Amazon Capsules Show lowest new price

1. 94

   Alison Grahamposted 11 years ago

   I am placing this message here as Amazon capsules are advertisements - however, if this is incorrect, my apologies.
   
   Problem: Going back over my hubs, I have found several instances where the price displayed in my Amazon capsule is not the same as the price the viewer would see if they clicked through the link.
   
   I am worried that displaying an incorrect price
   a) might be against Amazon TOS (on my own websites displaying Amazon links I have an auto-updating disclaimer saying that the price displayed is correct as at (day/month/year) and is subject to change)
   b) might deter purchasers if, on finding a price of (say) $9.99 on a hub for a product and then clicking through and finding it is actually (say) $12.99.
   
   Is there a solution to this?
   
   Secondly as an aside - Hubpages notifies us of potentially broken links in hubs, allowing us to put this problem right. I have noticed that in Amazon capsules where the price is NOT displayed, this usually means that the product is out of stock/no longer available.
   
   Would there be any way that Hubpages could notify us of Amazon capsules where a price is not displayed so that we could check and possibly substitute an alternative product to avoid losing sales?

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   1. 82

      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      That's really odd about the prices! I've pinged Marina Lazarevic (our ad expert), and she can look into it, but it would really help us if you could give us specific Hubs on which we can find examples.
      
      And I'll bring up the idea of a warning about Amazon Products not being displayed in the next community meeting!

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   2. 70

      galleryofgraceposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Amazon uses "price matching:". meaning their price will match any other price  in their listings. It may be lower or higher.

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   3. 82

      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi again Alison Graham!
      
      While it does not look like we can do anything about the price issue, we do agree that it would be helpful if we notified Hubbers when Amazon products disappeared from capsules.
      
      I've started a ticket for that feature, and it has been added to our backlog. Thanks so much for the recommendation! I apologize for not being able to take action on all the issues that you face with the capsule.

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2. 94

   Alison Grahamposted 11 years ago

   Hi Simone, thank you.
   
   Here are three examples from my Christening gifts for boys hub
   which was published back in October 2010 (alisongraham.hubpages.com/hub/Christening-Gifts-For-Boys) - I also found examples on my Christening gifts for girls hub but I started editing the Amazon capsules on that one and then thought I had better mention it.
   
   Mud Pie Baby Classic Keepsakes Silver-Plate Certificate Holder, Cross
   Amazon Price: $17.07
   List Price: $24.75
   
   when I click on the link the price is actually $17.22
   
      
   Pearhead Babyprints Keepsake, Year-Round
   Amazon Price: $5.50
   List Price: $14.95
   
   when I click on the link the price is actually $10.49
   
   
   Mary Meyer Christening Plush Rattle, Lamb
   Amazon Price: $5.07
   List Price: $7.98
   
   when I click on the link the price is actually $7.18

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   1. 70

      Matthew Meyerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I looked at the Amazon capsules on your Hub and the listing on Amazon.
      From my research, the Amazon capsule seems to be working properly.
      
      Amazon shows the lowest new price, you are just given multiple choices once you select it.
      
      So for this one.
      http://www.amazon.com/Mud-Pie-Keepsakes … 53%26crThe list price and lowest price are matching.
      
      The price also shows super savings shipping, which might not be the actual shipping price each user will see.
      Whistle
      
      
      Frame
      
      
      
      For some of the listing the lowest price isn't from the merchant shown, but from another lower on the page.
      
      Here is a bit more detail from the Learning Center.
      
      A note about Amazon product pricing availability:
      
      For Amazon product prices in HubPages' Amazon capsules, we use the Amazon API to determine the "LowestNewPrice" from the US Amazon site.
      
      This information may not be not available for a small subset of products, even though a price is listed on the Amazon site. In these instances "price not available" shows in the Amazon product capsule. In this case the HubPages' Amazon capsule is working properly. You may be able to work around this Amazon issue if you can find a different product listing that has valid pricing information.
      http://hubpages.com/learningcenter/usin … d_22478701

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3. 94

   Alison Grahamposted 11 years ago

   Thank you Matthew, that does explain things. Thank you for the time and trouble you put into researching this on my behalf.
   
   However, I still think that where the amazon capsule is showing $5.50 as the price it must be disconcerting for the visitor to arrive on a page where the actual price (for the item on the page) is $10.49 and only lower down is a small text link showing that it is available 'from' $5.50 - I don't want my readers to feel that I am trying to pull the wool over their eyes!
   
   The product linked to is the one available from Amazon.com - the one available for $5.50 is available with $4.99 shipping (coincidentally, making it EXACTLY the same price as the $10.49 one from Amazon.com which is available with free shipping) - the person offering this 'deal' has only got an 88% feedback score as well.
   
   I would far rather the capsule showed the price for product on the page that Amazon links it to - not the 'headline' cheaper price - which turns out not to be cheaper at all.

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