Cart is empty Opening seller accounts on E-commerce Marketplaces has never been so difficult.
Every day, we receive messages from panicked sellers following the failure of their seller account opening. This phenomenon is growing, and more and more sellers are being blacklisted before they even have a chance to start selling.
Based on our experience, we have identified the 6 fatal mistakes
that new sellers generally make.
1. Creating multiple accounts
Whether you have a functional seller account or a suspended seller account, creating a second account without the Marketplace’s authorization is considered a violation of its rules.
This can result in your account being blocked and possibly even permanently banned, as well as your business and all the seller accounts you own.
The Marketplace sees this action as an attempt of fraud. Unless there is a justification for having multiple accounts, each company should only have one seller account.
To open multiple seller accounts, it is necessary to have a healthy seller account and prepare a strong argument before contacting the Marketplace services.
What should I do if my account is suspended?
Don’t wait, take action! If your account is suspended, disabled or banned, contact a Fenchell expert to activate or reactivate it quickly.
2. Fake Invoices
If there is one document absolutely crucial to succeed in registering on a marketplace, it is the Utility Bill of your Company:
Amazon, Cdiscount, Walmart, Mano-Mano, Otto, Galaxus, all Marketplaces now require genuine utility bill from your Company, to fight against “mailbox companies”.
Marketplaces want reliable partner-sellers, with resources, stock, good customer service, and for this, registration is like a job interview for your structure:
– Does your establishment have seniority?
– Does your establishment have a good reputation?
And the key question:
– Does your establishment have a real presence, justified by genuine invoices? (Water, electricity, internet, etc…)
Indeed, Marketplaces want to verify that you have a real office, invoices proving this, as an address can be verified on search engines, and the invoices you provide to justify occupancy of the premises can be verified by contacting the service providers whose invoice you present.
- Do fake invoices allow activation of a seller account?
Most invoices are now issued with a QR code, allowing Marketplaces to quickly verify the authenticity of the documents provided, thanks to direct contacts with suppliers from around the world.
In addition, Marketplaces receive many applications from sellers in your country and therefore analyze their invoices. As invoice numbers usually follow each other, Marketplaces can immediately detect anomalies in your fake invoice.
If in doubt, Marketplaces will contact the service provider who issued the invoice to verify your document.
- What are the consequences of fake invoices?
If your invoice is indeed found to be fake, you will most likely be banned from the platform, you, your company, and your seller accounts.
A complaint and legal action may also be taken against your company;
And your stock, confiscated or destroyed if it has been entrusted to the Marketplace in question.
Likewise, if you do not provide suitable invoices at all, Marketplaces may suspend the activation of your account and prevent you from closing or creating others until a relevant invoice is presented to them.
- What to do to obtain genuine utility bills?
It is therefore necessary to have a company, even established abroad, generating genuine invoices for water, electricity, or internet.
Fenchell registers Offshore Companies for you in several countries, with such monthly issued invoices.
3. Invalid bank card
Most marketplaces require the registration of business credit cards in order to deduct operating fees throughout the life of your seller account.
The most common mistake is to enter a personal credit card instead of a business one, which can disqualify your registration on the marketplaces.
- Is it true that a credit card is necessary for registration?
A credit card is always preferred by marketplaces over a debit card. This is because a credit card is linked to a revolving credit, which allows marketplaces to protect themselves in case of disputes with you. They can deduct the money you owe them, and the bank will come after you to repay the credit that was triggered.
However, some marketplaces may accept a debit card.
Remember this rule:
It is better to register a personal credit card on your seller account than a professional debit card. Of course, it is ideal to register a professional credit card.
- Do I need to pay attention to anything else regarding the credit card?
It is mandatory to fund and activate the credit card before registering it on your seller account. If your credit card does not allow activation deductions by the marketplaces due to non-funding or non-activation, the credit card is considered null and void, and your account may be suspended or permanently banned without the possibility of appeal.
Fenchell registers offshore companies in several countries for you, with bank accounts registered in local banks, accompanied by high-limit credit cards.
4. Disguised IP
Marketplaces regularly deploy new defensive measures to combat unprofitable sellers or fraudsters.
Their defense systems record the IP addresses of both customers and sellers. A seller is expected to use a clean IP address, meaning an IP address no other seller has ever been connected to.
- What happens if multiple sellers connect from the same IP address?
If multiple sellers try to log in from the same IP address, it could mean:
1) Either they are using a VPN, in which case they are violating the rules of the marketplaces and trying to hide something compromising.
2) They are using a legitimate local IP, and this may indicate to the marketplace that it is possibly the same person trying to create multiple seller accounts. Which is prohibited without permission.
In both cases, marketplaces may disable all seller accounts that have been, or are connected to, that IP address. This IP address will be blacklisted, and no seller will be able to use it to create or manage a seller account, even legitimately.
Fenchell register seller accounts for you on the marketplaces of your choice, using clean IP addresses, ensuring that you have solid seller accounts in the long term.
5. 3D Secure Authentication
Almost systematically, Marketplaces require sellers to connect to a 3D Secure authentication system, often linked to a real phone number, as well as an application like “Authy.”
Using a QR code to scan, your application generates a temporary code every 15 seconds.
In this way, Marketplaces ensure that your account is perfectly secure. Without this application and a real phone number, your account may never be activated.
6. Phone number
To register your seller account, Marketplaces will ask you to provide a real professional phone number from the country where your company is registered.
This number will allow Marketplaces to send you confirmation SMS messages or even call you.
- Why is it important to pay particular attention to the origin of my phone number?
It is necessary to use a phone number that is not associated with any other duplicate account on the Marketplace you are targeting. Otherwise, just like with IP addresses, the verification team may suspect that you are attempting to commit fraud and may permanently ban your account.
Virtual numbers are also problematic. Marketplaces have systems to verify whether a number is attached to a real SIM card or whether it is a frequently redistributed virtual number. In the latter case, your chances of obtaining your seller account decrease.
Fenchell registers seller accounts for you on the Marketplaces of your choice, as well as provides real local phone numbers from SIM cards, guaranteeing your complete credibility with the Marketplaces.
Conclusion
Marketplaces are implementing increasingly sophisticated verification systems in order to eliminate amateur and unprofitable sellers.
Even if your seller account successfully passes registration despite questionable documents, the Marketplace will eventually catch up with you during new verifications:
For example, Amazon rechecks all of your documents once you reach $15,000 in cumulative sales.
If your account is identified as not credible, it will be suspended or immediately banned, with no possibility for you and your business to create a new one.
Every month, our Fenchell experts witness dramatic cases during client consultations:
Last month, we assisted a successful Amazon seller who had been active for a year and whose business was booming.
One day, his account was abruptly suspended by Amazon due to falsified invoices.
He had 30 days to provide credible documents, but could not do so because his invoices were indeed fake.
Unfortunately, after the 30 days expired, Amazon destroyed his stock worth $150,000 and his account remained blocked, with other Marketplaces acting in the same way.
It cannot be emphasized enough:
Your seller account is the cornerstone of your business.
Therefore, it is crucial to create it carefully and maintain its health.
Be impeccable and carefully read the policies of the Marketplaces on which you wish to thrive.
Links to the policies of each Marketplace: