The Selling From the Beach Newsletter

You and 3,999 others are here to enjoy this newsletter or i’ll steal a baseball from a child on national TV.

Welcome back friend!
And a big welcome to the +74 new readers this week!

Amazon Accelerate starts tomorrow. See you there?

Conferences are worth it. Always. Not because the content is mind blowing (it rarely is), but because of the people. People are the real ROI.
Business ROI.
Friendship ROI.
Life ROI.

And if we are talking about people worth meeting, you could do a lot worse than meeting the Amazonians at Amazon Accelerate. They are the ones who can pull strings, get your account reinstated, slip you into a profitable beta, or just go to bat for you when an algorithm, bot, or poorly-trained seller support rep inevitably throws a wrench in your business.

This is my 4th year! Every year I have met Amazon employees who were not just smart, but kind and willing to help. And when the sh*t hits the fan (because it always does), nothing beats having a direct line to someone higher up who actually knows you.

You should go. 

Sponsored by Seller Snap

Seller Snap just launched DataHub→ a powerful new analytics platform built to help Amazon sellers turn their data into decisions.

Designed to replace clunky spreadsheets and scattered tools, DataHub gives sellers a clear view of profitability, performance, inventory trends, and competitor behavior, all in one lightning-fast dashboard. Filter and group data by brand, ASIN, SKU, store, or fulfillment method to unlock real insights and make better decisions, faster.

Track FBA vs. FBM, B2B vs. B2C, monitor trends over time, and compare store performance with built-in currency conversion. Whether you're a solo seller or managing multiple marketplaces, DataHub gives you the visibility you’ve been missing.

Now included free for all Seller Snap users.

✅The Instant Value Section (IVS)✅

(aren't you glad you opened the email now?)

Huge thank you to the endlessly kind Danny McMillan who supplied this week’s IVS. Danny spent recently over an hour with me fixing an issue with my n8n workflows. And didn’t ask for anything in return.

Danny is the host of the incredibly popular podcast Seller Sessions, and helps sellers every day with his PPC agency, databrill. If you ever meet Danny, consider yourself extremely lucky. Danny is also the first person to be a repeat feature in the IVS!

MCPs: Shaping the Future of Your Amazon Business

You might haven’t heard this term yet, but you will: MCPs.

(This writeup is a summary of my full MCP guide for Amazon businesses, here.)

This is a little bit “in the weeds,” but stick with me, it will be worth it I promise.

MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, which sounds like something only engineers would care about, but hang on. Think of it like when USB-C came along and suddenly every charger worked for everything. Before that? A drawer full of random cords. MCPs basically do that for AI. They let tools like Claude (or ChatGPT, or whatever you’re using) plug directly into the stuff you already run your business on, like Gmail, Sheets, Clickup, even Seller Central.

Why does that matter? Because right now, when you ask AI about your business, it’s half guessing. MCPs fix that. They feed the AI your actual data so it stops hallucinating and starts acting like a legit assistant. And no, you don’t need to be a coder. Setting this up is like 20 to 30 minutes tops. Way easier than the usual “automation” nonsense people hype on LinkedIn.

Imagine this: invoices hit your Gmail and they’re already sitting in a neat P&L spreadsheet. Or Seller Central stock checks happen in the background and you get pinged before you hit dangerous levels. Or competitor price changes get tracked automatically without you wasting a Sunday night clicking through listings. Even PPC analysis. You can have it spot wasted spend patterns and tell you what to cut. That’s the level of grunt work you can wipe off your plate.

The big guys are going to take a year to “evaluate” all this. You could have a working system this week. My advice is simple. Start with something safe like Gmail or Sheets in read-only mode. See it working. Then slowly open it up. The rule of thumb is this: if the task needs your expertise but not your creativity, it’s perfect for MCPs.

Read the rest of the article, here.

Interview w/ a VINE Reviewer

My friend Fred McKinnon interviewed an actual VINE Reviewer and he dropped some really interesting tips that I haven’t heard before (and I’ve heard everything).

TL;DW (Too long; Didn’t watch)

• Invited to VINE through a push notification on his phone. He had low return rates and high purchase rates.

• There are VINE tiers - Silver & Gold. Silver reviewers can claim 3 products PER DAY up to $100. Gold reviewers can claim 8 products PER DAY with no price limit.

• It's important to make sure the product that you're putting on VINE can be easily understood by the VINE reviewer - for example, no weird car parts that nobody could use.

• Reviewers do not receive direct pay but must report product value as income. Amazon issues a 1099. Costs the vine reviewer around 25% of the product cost.

• Sellers should use realistic sizing there are too many misleading product photos.

• Use a lower sale price at launch (strikethrough) instead of a coupon. It costs the VINE reviewer less and you are much less likely to get a negative review about the price.

Virtual Multipacks are Finally Here

In case you missed the news, Virtual Multipacks (or VMP's) are launching ASAP. This is not to be confused with Virtual Bundles (VB’s).

(thanks Tyler Wallis for the share)

The key difference? VMP’s are groups of the same product, whereas VB’s are groups of different products.

Also, while VB’s have their own section on the PDP, VMP’s will appear as variations. Like VB’s, VMP’s will combine multiple units of your existing FBA ASINs into a new group. No action needs to be taken from you. Images will auto-generate and no fulfillment, labeling, bundling needed from the seller.

