You and 2,831 other readers will be enjoying this newsletter or i’ll come to your front door and talk to you about religion and politics.

Welcome back Bogdan!
And a big welcome to the +102 new readers this week!

✅The Instant Value Section (IVS)✅

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

The Sneakiest Amazon Competitor AI Pricing Hack

A big big thank you to my friend Chad Rubin for supplying this week’s IVS. Chad is constantly building, creating and inspiring sellers like me to be better and make more money. Thanks for taking the time to write this one up, Chad! If you are looking for a wonderful AI pricing tool, check out Profasee.

What if I told you there’s a way to spy on your competition’s pricing mistakes… and profit from them without spending a dollar more?

That’s exactly what I uncovered while deep-diving into real Amazon listings and it’s big!

Here’s the quick story:

I tried everything to boost my e-commerce brand: listing optimization, cutting FBA costs, hammering PPC.

Nothing worked.

Turns out pricing was the hidden lever I wasnt using correctly.

The truth?

Most brands on Amazon are copying broken pricing models from competitors who are barely profitable themselves.

(Think about it: why would you copy someone who’s broke?)

The AI Hack:

✅ Spot exactly when competitors discounted too much and lost margin.

 ✅ Find windows to raise your price without hurting rank.

 ✅ Reverse engineer why your BSR tanked or why you crushed it during pricing shifts.

Watch the video below → I Use Keepa + Claude AI to reverse-engineer competitor pricing mistakes.

And the result?

I knew exactly when my competitors’ sloppy price changes opened up market share… and how to capitalize on it fast.

What’s Going On At the Beach?

Hey everyone! Here is a quick rundown of what’s been happening with us for the last 2 weeks!

Changing Seasons: Tourist season is winding down here in CR and rain will be getting ready to start up again.  We already had a light shower but things are slowing down again.
(From May-October it occasionally rains for months on end)

Taxes: Finishing up tax season is a mad rush (I’m an accountant!)  Yes, if your books were less than ideal this year and you are resolving to fix it in 2025….take some action now and actually do it!  If you signed up for QuickBooks I’d consider that a win!

Don’t be cheap about your bookkeeper either.  I’ve seen some real disasters…also if you’re Canadian make sure you get a bookkeeper that understands Canadian sales taxes!

House Building Update: We’re pushing hard to finish and move in by June… which would be huge! A few of our neighbors haven’t been so lucky and have faced delays of several months. So far, our biggest holdup has been the window supplier. With rainy season kicking off, we also need to get some plants and trees in the ground while we still
can.

Newsletter Referrals: The more friends you refer, the more rewards we get to send out. I have been sending Kindle books as rewards, and luckily, no one has hit the “Rob rubs sunscreen on your back” level yet. 😆

We also want to add some Selling From the Beach (SFTB) swag, but only stuff people will actually use or wear. If you have suggestions or know a great designer, send them our way. We would love your ideas. What is the best swag you have ever gotten? Inspire us!

Max Does not Like Facebook: Unfortunately our Facebook group reach is so low unless you want to pay so make sure you follow Max on Linkedin he is crushing the value.  I’ll get back on it in May!

Your Tariff Survival Pack🛠️

Here’s a list of useful things for figuring out how to navigate & understand tariffs.

In general, we are seeing many sellers start to do two main things in the short term : a) raise prices, and b) reduce ad spend.

1. The Latest Tariff Numbers: https://latesttariffs.com/
2. Tariff Talk Today – Latest news GPT: https://chatgpt.com/g/g-67fd5d16b27881918c9b1c8e8d5acc37-tariff-talk-today (@stevesimonson)
3. Tariff Update (April 15) and Fee Calculator: https://www.carbon6.io/blog/amazon-tariffs-guide-sellers-de-minimis-rules-2025/ (@carbon6)
4. Tariff Impact Tool – What happens if you do nothing, raise price, cut spend, or both (and your margin impact) https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1it4WZj1Gn4REyuG1dKUHu0AObbOt0QVSmf0idO6JsJs/edit?gid=504111210#gid=504111210 (@chadrubin)
5. Headless browser automations like manus.ai to automate sourcing in different countries on Alibaba/Thomasnet, or others
6. Webinars – Brandon Young & Gembah
7. Amazon’s HTS Code Search Tool
8. Do NOT try and break import & duty laws. You will get caught. Things that will not work:
   – Switching your country of origin
   – Using DDP to reduce cost of the goods
   – Reducing your sourcing cost 

The Deep Dive (Premium Content)

Your Main Image ≠ Your Actual Product

If your main image is just your product “as is,” you’re already behind. We’ve all heard that you have a second or two to catch someone’s attention. That’s because they’re distracted, looking for something very specific, and have an ocean of options to choose from. In that flash of attention, your main image has one job:

Get the click.

So how do we get the click? We accentuate areas of the packaging that reflect the things people are looking for. And the things people are looking for are the 4W’s.

