Amazon is quietly rolling out a new shopping experience that could change how brands think about discovery, traffic, and the long-standing “sell on Amazon vs. sell direct” debate.
It’s experimental.
It’s a little strange.
And depending on how you sell today, it might be either a huge opportunity or a red flag.
Let’s break down what this new Amazon program actually is, how it works for shoppers and brands, how to get in, how much it costs, and what sellers should be paying attention to.
What Is This New Amazon Program?
Amazon is now showing products that are not sold on Amazon directly inside the Amazon Shopping app and mobile site.
When shoppers find these products, they can either:
Visit the brand’s website directly, or
- Use a new AI-powered option called “Buy for Me,” where Amazon helps complete the purchase on the brand’s site on the customer’s behalf.
Important distinction:
👉 The product is not sold by Amazon.
👉 The merchant remains the seller of record.
Amazon is essentially becoming a discovery + checkout assistant, even when the transaction happens off Amazon.
How It Works for Shoppers (Quick Overview)
From a customer’s perspective:
• Products appear in Amazon search results even if they’re not in Amazon’s catalog
• Product info (price, images, descriptions) is pulled from the brand’s website
• Shoppers can:
- Click through to the merchant’s site, or
- Tap “Buy for Me” and let Amazon’s AI place the order for them
Key shopper details sellers should know
- Shipping, returns, exchanges, and customer service are handled entirely by the merchant
- Amazon’s A-to-Z Guarantee does not apply
- Amazon’s return policy does not apply
- Customers can track the order inside Amazon, but support goes to the merchant
- Only single-item orders are supported right now
- Promo codes cannot be applied when using “Buy for Me”
How “Buy for Me” Actually Works
This is where things get interesting.
When a customer taps “Buy for Me”:
• Amazon securely shares the customer’s:
- Name
- Shipping address
- Payment details
- Email and phone number (via a relay system)
• Amazon completes checkout on the merchant’s site using AI
• The merchant charges the customer directly
• Amazon provides an estimated total and allows up to a $15 price difference before requiring customer confirmation
Amazon then shows the order inside the Amazon app, but the merchant owns fulfillment and post-purchase experience.
What This Means for Brands & Sellers
This program sits in a weird middle ground between:
- Amazon Marketplace
- Affiliate traffic
- Buy-with-Prime
- Comparison shopping engines
…but it’s not exactly any of those.
What brands control
- Pricing
- Product descriptions
- Images
- Fulfillment
- Returns and policies
Amazon pulls listing content from public information on your site, refreshes it regularly, and may lightly modify it for display.
What Amazon controls
- Discovery and placement in Amazon search
- The “Buy for Me” checkout experience
- Customer email relay and communication flow
Data & competitive concerns (important)
Amazon states that:
• When shoppers visit your site directly, Amazon does not track their on-site behavior
• For “Buy for Me” purchases, Amazon cannot use transaction data to inform:
- Amazon private-label sourcing
- Inventory decisions
- Pricing decisions for Amazon-sold products
That’s a notable callout, especially for brands historically wary of Amazon data usage.
How Do Brands Get Into This Program?
Right now, this is invite-only / experimental.
If you’re a U.S. merchant and want to participate (or opt out), you need to contact Amazon directly:
📧 branddirect@amazon.com
You can use this email to:
- Express interest in participating
- Ask questions
- Opt out if your products are being surfaced and you don’t want them included
- Provide feedback
Amazon says they respond within 2 business days.
How Much Does It Cost?
This is the part that will surprise most sellers:
It’s currently free.
- No commission
- No referral fee
- No CPC
- No revenue share on “Buy for Me” purchases
Amazon has explicitly said this is an experiment focused on improving product discovery and shopping convenience.
That said… free experiments don’t usually stay free forever.
So… Should Sellers Be Excited or Nervous?
Honestly? Both.
Potential upsides
- Access to Amazon’s massive search traffic without marketplace fees
- Incremental discovery for DTC brands avoiding Amazon
- You keep fulfillment, branding, and customer experience
- No commission (for now)
Potential risks
- Amazon owning the top-of-funnel relationship
- Limited ability to upsell or bundle (single-item only)
- No promo code usage with “Buy for Me”
- Another step toward Amazon becoming the universal shopping layer
- Future monetization is almost guaranteed if this scales
The Bigger Picture
This feels less like a marketplace feature and more like Amazon testing:
“What if Amazon becomes the front door to all ecommerce, even when it doesn’t own the transaction?”
For brands that have resisted Amazon entirely, this could be a low-risk way to test Amazon discovery without marketplace headaches.
For brands already selling on Amazon, it raises uncomfortable questions about channel overlap, pricing parity, and who really owns the customer long-term.
Final Take
This is one of the most quietly disruptive things Amazon has tested in a while.
Right now, it’s optional, limited, and free.
If it works, it won’t stay that way forever.
If you’re a brand seller, the smart move isn’t panic – it’s paying attention early, understanding the mechanics, and deciding whether discovery on Amazon without marketplace fees aligns with your long-term strategy.
Weird? Yes.
Interesting? Absolutely.
Harmless experiment? Probably not.