You and 3,999 others are here to enjoy this newsletter or I’ll leave my dishes in the sink for a week to “soak.”

Welcome back friend!
And a big welcome to the +108 new readers this week!

If wealth is the goal, it’s hard to get there by working for someone else.
75% of billionaires are entrepreneurs. They didn’t get rich on an hourly wage.

A job can pay well. It still trades time for money. That’s a ceiling.

“Give me a lever long enough and I can move the world.”

To become truly wealthy, use leverage.
Leverage multiplies (2x, 4x, 100x) your effort.

Are you using any of these in your Amazon business?

Employees → People working for you

Code → Software & automations that run 24/7

Capital → Invested money

Media → Content, brand, and distribution that reach millions

Intellectual Property → Books, courses, patents, frameworks

Systems → Processes that work without you

Sponsored by Stack Influence

Amazon sellers call it Page-2 Purgatory

• ✅ Ad spend burns.

• ✅ Reviews crawl.

• ✅ Competitors leapfrog you.

If you’re here, Q4 won’t save you.

The fix? Verified purchases that lift rank within days.

That’s exactly what a toddler-pillow brand did - going from ~50 orders/mo to 500, hitting #18 in category rank in just a week.

Here’s what you get with Stack Influence:

• 📈 Climb fast: Verified buyers drive sustained rank momentum.

• 📸 Own UGC: Unlimited photos & videos you can reuse.

• 🤑 Zero influencer fees: Just product cost, no cash payouts.

• 🤝 Long-term leverage: Convert top performers into affiliates.

Proof it works: One Shark Tank brand used this flow to hit a 13× ROI and leap into top-seller status on Amazon.

👉 Get My 7-Day Rank Bump Plan

✅The Instant Value Section (IVS)✅

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

Huge thank you to Andrew Bell for supplying this week’s IVS. Andrew has basically branded himself as “The RUFUS guy.” If you care anything about AI & Amazon, he is 100% the person to follow. Case in point: his 8000 word post on how Rufus is Amazon’s most important Agentic AI. Thanks again, Andrew!

From “best running shoes” to “fix my knees”

SEO is not dead. In fact, if you are serious about AI, it has never been more important. As search evolves, optimization is no longer about chasing algorithms, it’s about aligning with how people think, feel, and act when they turn to search engines. AI-driven search systems are only making this alignment more critical, rewarding brands that understand intent and authenticity.

Search queries are not just transactional; they are deeply emotional. Consumers often search in moments of need, seeking solutions, reassurance, or inspiration. By recognizing the emotional undertones behind queries, brands can create content that resonates beyond the surface level. This emotional connection transforms a casual browser into a loyal customer, fostering trust that extends far beyond a single transaction.

To truly harness consumer intent, we must look past superficial keywords and address deeper motivations. A search for “best running shoes,” for example, isn’t just about footwear, it reflects a desire for health, performance, and comfort. Effective SEO responds to these motivations by combining empathy, creativity, and data-driven insights, guiding consumers toward a purchase decision that feels natural and rewarding.

At the foundation of this process is keyword research. Titles, descriptions, and bullet points filled with relevant, intent-driven keywords remain essential for discoverability. Yet the nuance lies in understanding why people use those terms. Are they gathering information, comparing options, or ready to buy? Tailoring your content to meet them at the right stage in their journey is the true key to effective optimization.

SEO today requires a holistic approach that blends authority with nuance. Building brand credibility through consistent, high-quality content ensures visibility in AI-powered results, while avoiding outdated practices like keyword stuffing keeps content engaging and human-friendly. Instead, focus on context-rich narratives supported by natural language and related terms.

…In this environment, AI isn’t a replacement for SEO, it’s the reason SEO matters more than ever.

Using Nanobanana, I made a new main image in 1 1/2 minutes

Everyone’s talking about Gemini 2.5 Flash (Nanobanana) and for good reason. It’s simply the most impressive AI image generator I’ve ever seen. Here’s a video of me making a new, higher converting main image in a minute.

Seriously.

Which version of Sodastream's main image do you think converts better?

My friend Oliver Bradley dropped another bomb on me in a recent call.

He showed me two Sodasteam's website which had two versions of main images:

• The Full bottle (product as is)

• Half bottle (product digitally altered)

Guess which gets a better CTR? Exactly. The half bottle. Think about it. What do you actually need to know before buying?