That’s where the 4Ws come in:

1. Who — The brand. Visibly clear, no squinting required.
2. What — The product itself. Don’t be vague.
3. Which — The version, flavor, scent, or style. Be specific.
4. hoW much — Quantity. Let them know exactly what they’re getting.

Retail Packaging usually has all of the 4W’s. But the problem is the elements are too small and not built for mobile.

So what do we do? Make certain elements bigger, and eliminate or shrink others.

Yes, this means crafting an image that’s cleaner, more direct, and maybe not identical to what lands on their doorstep. That’s not deception. Amazon itself and your customers get more of what they want. It’s about making the buying decision faster, smoother, and clearer.

Test it. Let the numbers decide. You’ll be surprised how much power there is in simplifying what they see.

Source: GS1 Guidelines

BONUS: If all your competitors are using head-on images, try a sexy angle like below (thanks @Matt Kostan)

All Your Points in One Place (Finally)

You’ve probably got more logins than you care to admit. Same here. Every airline, every hotel, every random points account from that one time you rented a car in Winnipeg. They all live somewhere, vaguely remembered. Until they don’t.

That’s why I’ve been using this software called AwardWallet. It gathers up all those scattered loyalty programs and lays them out in one clean, surprisingly calm interface (it looks like it was designed back at the start of the internet). AW makes things a lot easier. No digging. No searching. Just… there.

You know that moment when you see an email with a subject line like “Final Reminder: Your 14,000 Points Will Expire Tomorrow”? And then you delete it without opening it? Right. That.

AW doesn’t flinch. It logs in, checks balances, and keeps everything in one place.

There is a paid version, but honestly, the free version covers most of the meaningful stuff.

There’s also a travel itinerary view that is super useful. Your flights, your gate, your reservation numbers. All in one place 😀

(No affiliate, I just think it’s cool)

A Hidden Hangout – Langosta Beach Club

One of our favorite spots just outside of Tamarindo on the way to Langosta is the Langosta Beach Club. It serves as the “club” for some home and condo owners close by, but not a lot of people know you can eat at the restaurant on the beach or purchase a day pass ($30 adult and $15 for child) and use the pool and deck chairs.

One of the owners (Mike from Calgary, Canada) is usually there to welcome people in.  The pool is perfectly situated to look out to the beach and only a few feet away from the surf break. Some of the staff have been there for years, including Roberto who we saw there last week commenting how he remembers seeing the boys being so little when we first started going there.  Always a welcoming place for drinks and snacks and only a little off the beaten path! Check it out.

• Max asks for honest newsletter feedback (Like from you, yes you person reading this sentence right now)
  
• Matthew writes a welcome post

Restock Limits are Back (and they aren’t nice)

Any chance the universe can give us one week without bad news?

Amazon’s 2025 restock limits are back, baby!
(Thanks to James McConnell Jr. for writing an in-depth article on this)

And they’re louder, dumber, and more seller-hostile than ever. Remember those suffocating COVID-era restrictions? It smells like that.

The main change in Amazon’s 2025 restock policy is a brutal shift from just account-level limits to also include ASIN-level restock limits.

That means it’s no longer just about how much inventory you as a seller can send overall. Now, each individual product (ASIN) has its own restock cap.

It’s no secret that OA, RA, and wholesale sellers have seen the warning signs coming for a while now, but this latest change is a real ouchie. Imagine you sell a product, it’s hot, moving like wildfire…but surprise! You can’t send more in. Not because you’re out of space. Not because there’s no demand. But because another seller overstocked their inventory of the same ASIN. So now? You’re punished. Their excess becomes your dead end.

Welcome to a marketplace where your success is bottlenecked by someone else’s overambition.

Now pair that chaos with this: the Inventory Performance Index (IPI) wants you lean. Like no more than 90 days of inventory. Good luck balancing that with low-level inventory fees (28 days or more).

Even more? Amazon’s own metrics are laggy and useless. Restock decisions are based on last week’s data, not real-time demand (it has a one week delay). So if you suddenly start selling out like crazy, Amazon won’t let you replenish in time. You’re penalized for growth. Nice.

We’re also seeing these limits make launching new products very difficult. New ASINs get tiny restock allowances, and you can’t increase them without sales history…but you can’t make sales if you’re constantly out of stock. So…. 🤪

/rant over.

Speak Up! Community Comments & Questions:

Want to have your question answered in the newsletter? Want to give us a piece of your mind? Send us an email at info@sellingfrom.co

How was today’s newsletter? Love it? Hate it? Just want to book that one-way ticket to the tropics? ✈️

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Hey – Wanna hang out? Check us out on Facebook.

If you liked this newsletter, here’s where we share more stuff like it:

1. 🤓 Just getting started? Check out the Free Amazon FBA Course
2. 🎙️ Listen to the latest episodes of The SFTB Podcast
3. 💸Increase your income today with Online Arbitrage Training
4. 👔 Need an Accountant? Accounting Services
5. 📧 Want some 1-on-1 time? Rob & Max
6. 📣Interested in sponsoring the newsletter? E-mail info@sellingfrom.co

All the best,

Rob & Max