Catalog Management & Compliance

Amazon’s main image requirements: pure white background (RGB 255,255,255), product filling 85% of the frame, minimum 1,600 pixels on the longest side for zoom to enable, and no text, watermarks, or promotional overlays. The image should show the actual product in the exact variant a shopper receives. No lifestyle context, no hands holding it, no packaging unless packaging IS the product. Amazon’s automated compliance system is aggressive; a single background speck can fail the check and send you into a manual review queue that takes days. Most main-image failures are preventable at the shoot with tight production briefs.

No, selling a supplement on Amazon doesn’t require FDA approval, because the FDA regulates supplements but doesn’t “approve” them. What Amazon requires is a third-party TIC (testing, inspection, certification) report from a qualifying lab, GMP-certified manufacturing documentation, and compliant labeling. Compliant labeling means no drug claims, a proper Supplement Facts panel, and the standard structure/function claim disclaimer. Supplements get pulled when brands use drug-claim language (“treats,” “cures,” “prevents”) or when TIC documentation expires. FDA approval is the wrong mental model; compliance with FDA supplement regulations is the right one.

Structure/function claims describe how a supplement supports normal body function (“supports joint health,” “promotes immune response”). Disease claims assert that a product treats, cures, or prevents a specific disease (“treats arthritis,” “cures insomnia”) and require FDA drug approval. Which supplements cannot make. Structure/function claims are legal if truthful and not misleading. Disease claims cannot be made by supplements at all. The line matters because a single wrong word on an Amazon listing triggers suppression and potentially an FDA warning letter.

The FTC’s fake review rule (effective October 2024) prohibits purchasing, selling, or manipulating consumer reviews, including undisclosed insider reviews from employees, AI-written reviews without human attribution, and suppression of negative reviews through manipulation. Penalties run up to $51,744 per violation, and “per violation” can mean per review. Amazon mirrors FTC rules in its own policy and suspends listings found in violation. The biggest operator trap: buying review services from “reviewer farms” advertised in Facebook groups. The entire structure is illegal and Amazon’s detection has gotten aggressive.

A parent ASIN is the top-level product concept (e.g., "Brand X Running Shoe"). Child ASINs are the specific variants under it, size 9, size 10, black, navy, 2-pack, 4-pack. The parent doesn't sell directly — shoppers always buy a child variant — but reviews, Q&A, and ranking signals roll up to the parent. That's why variation family structure matters for SEO: splitting a family punishes your review velocity, and merging unrelated products into one family confuses shoppers and triggers policy violations.

Amazon requires third-party lab testing reports from ISO 17025-accredited labs (NSF, UL, ABC, Covance, Eurofins) for every supplement SKU. The report must cover identity, potency, purity (heavy metals, microbials, pesticides), and allergen verification. Reports expire annually. Amazon re-requests them on a rolling 12-month cycle. Missing or expired TIC documentation is the #1 reason supplement listings get suspended in 2026 (enforcement tightened significantly in 2024). Budget $800–$3,000 per SKU for testing.

A CPC is the document certifying that a children's product has been third-party lab tested and complies with all applicable US children's product safety rules (lead, phthalates, small parts, age-appropriate design). The CPC must be issued by the importer or domestic manufacturer, accompany every shipment, and be available within 24 hours of a CPSC or Customs request. Amazon requires the CPC on file for any listing flagged as a children's product (ages 12 and under). Missing a CPC is a listing-level compliance failure with suspension consequences.