Billion Dollar Sellers

Why 84% of social media brand videos fail

Date: June 30th, 2025
Summary: Kevin King discusses why most social media brand videos are failing, Amazon's proactive reimbursement tactics, AI shopping agents threatening traditional retailers, and strategic approaches to social commerce. Plus insights on Amazon FAQ optimization and creator marketing strategies.
Key Points Discussed:
Why 84% of branded TikTok videos fail and how to fix them
Obvi's 7-step UGC flywheel for TikTok Shop success
ByteDance's leadership overhaul and China's influence on TikTok Shop
Amazon's proactive reimbursement program hidden costs
AI shopping agents as the next threat to Amazon and Walmart
How Amazon FAQs are "clicked into existence" by user behavior
Stack Influence platform for micro-influencer collaborations
Andrew Bell's insights on Rufus and conversion optimization
Links Mentioned:
Listen to podcast version of this newsletter
FastMoss Creator Agency Partner Rankings
Marketplace Mastery Newsletter by Jordi Ordonez
YouTube: How Obvi Finds Hidden TikTok Shop Influencers with SARAL
Stack Influence Platform (10% off code: BillionDollarSellers)
Micro Influencer Case Study - DLB
TrueOps Reimbursement Services
Nick Penev's Amazon KPIs Cheat Sheet
Andrew Bell LinkedIn Profile
Just a Seller Newsletter
BDSN Mystery Link
Hot Picks:
Walmart launches new seller app
Top 10 Amazon return reasons and how sellers can avoid them
How to sell on Amazon from Pakistan
Stump Bezos Answer: 81% of influencers use AI in some manner to create content
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Time to take agentic commerce seriously

June 26th, 2025
Summary: Kevin King discusses the agentic commerce revolution, AI shopping agents transforming e-commerce, tariff deferment strategies for DTC brands, overlooked Amazon reports for better targeting, and July sales events across major platforms.
Key Points Discussed:
Agentic commerce and autonomous AI shopping assistants
The 5 levels of AI shopping agent capability
How AI agents will change seller strategies and competition
Tariff deferment solutions for inventory management
July sales events across Amazon, TikTok Shop, Target, Walmart, and Best Buy
Amazon's Demographic Report and Market Basket Analysis combination
International Amazon marketplace revenue and traffic data
Jeff Bezos wedding controversy in Venice
Links Mentioned:
Cigars and Whiskey by the Sea CMS 3 Tampa Event
How AI Will Reshape Digital Marketing in the Next 24 Months | Jordan Hall
Introducing the 5 Levels of Agentic Commerce
Agentic Commerce Deep Dive
Portless Direct Shipping and Tariff Deferment
How to Solve Amazon 8541 & 8542 Catalog Errors in Minutes [2025 Hack]
GetReviews - Package Insert QR Codes for Reviews
Prem Gupta's LinkedIn post on Amazon Reports
BDSN Mystery Link of the Day
Hot Picks:
Amazon is building a huge AI data center on 1,200 acres in Indiana
Amazon plays nice in AI shopping while defending its turf
Amazon spending $4 billion to expand rural 1 and 2-day delivery
Best Chrome browser extensions for Amazon sellers
Stump Bezos Answer: Creator spend is expected to hit $13.7B by 2027
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