1. Brand

2. Flavor

3. Size

That’s about it.

The half-bottle version looks cleaner, gives you all the info you need, and just feels better. Even though you’re not seeing the whole thing! If you’re selling a long, rectangular product, this is how you boost CTR and improve the buying experience.

Gone are the days of showing your product as it is. This shows a digitally enhanced product (and only half of it). And it's a way better buying experience for the customer than a picture of the actual product. Crazy, I know.

Still showing your product on Amazon "as it actually is?" E-Com is different than retail. Don't treat them the same.

Uh, it rains a LOT in Costa Rica

The last two weeks have been all about erosion control and drainage. Rainy season is here, and with the new house the ground been shifted (already), so we need to reinforce everything and manage the water properly. It is shocking how much rain can fall in such a short time. We are seeing dirt washing away and areas starting to erode.

The fixes are simple but important. Certain plants with deep roots help hold the soil. And when that is not enough, we build a wall. Max also told me the landscaping needs to be finished before he arrives in January, so I have some work to do to make sure it is ready.
It’s not all peachy in paradise.

The Second 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 Ad Targets Bulk Optimizer.

Sounds complicated. It isn’t. This tool allows you to add a single SKU or any number of SKUs to any number of campaigns. Instantly.

The Deep Dive (Premium Content)

Using only English on your main image in non-English speaking countries is a problem

Selling your product in other marketplaces? Don’t cram every language into one image.

Here’s the better approach: Create separate, language-specific images.

Japanese, German, French... your main image packaging can be in any language you choose.
Simply alter the digital product image to reflect the language of the country you're selling in.

Amazon won't care, and your customers will be more likely to click on your listing.

How?

1) Navigate to Image Manager (Hamburger > Catalog > Upload Images)
2) Click "Bulk Image Upload"
3) Choose "Country-specific images"  (click here button)
4) Inside, upload your image, then choose your country.

Watch your CTR Soar.

It’s time to stop using debit cards

You should (almost) never use a debit card. Not at gas pumps, not at restaurants, not online, not for subscriptions. Debit pulls real cash from your account. If a card reader is skimmed or a site gets hacked, your money is gone while the bank “looks into it.”

Holds and duplicate charges lock up your rent and payroll. Refunds take days. Meanwhile you are juggling bills. Credit is a buffer. Fraud hits the bank’s money first. You file a dispute, keep your cash, and move on. You also get chargeback leverage when a merchant ghosts you, plus perks debit rarely offers: extended warranty, purchase protection, price protection, return coverage. Defense first, perks second.

Credit also builds your score if you pay in full. That score lowers insurance, gets you better rates, and opens higher limits that protect cash flow. Put every predictable bill on a credit card. Set autopay to pay statement balance in full. Use a no-fee card for everyday spend and a category card for big buckets like groceries or gas. Keep your debit card for two things only: cash withdrawals at your bank’s ATM and emergency access if your card network is down. Never hand it to a waiter. Never type it into a checkout form. Never use it at a kiosk that looks sketchy.

Do not overthink points. They are a bonus for spending you already do. The real win is protection and control. Pay with credit. Pay it off. Keep your cash safe and liquid. That’s the game.

How to Avoid a $300,000 Surprise When Building in Costa Rica

We just finished our house in Costa Rica, and one lesson stands out: avoid turnkey contracts.

Here, “turnkey” means a fixed-price build. The builder locks in their profit up front, then cuts costs anywhere they can. That usually means cheap labor, cheap materials, and endless headaches.

Our neighbor’s build was promised last November. It is still not done. A friend moved in late and found her place falling apart. She had to move into a rental while the builder “fixed” things. They are still fixing.

The money side is even worse. You hand over big payments, they spend it, then rely on the next client’s down payment to keep your project moving. Any change you want becomes a “change order” at whatever price they decide. One friend had $300K in change orders on a $500K house.

Turnkey builders win jobs by quoting cheap and make up the difference later. We chose cost-plus with a management fee. If we wanted a change, we only paid the real cost of labor and materials. No padded fees. No battles.

If you plan to build in Costa Rica, skip the turnkey trap.

• Dana asks if anyone is doing their own importing from Canada to USA

• Amazon takes down 275K fake reviews

Amazon’s Variation Armageddon is not coming?

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To your unbounded success,

Rob & Max