I am honestly pretty pumped for this one - sellers have been trying to get Amazon to do this for a long time. What do you think?

BUT, there are some “Gotchas:”

• You cannot pick which SKUs you want to add (only Amazon can)

• You’re still paying the same fees. If you sell 2 items, it’s like you sold 1 item twice. So, if you find that you’re selling a lot of a certain VMP, just make an actual bundle for it and save the fees.

• Default price will be set as 2x whatever your current price is

The State of Amazon Reimbursements September 2025

It's been a minute since people have talked about reimbursements, so what is going on?
Check out this review where I explore the best reimbursements company on the market right now (Yes, there is still money to be found!).

Read on. 

Poolside Football the Way It’s Meant to Be

Fantasy Football is here! A small group of friends and I get together and watch a lot of NFL during the season. This year we will be in our new house, watching football from the pool. That is the way football was meant to be. About 15 years ago I remember sitting in the pool at the beach club while on vacation, watching football, and thinking, “This is life.”

We now run three leagues: a family league, a Costa Rica friends league, and a Canadian league. Two of them are two quarterback formats, and if you have never tried that version, it really changes the game.

I am proud to say my son Jackson drafted Josh Allen and instantly became my favorite child for that day LOL. My other son Chase was disappointed he did not land Ja’Marr Chase, so he settled for Chase Brown. You can probably guess how he made his pick.

Exit.io, built by the sellerboard team, connects Amazon FBA buyers and sellers directly. Sync financials from sellerboard, share details under NDA, and negotiate without brokers or fees. Create transparent listings in minutes. Exit.io is free to use until the end of the year.

The Fourth Round of PPC Tools!

My good friend Anthony Nguyen over at Adscrafted has been quietly building an army of PPC tools. Here’s another one for you.

Meet the Wasted Ad Spend Analyzer.

Find out where you're spending money on PPC but not getting any sales.... and it all boils down to one metric, "Wasted Ratio."

One of my personal favorites.

The Deep Dive (Premium Content)

Amazon MCF is insanely fast

Are your other selling platforms still using slow shipping profiles?

Do this. In Seller Central, go to:
FBA Dashboard > Analytics > Multi Channel Fulfillment (MCF).

Check “Click to Deliver” (real speed for non Amazon orders).
Make every platform match it (Shopify, Walmart, Etsy, Ebay, etc...)
Fewer late shipments and higher conversion.
Start in the MCF view, then update Shopify, Etsy, and Walmart to mirror your real ship times!

Watch this 2 minute video and enjoy higher conversions permanently.
(Thank me later)

Using Airbnb? Here’s how to get way more points:

If you’re booking an Airbnb, don’t just pay directly on their site. You can stack points for way more value. The trick is to buy Airbnb gift cards at a grocery store with your Amex Gold/Chase Sapphire Reserve, then run the booking through the British Airways × Airbnb link (u get British airways points, too). British Airways & Airbnb have an awesome partnership (that way you’re double-dipping). This works for one main reason: Airbnb is coded as travel.

Workflow:

1. Buy Airbnb gift cards at your local grocery store using your Credit Card→ earn 4-5 points per dollar.

2. Load the gift cards into your Airbnb account before booking.

3. Start your booking through the British Airways × Airbnb link.

4. Book your Airbnb stay → earn 4 Amex points + 2 BA points per dollar.

5. Simple extra step = more points for the same spend.

Independence Day in Costa Rica

Costa Rica celebrates Independence Day on September 15, also called Día de la Independencia. In 1821, Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica) declared independence from Spain. Costa Rica gained independence without big wars against Spain, just a few small regional fights.

The celebration starts with traditions like the Torch Run, lantern parades, and plenty of traditional dances. The torch run is especially cool. It begins in Guatemala and moves through every Central American country until it reaches Costa Rica. It reminds us how news used to spread. There were no newspapers or radios at the time. Instead, horseback messengers carried lanterns and torches, and it took weeks for Costa Rica to hear they were independent.

The torch tradition continues today across Central America, keeping that piece of history alive.

• Rob has a really good reason to switch over to Wise

Amazon bans OFX

If you do any kind of cross-border selling, having a virtual bank account is a godsend. Amazon charges high currency conversion fees and having a different option is super important (although they do charge a lot less than they used to, 4%) It's still significantly higher than most of the other financial services providers.

Not to mention that sometimes Amazon just decides to ban or close down your account for no good reason. When my family’s livelihood is on the line, trusting Amazon with my bank account doesn’t seem too appealing.

Amazon is doing what they always do: slowly eating the world. Taking over more and more stuff. Utilizing partners until they don’t need them anymore and can build their own.

Ingram Book Co. handled Amazon’s early fulfillment, until they figured out how to do it themselves. Akamai (who? Exactly.) handled web services until AWS. UPS, FedEx & USPS did shipping until Amazon Shipping. Kiva became Amazon Robotics. And on and on.

Eventually you won't even be able to use virtual banks. And we'll only be able to use one bank. Amazon’s bank.

How was today's newsletter? Love it? Hate it? Imagining midday naps with only the sound of waves? 🌊

• I loved it! 🌊🌊🌊

• It was okay 🌊🌊

• Not good. 🌊

To your unbounded success,

Rob & Max