Raise prices on Amazon without losing the Buy Box

The problem: a price won too low

When a product holds the Buy Box, a good repricer doesn't recalculate as long as the beaten competitor stays put: that's right, so it doesn't chase the market. But Amazon assigns the Buy Box with a few minutes' delay, and in the meantime the price may have dropped more than needed.

The result: the product keeps the Buy Box, but at a lower price than necessary, sometimes for days, until some competitor moves. The difference is left on the table with every sale.

How to win the Buy Box: the factors that matter

How the upward price probe works

1. 1

   Find products sitting in the Buy Box

   It considers products that hold the Buy Box, are in stock, have had the same price for at least 6 hours and sit at least 1% (and at least €1) below the closest competitor.

2. 2

   Try a price halfway up

   Each increase moves the price halfway between the current one and a ceiling: the lowest of the closest competitor, your maximum price and the last price that lost the Buy Box. It always stays at least one cent below the ceiling.

3. 3

   Wait for the outcome

   It waits up to an hour, because Amazon reassigns the Buy Box with a few minutes' delay.

4. 4

   If it holds, try again; if it loses, step back

   If the Buy Box holds, that price becomes the new winning price and the next halfway step is tried. If it's lost, the price immediately returns to the last winning one.

Each step halves the remaining room, so the search ends in a few steps: it stops when the remaining room falls below 0.5% or below 50 cents.

An example

You hold the Buy Box at €40.00, the closest competitor is at €44.00 and your maximum price is €50.00, so the ceiling is just under €44. The probe tries €42.00: the Buy Box holds. It tries €43.00: it still holds. It tries €43.50: it holds. The remaining room is now below 50 cents, and the search ends at €43.50.

Had the Buy Box been lost at €43.50, the price would have returned at once to €43.00, the last winning one, and €43.50 would have stayed the ceiling for the next three days.

Safeguards

• Never above your maximum price, never above the closest competitor
• If the Buy Box is lost, an immediate return to the winning price, with no gradual descent
• After a loss the probe pauses for 24 hours on that product, and the losing price stays the ceiling for 3 days
• At most 6 increases per day per product
• It only starts on products that sit still: if the market moves, normal repricing decides
• Changing the price yourself cancels the increase in progress; products with a manual price are excluded
• Products Amazon flags with blocking listing issues are excluded

How to switch it on and what you see

The probe is switched on with a toggle in algorithmic strategies and is off by default: it applies to the products you assign that strategy to. Mossap looks for candidate products every 30 minutes.

• In the product grid an icon shows an increase in progress, and stays grey for 24 hours after a return
• In the product detail, the probe status: in progress, paused or best price found
• In the price history, every increase and every return, distinct from normal repricing decisions