How to create a product video on Amazon

Requirements to be able to upload a product video on Amazon

As a basic requirement to create a product video on Amazon, you first need an active Amazon seller account. If you are deprived of the right to sell – because, for example violated the sales policy – you are no longer allowed to upload product videos. In the worst case, it can lead to Amazon even deleting these videos. The Video Content Guidelines state that you “must be a seller on the Professional selling plan [müssen], registered with the Amazon brand registry , and on Amazon.com [verkauft]”.

Product videos on Amazon must be in both audio and written English.

What happens if the product videos violate the guidelines?

A policy violation that occurs due to the video content will result in deletion of their videos and will result in revocation of video privileges. This sanction may be temporary or permanent, depending on the degree of hardship. In any case, manipulations of the guidelines, through e.g. creating a new account after a sanctioned policy violation, will be penalized and result in permanent account deactivation.
This makes it clear that Amazon sanctions apply to the account holder and not just to the Amazon account itself.

What is important to keep in mind with Amazon product videos?

In terms of content, it is important to note that all statements made in the product video must be substantiated. One’s own opinion may be expressed, but it must be clearly recognizable as such. Of course, all the stated product properties must also correspond to the truth.

If you illustrate or mention awards of your product or company in the video, they must match the information on the product detail page.

Of all the products you promote in the videos, you should be the brand owner of the product ASINs.

You are allowed to mention competitor brands in your product videos on Amazon, but it is imperative that you do so in a factual, objective and non-slanderous manner.

To ensure the timelessness of the videos, Amazon prohibits mentioning or listing prices, promotional information, and discount claims in the product videos.

Customer reviews that you pick up in the video must be verifiable by stated product information. These used customer reviews must not be older than one year. On the other hand, while you may ask customers to leave reviews within the video, you may not ask for exclusively positive reviews. Nor should you take customer reviews out of context by shortening or changing them so that the meaning changes.

In general, sexual, provocative or suggestive, as well as emotionally exploitative, controversial and shocking content is clearly prohibited.

Links and URLs that encourage the customer to leave the product detail page are prohibited. Copyrights must not be infringed (e.g. by background music that is not permitted). Furthermore, product videos on Amazon may not contain information about shipping details or advertise products that are not for sale on Amazon.    

Special provisions apply to alcoholic, as well as beauty, health and weight loss products. If your products belong to one of these categories, you can find more information here.

How do I upload my product video to Amazon?

Amazon allows sellers to upload one video per ASIN. This is displayed on the product detail page as the seventh image slot, but can also be played out in the search results. Before you upload your product video, you should check if all technical aspects have been considered.

The video should have a 16:9 aspect ratio and ideally be 1920 x 1080px, but at least 1280 x 720px. The color profile used is sRGB and should not fall below a pixel density of 72 – 300. Accepted video formats are MP4 and MOV. We recommend MP4 format here, as it achieves the best results from the quality-file size ratio. The length of the video must not exceed 3 minutes and should not be larger than 500mb. The so-called thumbnail or thumbnail image is generated automatically, but can also be customized afterwards by the merchant using a JPEG or PNG file. Upload the video in Amazon Seller Central on the “Upload and manage videos” page. After clicking “Upload Video” in the upper right corner and selecting your video, the only thing missing is the title and the linked ASIN of the product. You can find out what to consider when choosing a title here.

According to Amazon, it can take 1 – 7 days for the video to be reviewed and, in the best case, approved.

What makes the perfect product video?

Of course, the final goal of a product video is clearly defined – generate more sales !

But this can only be achieved if you make the added value of your product unmistakably clear and at the same time arouse emotions. We have set ourselves the goal of combining these two principles. So if you need help creating your product video on Amazon, feel free to schedule an appointment directly.