Amazon Launches New Content Type: Sustainability Content
In Amazon Vendor Central, brands can choose to upload two main A+ content types to their products: Basic, and Premium with enhanced widgets and dynamic display types.
A few years ago, Amazon added an additional content type designed to be used in conjunction with the two main types: Brand Story.
As the name suggests, this is a designated section for brands to talk about their identity and wider product range. This sits in a separate section above the main A+ content and allows the product content to remain focused while providing a space for consistent brand storytelling across entire product ranges.
Recently, Amazon has launched another additional content type: “Sustainability content”
This appears to function in much the same way as Brand Story. Brands will have the opportunity to create a separate content section to sit below their Classic or Premium A+ on the Product Detail Page. Those utilising this space will have access to a maximum of three modules from a streamlined selection of seven Classic A+ modules.
Amazon’s stated purpose for this section is to “tell the story of the workers who produce your products and the facilities, processes, and materials they use”. This appears to be a gradual roll-out, much in the same way as other VC features we’ve seen in the past. It is currently only available to selected brands in certain regions, but we expect to see it become more widely available over time.
We’ve reached out to Amazon for further details, and received the following guidance:
Sustainability A+
This is a section within product detail pages that allows you to describe your Sustainability product’s, environmental benefits, environmental qualities or socially responsible benefits.
Why did Amazon create Sustainability A+ content?
The Sustainability A+ section was created after discovering that customers wanted
- a consistent location for a product’s environmental benefits or qualities
- additional details about why a product has environmental benefits or qualities
- that the information be provided by the brand or manufacturer of the product.
The new content allows brands to have a more scalable way to tell this story to customers.
How is Sustainability A+ content different from standard A+ content?
Sustainability A+ content is very similar to standard A+ content. The primary difference between this content is that it is 100% focused on a product’s environmental benefits, environmental qualities or socially responsible benefits. Since sustainability A+ content is always shown with standard A+ content, please reduce duplicative or repetitive content.
What type of content can I add to this widget?
You can only add content about a product that you can substantiate, as described in the Environmental Marketing Guidelines on Seller Central . In customer research in the US, UK and DE, we have found that customers gravitate towards the following topics:
- social responsibility/worker welfare
- environmentally or socially responsible materials
- environmentally or socially responsible manufacturing processes
- environmentally or socially responsible manufacturing facilities
- environmentally or socially responsible transportation.
Best Practices for Sustainability A+ content
Use tangible facts when describing impact. Many aspects of sustainability are complicated and filled with acronyms and industry jargon. Help customers understand your claims by using simple, tangible facts and/or comparisons. Use numbers and percentages as opposed to broad statements or goals.
Substantiate your claims. All sustainable claims are required to be substantiated. You can learn how to ensure your claims are substantiated by going to our Environmental Marketing Guidelines on Seller Central.
Make your message clear and easy to understand. Customers spend a short period of time on each ASIN so use A+ content to highlight the most important information you want to make sure they read. Graphics and photographs help with this.
Use professional quality images and highlight product features. Use images that highlight product features or show your product in use. Customers use this content to learn more about the product so avoid generic or lifestyle images that don’t showcase the product.
Provide customers with the whole sustainability story. Help customers understand the efforts you and your brand have taken to ensure your products are sustainable by describing the most important steps you take from initial idea to product disposal.
Migrate your existing environmental content to the sustainability A+ content widget. Once you create Sustainability A+ content, we recommend you remove and migrate any environmental benefits, environmental qualities or socially responsible benefits you have in your primary A+ content. This will ensure customers can easily find this information and not be confused by duplicate content.
As soon as we have more information regarding guidelines or requirements, we will communicate the same to you.