Winning More Clients Through Better Audits + Amazon's AI Revolution 🤖

Digest #23 → Subscribe

Hey Amazon Agency Leaders 👋

As you navigate the delicate dance of onboarding new clients, do you find your agency caught in the "audit dilemma" – needing account access to demonstrate value, but struggling to get that access before proving your worth?

This week, we're diving into the power (and pitfalls 😬) of prospective client audits, alongside Amazon's latest AI innovations that could transform how you analyze performance data and deliver insights to clients.

Let's explore how both strategic auditing and Amazon's new tools can help your agency work smarter, not harder.

TLDR; inside today's newsletter:

🔍 The power (and pitfalls) of auditing prospective clients' accounts
🤖 Amazon's new AI-powered Business Performance Insights feature launches
🎓 135+ free AWS AI training courses now available to everyone
🌱 Amazon maintains renewable energy leadership for 5th year
🔄 New platform updates including return credits and restock tools
🏷️ Amazon Brand Builder launches to help strengthen brand identity

Agency Insights: The Power (and Pitfalls) of Auditing Prospective Clients

Every agency knows the potential goldmine hidden in a prospective client's Amazon account data.

A thorough audit can reveal inefficiencies, uncover growth opportunities, and provide the credibility needed to win the client's trust—and ultimately, their business.

The Strategic Value of Account Audits

When done right, audits transform the client acquisition process by:

Demonstrating expertise before asking for payment
Building trust through data-driven insights rather than generic promises
Tailoring solutions to specific account challenges
Setting realistic expectations based on actual account performance
Positioning your agency as a strategic partner rather than just a service provider

Common Challenges Agencies Face

Despite these benefits, the audit process presents several challenges that can hamper your agency's growth:

The Discovery Call Hurdle: Gaining sufficient trust to access a prospect's Seller Central account often requires an initial discovery call, adding a step to your sales process.

Extended Sales Cycles: After gaining access and completing the audit, you'll typically need another call to review findings, further extending the timeline from pitch to close.

Data Overwhelm: Without streamlined tools, sifting through complex Seller Central metrics can be time-consuming and overwhelming.

Client Reluctance: Prospects often hesitate to share sensitive account data early in the relationship, creating a trust barrier.

Resource Strain: Manual audits require significant time investment, straining agency resources and limiting how many prospects you can effectively evaluate.

A Smarter Approach

Forward-thinking agencies are addressing these challenges by:

Developing standardized audit frameworks that focus on the most impactful metrics
Creating clear value propositions around the audit process itself
Utilizing specialized tools that streamline data collection and analysis
Building trust through educational content before requesting account access

The agencies seeing the most success have moved beyond generic audit processes to develop specialized assessment tools for PPC performance, listing optimization, and inventory management—allowing them to deliver specific, actionable insights that win clients.

Interested in how to streamline your client audit process? Reply to this email with "demo" to learn more about how SellerSynapse's tools can help your agency grow 💪

Amazon News Insider

AWS Offers 135+ Free AI Training Resources

Amazon Web Services has expanded its training portfolio with more than 135 free and low-cost AI and machine learning courses designed for various skill levels and roles:

Non-technical roles: Courses on generative AI fundamentals, responsible AI principles, and prompt engineering essentials
Developers: Deep-dive technical training on AI foundations, Amazon Q, and prompt engineering
Business executives: Special training series focused on driving organizational AI adoption

Amazon's goal is to provide AI skills training to 2 million people globally by 2025—a target they've already met a year ahead of schedule.

AI Innovations Driving Sustainability

Amazon is leveraging AI to improve building efficiency and sustainability across its operations:

FlowMS: An AI-powered utility efficiency tool that detected an underground water leak in Glasgow, preventing 9 million gallons of water loss annually
BBAM (Base Building Advanced Monitoring): Uses machine learning to analyze HVAC systems and identify energy inefficiencies
ARM (Advanced Refrigeration Monitoring): Monitors refrigeration units in real time to prevent food loss and reduce equipment downtime

These innovations are part of Amazon's Climate Pledge commitment to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. The company plans to expand these AI tools to more than 300 buildings worldwide by the end of 2025.

AWS Launches DeepSeek-R1 as Fully Managed Model

AWS has become the first cloud provider to offer DeepSeek-R1 as a fully managed, serverless large language model in Amazon Bedrock.