The Secret to Amazon Page 1 Domination

The Secret to Amazon Page 1 DominationDate: Monday June 23rd, 2025Summary: Kevin King discusses AI avatars outselling humans in e-commerce, AI highlights on Amazon, the disruption of commerce search with AI agents, TikTok Shop affiliate strategies, and introduces his new puppy Kona.
Key Points Discussed:
AI avatars generating $7.65M in 7 hours without human hosts going live
Chinese influencers using Baidu's AI to outperform traditional livestreams
Walmart Marketplace explosive growth reaching 200K new sellers monthly
Amazon AI highlights as powerful conversion tools beyond simple summaries
Jason Goldberg's insights on commerce search disruption and AI agents
TikTok Shop affiliate strategies and top tools for seller success
Kevin King introducing his new Miniature Dachshund puppy, Kona
Links Mentioned:
Webinar: AI Arsenal for Amazon Sellers
Stack Influence Platform (10% off code: BillionDollarSellers)
Ancient Nutrition Prime Day Case Study - 14X ROI
The Jason & Scot Show
Publicis Commerce AI Paper
Revere.ai
BrandLight.ai
XFunnel.ai
GA4Hell.com
Adobe LLM Optimizer
ScrunchAI.com
TryProfound.com
Captions.ai
Arcada.ai
BDSN Mystery Link
BDSN Episode about Zoe
Hot Picks:
Top emerging e-commerce markets to watch on Amazon in 2025
Overview of the top Amazon inventory management tools for sellers
Social creators to overtake traditional media in ad spend in 2025
Easy returns are causing sellers to leave Amazon
Kevin King's story about his dog Zoe
Helium 10's TikTok Launch YouTube Video
Stump Bezos Answer: 1,000 new millionaires are minted daily in the USA
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Amazon CEO: future is AI Agents selling

Monday, June 19th, 2025
Summary: Kevin King discusses Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's internal message about the company's commitment to Generative AI, new review-based badges on mobile, funding pitfalls that can wreck Amazon businesses, AI-powered photo/video creation with Higgsfield, and Adobe's LLM Optimizer for AI search visibility.
Key Points Discussed:
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's June 17th internal message on Generative AI commitment
AI's impact on product listings, advertising, and shopping assistants
AI optimization in inventory placement, demand forecasting, and fulfillment
The future of AI agents for sellers: intent-based product research, code writing, customer service automation
How bad funding deals can destroy Amazon businesses: flat fees vs APR, fast repayments, hidden fees
Creating product photos and videos with Higgsfield AI
Amazon's new review-based badges on mobile PDPs (positive and negative)
Adobe's LLM Optimizer for AI-powered search engine visibility
Amazon's Product Lifecycle Support program to prevent "Frequently Returned" badges
Links Mentioned:
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on Generative AI
Triple Whale's Ultimate AI Agents Playbook for Ecom
Higgsfield AI
Just A Seller newsletter
Amazon Product Lifecycle Support enrollment
BDSN Mystery Link of the Day
Adobe LLM Optimizer
Hot Picks:
TikTok Shop rolls out seller performance badges
Ad agencies are in trouble staring down barrel of AI
Amazon Ads and Roku announce new partnership
Walmart Marketplace experiences record growth
Stump Bezos Answer: 70 million adults bought something on TikTok Shop in 2024
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.comFollow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

How to find your competitor's traffic sources

June 16th, 2025Summary: Kevin King discusses tracking external traffic to competitor listings, TikTok Shop vs Amazon fee comparisons, Walmart's AI shopping assistant Sparky, Amazon's new "Customers Mention" ad placement, and critical UPC compliance issues affecting ASIN suppressions.
Key Points Discussed:
SmartScout's new Traffic Links feature for tracking competitor external traffic
TikTok Shop fee comparison with Amazon (4-9% vs 15% average)
Walmart's AI shopping assistant "Sparky" and conversational commerce trends
Amazon's "Customers Mention" sponsored ads placement for review-rich listings
UPC compliance issues causing silent ASIN suppressions via Amazon's "Bulldog" AI
Stack Influence platform for micro-influencer gifting campaigns
Critical GS1 barcode compliance and Brand Registry alignment
Links Mentioned:
Live Profitable PPC Challenge Registration
Stack Influence Platform (10% off code: BillionDollarSellers)
Ancient Nutrition Case Study - 14X ROI Prime Day Campaign
Helium 10 Platinum Plan - 35% off 6 months
Mystery Link of the Day
AccrueMe Private Capital Program
Anvil - SEO for AI LLMs
TrueOps Case Study Opportunity
Hot Picks:
11 ways to reduce Amazon shipping costs
Amazon and Walmart consider launching their own stable coin
Thrasio still has negative cash flow, will deplete $ by year end
Amazon Business hits 8 million global customers
Amazon's evolving review landscape - making sense of quiet changes
Stump Bezos Answer: A creator needs 5,000 followers to become a TikTok Shop affiliate.
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.comFollow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
 
