Secure early reviews and boost social proof with Amazon Vine
Customer reviews are a big predictor for any product’s success on Amazon, offering the crucial social proof that will influence many shoppers’ decision-making while they compare your listings with your close competitors’.
With 97% of customers reporting that Amazon reviews influence their purchasing decisions, most vendors know how important reviews are for the success of their brand, but getting them for a brand new ASIN is a challenge.
Amazon Vine can help you get those all-important first reviews and ensure your listings reflect the quality of your products from day one. In this guide, we’ll explore what Amazon’s Vine program is, the benefits it can offer your Amazon marketing, and how you can join Amazon Vine as a vendor to maximise the value of your product launch.
What is Amazon Vine?
Amazon Vine is a program available to both vendors and sellers, designed to help brands selling on Amazon to build reviews at a product’s point of launch, gaining trust and social proof without having to build sales volume first.
When you join the Amazon Vine program, you’ll be able to send the products you want reviewed to Amazon, who will then send them on to a select group of reviewers.
The users who provide Amazon Vine reviews have already established themselves as an active part of the platform’s reviewing community, and are selected based on criteria such as their reviewer rank, reviewing consistency, the quality of their reviews, and their overall reputation.
The reviewers get a free product in exchange for their feedback, while the vendor gets those all-important early reviews, and Amazon itself benefits from improved sales volume.
How does Amazon’s Vine program work for vendors?
Getting reviews through Amazon Vine follows the same basic process for both Vendors and Sellers.
You start by applying to the program and sending your products to Amazon, along with some key details. Amazon will then select the products eligible for Vine participation based on a few factors, such as the product’s category, availability, and the current customer demand for the product type.
Once your products are approved, they’ll become available to reviewers in the program, known as Vince Voices. Vine Voices are given a list of products they can choose to review, with the option to choose up to five products at a time. When these requests are submitted, you’ll send the products to the reviewer free of charge, and the reviewer will be required to send an honest, unbiased review of the product within 30 days of receiving it.
Once Amazon receives the agreed-upon reviews, they’ll post them to your product’s detail page, accompanied by a special badge which shows that the review is part of Amazon’s Vine program.
Remember that Amazon Vine reviewers don’t get any compensation for their participation other than the product itself, and they’re under no obligation to give you a positive review. However, Amazon can remove reviewers from the program if they write too many consistently negative or biased reviews, so you can usually be confident that reviews you receive will be fair and balanced.
Launching a new product on Amazon? Our Vendor management services will build momentum for your listings from day one and help you unlock Amazon’s untapped potential. Find out more
The benefits of Amazon Vine reviews
With reviews having such a big influence on a given product listing’s success, there are several benefits that a new brand or product can enjoy by getting enrolled in Amazon’s Vine program.
Here’s a look at some of the key advantages of using Amazon Vine for vendors.
Social proof
The most obvious benefit of joining Amazon Vine is the ability to generate reviews immediately following a product launch, and giving your new ASIN that all-important social proof which convinces customers the product is worth the price.
When launching a new product without Amazon Vine, brands have to work hard to generate some initial sales volume, and hope that their first few reviews are convincing enough to impact their sales. This process can be particularly arduous, as Vendors may have to invest in expensive Amazon advertising campaigns to achieve enough initial sales that result in reviews.
With Amazon Vine, you’ll be able to achieve the same boost in social proof, without the need to generate initial sales, and with a more solid guarantee of the number of reviews you’ll receive on a specific set of products.
Higher review quality
Amazon Vine Voices, the users who provide Amazon Vine reviews, are invited to the program due to having a history of providing high-quality reviews. This means their reviews are more likely to be detailed and high-quality, rather than simple one-line comments that many products receive.
Though Vine reviewers are under no obligation to give positive reviews, joining the program will increase your chances of accumulating detailed, informative reviews that highlight your product’s core USPs and talk about the situations where your product has solved a customer pain point.
These reviews will stand a better chance of convincing your target audience that the product is right for them, and drive your sales soon after launch.
Improved brand awareness
Aside from driving raw sales, being on Amazon Vine can support your brand awareness and help get your product in front of more people within your target audience.