This model offers sophisticated reasoning capabilities with high precision and is reportedly 90-95% more affordable than comparable models.

Key benefits include:

No technical setup or maintenance required
Enterprise-grade security features
Integration with Amazon Bedrock Guardrails to prevent hallucinations
Pay-per-token pricing model

Thousands of customers have already deployed DeepSeek-R1 models since late January, demonstrating strong market demand for cost-effective AI solutions.

Platform Updates

New Return Credits for Remote Fulfillment with FBA

Starting March 25, 2025, Amazon will provide credits to cover return fees for items sold and returned through Remote Fulfillment with FBA in the Mexico and Brazil stores.

This ensures sellers pay the same fulfillment fees for returns whether through US FBA or Remote Fulfillment with FBA.

Credits will be automatically issued within 30 days after a return and can be viewed in your Transaction view under "Refund" in "Transaction type" and "Remote Fulfillment credit" in "Transaction details."

Ships in Product Packaging Program Updates

Amazon has introduced recommended product groups for the Ships in Product Packaging program, allowing sellers to certify multiple product variations in a single test.

If the primary product (the heaviest and largest in the group) is certified, similar variations can often be certified without additional testing.

To find recommended groups for your products, go to Growth > Growth Opportunities > Explore Selling Programs > Sustainability > Ships in Product Packaging.

Amazon Brand Builder Tool Launches

The new Amazon Brand Builder tool provides tailored recommendations to help grow your brand by placing it in one of five development stages:

Launch Viable Selection
Establish Brand Identity
Grow Brand Awareness
Build Brand Loyalty
Strengthen Brand Recall

The tool offers specific actions to advance to the next stage, with data refreshed monthly. Access it via the Brands menu > Build Your Brand.

New Restock Recommendations for Inventory

Amazon has introduced a new Restock recommendation feature that uses demand forecasting to help maintain healthy inventory levels for Fulfilled by Merchant listings. The tool provides:

Suggested restock quantities based on current inventory and projected demand
Estimated days of supply calculations
Forecasted eight-week demand trends using AI models

Products eligible for recommendations must have active sales in the last three months, projected demand, and current days of supply less than 14 days. Access these insights via your Manage Inventory page under "Restock notification" in the Inventory column.

🧠 PPC Insights: Amazon's AI-Powered Business Summary

Amazon has quietly launched a new AI feature that adds another tool to agencies' analytical arsenal.

What Is It:

The new "Business Performance Insights" feature (currently in Beta) appears at the top of the Sales Dashboard in Seller Central.

It provides an AI-generated summary of business performance, highlighting key metrics, trends, and potential areas of concern.

What It Analyzes:

Year-over-year sales comparisons with exact percentage changes
Unit sales trends and volume changes
Pricing strategy effectiveness and average selling price shifts
Traffic trends and conversion metrics
Feature offer percentage performance
Overall business health assessment with specific insights

Why This Matters For Agencies:

This feature offers complementary benefits to your existing analytical processes:

Quick Overview: Get a rapid snapshot of account health before diving into your more comprehensive analysis.
Conversation Starter: Use these AI-generated insights as discussion points during client meetings, alongside your agency's more nuanced, strategic guidance.
Validation Tool: Cross-check your own findings against Amazon's AI assessment to ensure you haven't missed key trends.
Additional Perspective: Consider it another data point that enhances—but doesn't replace—your agency's expertise and customized reporting.

While the feature is still in Beta, early versions show promising analysis capabilities.

This kind of automated insight works best when combined with your agency's strategic interpretation and customized recommendations that address the client's specific business context and goals.

🎯 Action Items for the Week

Explore the new Business Performance Insights feature in your clients' Seller Central accounts
Check out AWS's free AI training resources to enhance your agency's capabilities
Review your clients' inventory for the Ships in Product Packaging program
Access the new Amazon Brand Builder tool to strengthen your clients' brand presence
Reply with "demo" to learn more about streamlined client audit tools

💪 Quick Win of the Week

Leverage Amazon's new AI-generated business insights as a starting point for your next client report. Include a screenshot of the insights alongside your more detailed analysis to demonstrate the added value your agency provides beyond automated tools.

That's it for this week! Have questions or feedback? Hit reply - we read every response.

Forward this to an agency leader who needs to stay ahead of the curve.