)

Remember, customers are more likely to purchase products from sellers with higher feedback ratings. In the long run, professionalism pays off.

Tips for Managing Orders Effectively

To keep up with orders, use the tools in your seller account and follow these suggested best practices:

• Don't rely solely on "Sold, ship now" e-mails to let you know you have new orders. Check the Manage Orders tool in your seller account for up-to-the minute views of orders.
• Use the Manage Orders tool to find information about orders, including buyer name and shipping address.
• Keep buyers informed of any order issues.
• If you need to refund an order, do so promptly. You can make refunds through the Manage Orders tool.
• If you have a Pro Merchant subscription, you can download Inventory Reports to help you track open listings, sold items, order fulfillment, and listings cancelled by Amazon.
• Get in the habit of shipping your orders right away. You'll have more time to resolve any problems that might arise.

Getting Paid - How It Works

To get paid for your Amazon sales, you’ll need to:

Enter valid bank account information in your seller account
You are required to have valid bank account information on file in your seller account. This is the account to which Amazon will disburse your payments. You can always change your bank account information later, if needed. For security reasons, you will not be able to request disbursement for 7 days after you make any changes. It can take up to 5 business days for funds to be transferred to your bank account.

Enter valid credit card information in your seller account
Your credit card information is used for verification purposes prior to the transfer of funds to your bank account. We do not transfer funds to your credit card. You can always change your credit card information, as needed, for example if you cancel your card or it expires.

Confirm shipment of your orders
To receive payment, you are required to confirm shipment of orders. Once you confirm shipment, the buyer is charged and we credit your Payments account. If you do not confirm shipment of an order within 30 days, we may cancel the order and you will not be paid. Learn more about confirming orders in our online "Charge When Ship" Help page.

New seller
For new sellers, there is an initial 14-day holding period before funds are disbursed to your bank account. This holding period is an important security requirement and is applied to all new seller accounts. After the initial 14-day holding period has passed, the funds credited to your Payments account are automatically disbursed to your bank account.

Get an "A" in Listing Textbooks 101

Back-to-school textbook season is a busy time of year! Save yourself the hassle of cancelled listings and returned orders by following a few basic rules when you list your textbooks.

List your textbook by ISBN, not by title

Avoid listing your textbook against the wrong detail page by using the ISBN and not the title. One title can have several editions, and each one could have a detail page in our catalog. You'll need to match the book to the exact ISBN, title, author, edition, binding, publisher, and publication date that is listed on the detail page. Even if the title and author of your book appear on a detail page, you will be listing the wrong edition or cover type if the ISBN of your book does not match the one on the page. Learn more about Listing Items.

Use the search fields on the main Textbooks store page on Amazon.com to find the right detail page for your textbook. If you search for your book's ISBN and don't find an exact match, you can create a new catalog page for your book (Pro Merchants only). If you are an Individual seller and cannot find a detail page for your book, you may not sell that book on Amazon.com.

Describe your book accurately

Check each book you list for wear, such as marks, highlighting, worn binding or jackets, and so on. Use the listing comments to add notes about the book's condition. When you describe your book’s condition accurately, you reduce the chances of buyer disappointment and returns.

Don't list prohibited editions of textbooks

Most editions of textbooks are fine to sell on Amazon.com, but some are prohibited. For example, teacher's editions and international editions of textbooks are prohibited. Listings for prohibited textbook editions will be cancelled by Amazon and can result in the suspension or removal of your selling privileges. Learn more about our Textbook Selling Policies.