 

The 1-click that instantly drops ACOS

June 12th, 2025
Kevin King discusses Amazon's AI-driven changes to search bar suggestions, the Amazon Influencer Program myths, new PPC targeting strategies, and Amazon's AI video generation tool for sellers.
Key Points Discussed:
Amazon's AI revolution in search bar auto-complete suggestions using Large Language Models
How to optimize product listings for LLM-generated search suggestions
Amazon Influencer Program myths debunked - approval with under 300 followers possible
Why most brands waste 65%+ of ad spend on customers already planning to buy
Amazon's new PPC audience targeting that drops ACOS with one click
Amazon's free AI-powered video generation tool for product ads
Walmart's drone delivery expansion to 100 more stores across 5 cities
New Amazon Brand Metrics and Customer Journey Analytics reporting
Links Mentioned:
Growth Hacking Live Event - San Diego, September 2025
Amazon's Auto-Complete Ranking Research Paper
YouTube: An Amazon Aggregator Destroyed My Brand - Brand Rescue Mission Episode 1
Amazon Influencer Program Webinar
Amazon Influencer Program Myths Debunked
YouTube: Amazon's NEW Audience PPC Targeting Instantly Lowered our ACoS
BTR Media
Mystery Link of the Day
Amazon AI Video Generator Tool
Hot Picks:
Tariffs on Chinese imports to go to 55% under new trade deal
Chinese imports to USA down 34% in May, lowest in 5 years
Amazon has killed its Amazon Posts program that never worked
Stump Bezos Answer: Only 22.9% of Amazon searches are branded
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
 

The new Amazon metric that affects your rank

June 9th, 2025
Summary: Kevin King discusses Amazon's new Customer Experience (CX) Score that impacts rankings and Buy Box placement, Amazon's beta business-only targeting feature, TikTok's shift away from organic traffic, and Amazon's massive ASIN purge initiative "Bend the Curve."
Key Points Discussed:
Amazon's new Customer Experience (CX) Score affecting rankings and Buy Box placement
Beta feature for targeting only Amazon Business accounts with 3X higher returns
TikTok phasing out organic traffic boosts for US merchants
Amazon's "Bend the Curve" initiative to cut ASINs from 74 billion to under 50 billion
Tactical wisdom from BDSS Dream 100: Destaney Wishon on Amazon & Beyond placements, Liran Hirschkorn on platform-to-product matching, Jon Derkits on larger font optimization
Stack Influence gifting strategy for Prime Day success
Answer engine tracking for AI search optimization
Links Mentioned:
Webinar registration for "Silent Massacre" affecting 73% of Amazon sellers
Stack Influence Platform (10% off code: BillionDollarSellers)
PickFu testing platform
Jon Derkits' weekly newsletter
Prime Day campaign case study - 14X ROI
How Jeff Bezos puts furniture in his penthouse
Hot Picks:
Amazon pulls back again from running Google Shopping ads
Behind the rapid decline of e-commerce search ads
Temu loses 58% of daily users in USA due to de minimus & tariffs
Amazon to ban fake reviewers and punish sellers
Stump Bezos Answer: YouTube commands 12.4% of all television viewing compared to Netflix's 7.5%
Mystery Link
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

