Guide to MAP Enforcement and Managing Third-Party Sellers

MAP refers to the “minimum advertised price” of a product, as determined by the brand. Technically, the minimum advertised price is not the lowest price at which a retailer can sell a product, but rather the lowest price they can publicly advertise. 

A MAP policy is a legal document that safeguards brands, sellers, and consumers from price erosion, lessening the brand’s integrity while shrinking profit margins. A MAP policy also outlines the consequences of breaching the MAP policy. 

MAP enforcement is the continuous process of ensuring your sellers adhere to your MAP policy. While MAP enforcement is your reaction to price violations, MAP monitoring is the method you use to detect them. If a seller breaks your MAP policy, you inform them of the breach, impose a penalty as per your MAP policy, and if required (and feasible), end the relationship with the seller. 

This regular enforcement offers numerous advantages to your brand, but it also poses several difficulties. Tracking MAP breaches around the clock, dealing with the legal complexities of MAP policies, and enforcing your price is not a simple task. 

Enforcing a Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) policy and managing third-party sellers can be challenging to do but it is crucial for maintaining brand equity and upholding your brand’s integrity online. To effectively do this, it involves a combination of strategies to communicate with your distribution partners and customers, monitor compliance, and implement consequences for violations. Below are a few key items to achieve this: 

A well-defined MAP policy is the foundation of effective enforcement. Your policy should include but not limited to: 

• Minimum advertised price for each product 

• Consequences for violating the policy 

• Clearly explain exceptions and/or special circumstances 

At SPINS, if you are creating a new policy from scratch, we will be able to provide a MAP Policy template that makes it easier for you to begin that process and input any rules that may pertain to your business.  Once signed off by your legal team, we can send it out to your partners. 

Communicate your MAP policy to your distributors, retailers, and other partners and explain the importance of the policy and the benefits it offers to all parties involved. 

Effective communication is key to successful MAP enforcement: 

• Highlight the benefits of MAP compliance for all parties involved 

• Distribute the policy to direct customers and third-party sellers on Amazon 

We can help distribute the MAP policy to partnered distributors and customers we have contact information with. This is not limited to your direct customers but any third-party sellers selling on Amazon. 

Regularly monitoring the prices at which your products are advertised on Amazon is essential. 

Through our extensive database and price monitoring tools, we can monitor the prices daily at which your products are advertised on Amazon. This will help you identify which third-party sellers are violating your policy so you can take immediate action. We can also identify compliant retailers, which will help give you more insight into the marketplace and see what price points they sell your products at. 

Follow through with the consequences outlined in your MAP policy. Potential repercussions may include: 

• Suspending current or future orders

• Terminating the business relationship for severe or repeated violations

Apply your MAP policy uniformly across all channels and partners: 

• Avoid making exceptions for specific partners or retailers

• Consistent enforcement strengthens the policy’s effectiveness

• Uniform application helps maintain fairness in the marketplace

Regularly review and adjust your MAP policy to ensure its continued effectiveness: 

• Align the policy with current business goals

• Adapt to changes in the market or competition

• Consider feedback from partners when making updates

Policies can change at any time and do not have to be a yearly occurrence. Changes and updates can be made at your discretion, provided lines of communication are clear and open, giving partners ample time to update accordingly.

Effectively enforcing a MAP policy and managing third-party sellers is not just about compliance; it is about safeguarding your brand’s reputation and market position. By developing a clear MAP policy, communicating transparently with your partners, and diligently monitoring & enforcing compliance, you can maintain brand equity and integrity online. Consistency and periodic updates to your MAP policy ensure it remains relevant and aligned with your business goals, empowering you to confidently navigate the online marketplace dynamics.