By simply having reviews on a new ASIN, your products will receive a boost in visibility in Amazon’s algorithm, and get your brand in front of a higher proportion of your target market. The special “Vine Voice” tag attached to these reviews will also stand out within the customer reviews section, lending the review more credibility as the opinion of a top reviewer.
Early launch feedback
Because of the detailed format of Amazon Vine reviews, they can be a good way to gather in-depth feedback on your product’s key strengths and weaknesses, as well as potential improvements your audience may want to see in the future.
Like other kinds of market research, these pointers can be an invaluable way to inform new product development in the future, or powerful new angles for your marketing campaigns.
How much does Amazon Vine cost?
Amazon charges a one-off enrolment fee for each parent ASIN, which is calculated based on the number of units enrolled in the program.
Since October 2023, the fees for Amazon Vine enrolment based on units are:
1-2 Units - £0.00
3-10 Units - £60.00
11-30 Units - £160.00
This fee structure helps to make Vine more accessible if your products already have some reviews, and you don’t need more than 10 to improve your products’ visibility and start getting the traction you need.
Amazon Vine eligibility requirements for vendors
Though Amazon Vine is a fairly accessible way for new Vendors to gain traction for their products, it’s not open to everyone.
Here are the requirements you’ll need to meet to take advantage of Amazon’s Vine program:
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You must be enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry.
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The product you want to enrol must have less than 30 ratings or reviews.
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The product must be sold under an FBA (fulfilled by Amazon) agreement.
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The product must already be launched and available on Amazon when you try to enrol it.
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The product’s live Amazon listing page must have an image, title, and description when you try to enrol it.
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The product must have its minimum inventory level, based on your FBA agreement, when you try to enrol it.
Having trouble navigating eligibility for Amazon Vine? Our Vendor Central experts can help simplify the rules around the program and guide you through the steps you need to take to make your product available to Vine reviewers. Get in touch
How to join Amazon Vine for vendors
Once you’ve established that your brand is eligible for Amazon’s Vine program, you can start taking the steps needed to enrol your brand in the program.
Here’s a look at how to join Amazon Vine for brands on Vendor Central.
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Click on the “Merchandising” tab from the main navigation menu on Vendor Central, then select “Amazon Vine” from the drop-down.
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Click the “enrol your product” button, then enter the ASIN for the eligible product you’d like to enrol in the text box, then the “Search” button.
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Choose your Payment Type in the next pop-up window. You can either opt for the Standard Enrolment Fee, which will charge you the basic Amazon Vine per-unit enrolment fee discussed earlier or the “Apply to Existing Contract” option, where your fees are determined by agreements you have with Amazon.
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Select your Billing Vendor Code from the drop-down menu in the next window, then click the “Submit” button.
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Carefully review the product details you’ve submitted on the next page, and edit them if you find you’ve made a mistake.
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Enter any information you’d like to share with Amazon Vine reviewers in the Description field.
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Choose an option from the Earliest Launch Date field. This can either be “As Soon As Possible”, which means Vine reviewers will be able to request your products as soon as Amazon receives inventory at their fulfilment centre, or a specific date up to 90 days in the future.
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Enter the unit quantity of the product in the “Enrolled Quantity” text box.
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Click the “Next” button, then the “Submit” button, to agree to the terms of the enrolment and the associated fee.
Alternative ways to get trusted reviews on Amazon
As an Amazon Vendor, enrolling your products on Amazon Vine remains the most consistent and reliable way to stimulate reviews for a new product and get that all-important traction immediately after a launch.
However, if you want to give your social proof a little extra boost, or you can’t access Amazon’s Vine program for whatever reason, there are additional ways to get reviews on Amazon you may want to consider.
Here are 4 alternative methods to get reviews on Amazon, without violating Amazon’s policies.
1. Ask for reviews through social media or your DTC newsletter
Customers who follow your brand’s social media channels or DTC newsletters are likely to have a stronger personal connection to your brand compared to Amazon users who have bought your product on a whim.
Showcasing positive reviews on Amazon, and prompting your customers to share their own opinions, can be an effective way to stimulate Amazon reviews, while also fostering a sense of community that will encourage brand loyalty and additional feedback on your products.
2. Use third-party tools
Some third-party Amazon tools, for example Jungle Scout, have features that allow you to send automated review requests to customers who buy your product through Amazon.