How Goli did it: $4.1m in 30 days +$3.8m more on Amazon

June 5th, 2025
Summary: Kevin King explores Goli's million-dollar affiliate playbook and lessons for Amazon sellers, Amazon's SERP transformation with Rufus AI, how to get to $100K+ monthly revenue through product gifting, and the death of the traditional marketing funnel.
Key Points Discussed:
Goli's $4.1 million TikTok Shop success in 30 days using strategic affiliate marketing
Tiered commission structures that motivate creators (10% to 25% based on performance)
How Amazon's Rufus AI is transforming the search results page into an interactive product page
The importance of optimizing listings for AI-readable content and pre-click understanding
Product gifting strategies to reach $100K+ monthly revenue before Prime Day
Why the traditional marketing funnel is dead and the new "4 S's" customer journey
Geographic concentration of top US-based Amazon sellers
AI search visibility tracking with Ahrefs' Brand Radar
Boston Consulting Group's insights on modern consumer behavior
Links Mentioned:
Don't miss today's webinar - there will be no replay
How Goli went from $0 to $4.1M per MONTH in 30 days on TikTok Shop
TrueOps FBA Reimbursements Service
Helium 10 Elite live Workshop
Stack Influence Platform (10% off this month)
Prime Day campaign case study - 14X ROI
Ahrefs' Brand Radar
BDSN Mystery Link of the Day
Boston Consulting Group's report on the death of the funnel
Hot Picks:
1 of every 8 clothing items bought in USA is from Amazon
Amazon readies premium shipping changes for June 29
How Amazon FBA changed the e-commerce logistics playbook
Stump Bezos Answer: 6 million millionaires and 867 billionaires live in the USA
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Stop Amazon from wasting your ad spend

June 2nd, 2025Summary: Kevin King explores how to sell to win with the 5 levels of market sophistication, Amazon's AI upgrade for understanding customer search intent, and strategies to prevent Amazon from wasting your advertising budget on ineffective off-Amazon placements.
Key Points Discussed:
The 5 levels of market sophistication and how to position products accordingly
MaryRuth's Level 4 strategy with dissolvable strips vs traditional gummies
Barrière's Level 5 approach using story and design for vitamin patches
Amazon's AI upgrade that interprets negation queries (e.g., "no laces" → "slip-on shoes")
How to analyze and block off-Amazon ad placements for better spend efficiency
Using the Amazon deny list to control where your ads appear
Copywriting insights from $200M+ in email revenue
America's record customs revenues reaching over $22 billion in May
Links Mentioned:
Misfits webinar "The Wizard of Ads"
Amazon Science doc on negation query rewriting
BDSN Mystery Link
Amazon Ads deny list template
IP Moat - counterfeit protection
Hot Picks:
Amazon inventory management lets vendors sell fake supplements
Amazon rolls out demographic data at the ASIN level for sellers
Amazon limits how sellers can message buyers
How Amazon FBA changed the e-com logistics playbook
Stump Bezos Answer: Six cargo ships sank in 2024
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Trump tariffs struck down + loophole

Thursday, May 29th, 2025Summary: Kevin King discusses the major court ruling striking down Trump's tariffs, legal loopholes for sellers, social commerce growth, AI's impact on e-commerce discovery, and tools every Amazon seller should use.
Key Points Discussed:
U.S. Court of International Trade unanimously strikes down Trump's sweeping tariffs
First Sale Rule - legal tariff loophole for importers
Social commerce now powers 1 in 5 online sales
How ChatGPT is reshaping product discovery and e-commerce
Tariff refunds may be available for importers
Walmart now officially allows Amazon MCF for order fulfillment
Two essential tools for Amazon sellers: Ads Library and Rufus Q&A Extractor
Links Mentioned:
Court of International Trade legal opinion
Stack Influence Platform (10% off code: BillionDollarSellers)
Marketing in an AI-First World YouTube video
Fairing's Q1 2025 LLM benchmarks
SALT agency LLM effectiveness study
Amazon Ads Library
Rufus Extractor YouTube tutorial
Rufus Extractor SOP
BDSN Mystery Link
Hot Picks:
QVC launches 24/7 live shopping on TikTok Shop
Mercado Libre reports strong $5.9 billion revenue in Q1
SORA beats Amazon AI for creating SB campaign videos
Alternative outside of China sourcing guide from Helium 10
Google's new AI-mode traffic is untrackable for attribution
Armenian syndicate steals $83m of Amazon goods in California
Stump Bezos Answer: The average customer journey in 2025 involves 11.1 touchpoints, up from 8.5 in 2021.
Find us at BillionDollarSellers.com Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.