What Instant Repricing Actually Means

There's a large number of new terms sellers have to learn when they first get started. Some of these terms are not as obvious as we'd like them to be.

For example, instant repricing.

This post is designed to give you insights into how things actually work in reality.

Let's dive in.

Different systems, different data

I wouldn't blame you for assuming a price shown on amazon.com is the same data you see in Seller Central. However, you'd be wrong.

Every system is slightly different. Every system is like a different clock. They all set to the same time but ticking at different speeds. They may all reference your price, for example, but update at different paces. This creates small discrepancies.

One example of this is a concept called caching. To speed up website loading, developers 'cache' or store information, which might not be the most current version. Imagine a page as a snapshot taken every so often — say every 15 minutes. While this makes browsing faster, it also means the data you're seeing could technically be up to 15 minutes old and slightly outdated.

Even though it's called 'instant' repricing, it's good to know what that term really means for any repricing tool. These tools react fast to changes and send new prices to Amazon immediately. But, there's usually a short wait — about 1.5 to 2 minutes — for Amazon to confirm and update the new price.

This delay happens because of how Amazon's system updates prices, involving things like data differences and caching that we mentioned earlier. Repricing tools do their job quickly on their end, but they all have to wait for Amazon to catch up.

So, 'instant' in repricing means the tool is as quick as possible, but a brief wait is still part of the process.

Speeding up with Hyperdrive

While the typical 1.5 to 2-minute delay is standard across repricing tools, our Hyperdrive feature aims to redefine this standard. We've developed a method to significantly cut down this wait time.

Although it's limited to 50 listings per account, Hyperdrive dramatically reduces the delay to within 10 seconds. This isn't just a minor improvement; it's a 12-fold increase in speed, setting a new benchmark for repricing efficiency.

In conclusion

To wrap up, knowing how repricing works is key to selling online. We've looked at how different systems don't always match up and why 'instant' repricing isn't technically instant because of these differences and things like caching.

Hyperdrive is our way of making things faster, cutting down the usual wait to about 10 seconds for some of your listings. It's a step forward, showing how e-commerce technology keeps getting better and faster.

For anyone selling online, staying up-to-date with these changes and using tools like Hyperdrive can really help. It's all about making smart, quick decisions in a fast-moving world where every second can count.