These tools often have various settings you can use to adjust the way you send out review requests, and match your approach to reviews based on your unique relationship with your customer base. These features often include delaying the request to a certain time period after the order is fulfilled, or skipping the automatic request depending on the product or other particulars about the order.
Bear in mind that Amazon has stringent policies about how brands can use their messaging platform to contact customers, and will sanction vendors who violate these. To avoid this, it’s crucial to research any third-party tool thoroughly before you use it, and ask the company’s sales reps about how they avoid breaching Amazon’s terms of service.
3. Use Amazon-friendly product inserts
Product inserts are cards shipped with your Amazon products providing additional product information, and can be another effective way of improving your reviews-per-shipment rate.
However, just like using third-party review request tools, it’s important to note that Amazon has very stringent rules about using product inserts.
While Amazon doesn’t ban product inserts outright, it can be easy for vendors to make innocent mistakes that go against Amazon policies. It’s crucial to familiarise yourself with these rules before utilising inserts to avoid any negative backlash.
Some key rules to bear in mind include:
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Product inserts must provide useful, relevant information about the product or brand, e.g warranty details, care tips, or usage instructions.
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Product inserts must not make any attempt to direct the customer away from the Amazon platform, for example to your own website or social media pages.
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Product inserts must not make any attempt to encourage a positive review, whether that’s simply asking for one, or incentivising customers with gifts, discounts, etc.
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Product inserts must not include any contact information tied to your brand, for example your email or phone number. Amazon wants to keep any customer service issues within their own communication channels, and giving customers alternative communication channels will take Amazon users away from the platform.
4. Provide fantastic customer service
Often, the best way to encourage more Amazon reviews isn’t actively pursuing them with tricks or tools, but making sure you provide consistently great customer service.
When people have a positive experience with your brand, they’ll be more inclined to leave positive reviews and let others know what they’ve enjoyed about shopping with you.
To attract reviews through customer service, you should be doing everything you can in the way of logistics to ensure meticulous quality control of the products you send through Amazon, and make sure there’s always someone available on Amazon’s communication channels to resolve product or order issues.
The results may not be as instantaneous as Amazon Vine reviews or similar methods. However, making sure your customer service is always exceptional will provide an important foundation for building customer relationships, and maximise your chances of building reviews organically in the long run.
Amazon Vine FAQs
Getting those first few reviews for a new product on Amazon can be a challenge, but enrolling your ASINs on Amazon Vine is a great way to overcome that first hurdle and get your brand growing.
We’ll round off with some frequently asked questions on Amazon Vine for quick reference while you improve your review profile and unlock the potential of Vendor Central.
For more support, be sure to check out our other blog posts, or get in touch to find out how our Vendor management, advertising, and content optimisation services can help you.
What is Amazon Vine?
Amazon Vine is a program designed to help vendors and sellers generate early product reviews by providing free products to a select group of trusted reviewers, known as Vine Voices. These reviewers give honest, unbiased feedback, which helps establish social proof and increase product visibility for your products.
Who are Vine Voices, and how are they selected?
Vine Voices are experienced Amazon reviewers chosen based on their reviewer rank, the quality of their reviews, and their reviewing consistency. They do not receive compensation beyond the free product and are trusted to provide balanced feedback.
Why should vendors use Amazon Vine?
Amazon Vine helps vendors generate high-quality reviews early in a product’s lifecycle, increasing credibility and sales potential. Participation can also improve brand awareness, provide valuable customer feedback, and enhance your product visibility on Amazon.
How much does it cost to enrol in Amazon Vine?
The cost of enrolling on Amazon Vine depends on the number of units enrolled:
1-2 units: Free
3-10 units: £60
11-30 units: £160
What are the eligibility requirements for Amazon Vine?
To qualify for Amazon Vine, vendors must:
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Be enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry.
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Have fewer than 30 ratings or reviews on the product they want to enrol.
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Sell the product under Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA).
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Ensure the product is already launched and available on Amazon.
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Have a complete product listing with an image, title, and description.
How can vendors enrol their products in Amazon Vine?
Vendors can join through the Amazon Vendor Central portal by navigating to the “Merchandising” tab, selecting “Amazon Vine,” and following the enrolment process, including selecting a payment type and setting launch dates.
