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[01] Glossary

The Brand Management Glossary: 75 Terms in Plain Words

The words a brand manager uses every week on Amazon, Shopify and TikTok Shop, each defined in a sentence or two and linked to the page on our site that goes deeper.

Last reviewed October 27, 2026Sources checked October 2026By Ian Smith

Short answer

Brand management on Amazon has its own vocabulary. The terms that matter most: ACoS and TACoS (ad spend against ad sales and against total sales), the Featured Offer or Buy Box, Brand Registry and its tools, IPI and aged inventory for stock, Account Health Rating and order defect rate, and for regulated products cGMP, COA, TIC testing and MoCRA.

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Terms on this page, grouped into seven topics

This glossary

Under 1%

Order defect rate Amazon advises sellers to stay below

Amazon selling policies, Oct 2024

181 days

Age after which FBA charges a monthly aged inventory cost

sell.amazon.com FBA, Oct 2026

14 days

Attribution window Amazon Attribution reports on

Amazon Ads, Oct 2026

How to use it Ads and metrics Brand tools Catalog Inventory and health Compliance Other channels Sources Author FAQ

[02] Start here

How to Use This Brand Management Glossary

Disclosure: Evolve Media Agency sells Amazon brand management plans, and many terms here link to our own guides and service pages. Definitions are written in our words. Where a term carries a number or a rule, it comes from Amazon, FDA, FTC or another source we opened on October 27, 2026, listed at the bottom. Amazon programs change often; confirm details in Seller Central before you act on them.

This glossary covers the terms a brand manager uses to run a brand week to week: ads, Amazon's brand tools, the catalog, inventory and account health, compliance for regulated products, and other channels. Each term links to the page on our site that explains it in depth, where we have one.

Two related glossaries cover ground we do not repeat. The ecommerce agency hiring glossary defines proposal and contract terms such as scope of work, notice period, change order and hour block. The ecommerce AI search glossary covers terms for getting found in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews. A few core ad terms appear in both this page and the hiring glossary because a brand manager cannot work without them; here they are kept short.

If you are new to the role itself, start with what an Amazon brand manager is.

Brand management termPlain meaning

Brand managementThe ongoing work of keeping a brand healthy and growing across its sales channels: listings, ads, stock signals, reviews, content, compliance and reporting, owned by one accountable person or team. See Amazon brand management.

Brand managerThe person who owns that result and gets the call when sales fall. Compare the role with others in brand manager vs Amazon consultant.

Brand management retainerA monthly fee for ongoing brand management, often tied to a block of hours. See retainer vs project pricing and how many hours you need.

Brand health auditA scored review of an account's listings, ads, stock, reviews and account health. See the Amazon brand health audit.

Monthly reportThe brand manager's written summary of results, changes and next priorities. See what a monthly report should include.

Brand guidelinesThe rules for logo, colors, type, photo style, voice and claims that keep every channel consistent. See brand guidelines for ecommerce brands.

[03] Advertising

Ads and Performance Terms

TermPlain meaning

ACoS (advertising cost of sales)Ad spend divided by ad-attributed sales. Amazon's example: $50 spent to earn $100 is a 50% ACoS (Amazon Ads). Check yours with the ACoS and TACoS calculator.

TACoS (total advertising cost of sales)Ad spend divided by total sales, ads plus organic. A falling TACoS while sales grow suggests ads are building organic sales. An industry term, not an Amazon report field.

ROAS (return on ad spend)Ad sales divided by ad spend; Amazon calls it the inverse of ACoS. $100 in sales on $50 of spend is a ROAS of 2.

Break-even ACoSThe ACoS at which ads stop making money, set by the product's margin after costs and fees. Amazon notes ACoS must stay below profit margin to stay profitable.

Conversion rate (unit session percentage)Units ordered divided by sessions on a product page; Amazon's Business Reports call it unit session percentage. See why conversion is usually the real problem.

Sponsored ProductsCost-per-click ads for single products that appear in and alongside search results and on product pages; ads only show when the item is in stock. See our Amazon PPC strategy guide.

Sponsored BrandsAds with your logo, a headline or video and several products, usually at the top of search. Requires Brand Registry for sellers. See Sponsored Brands video.

Display ads (formerly Sponsored Display)Amazon now groups Sponsored Display into display ads inside Amazon Ads Agent, as of October 2026; existing campaigns keep running. See display vs Sponsored Brands vs DSP.

Amazon DSPAmazon's programmatic platform for display, video and audio ads, on and off Amazon. As of October 2026 Amazon says DSP has evolved into Amazon Ads Agent, with its capabilities in DVA+. See Amazon DSP for $1M+ brands.

Search term reportThe list of real shopper searches that triggered your ads, with spend and sales for each. The weekly source of new keywords and negatives.

New-to-brandOrders from shoppers who have not bought your brand on Amazon in the past 12 months, per Amazon's Sponsored Brands metrics.

Amazon AttributionA free Amazon tool that measures how off-Amazon marketing such as social, search and email drives Amazon sales, on a 14-day window (Amazon Ads). See the Amazon Attribution playbook.

Brand Referral BonusA credit against referral fees when your off-Amazon ads send shoppers to Amazon; Amazon put the average at about 10% of qualifying sales in an October 2023 post. See the Brand Referral Bonus guide.

[04] Brand Registry and programs

Amazon Brand Registry and Program Terms

TermPlain meaning

Brand RegistryAmazon's free program for brand owners, which needs a pending or registered trademark and a brand name permanently on the product or packaging (Amazon Brand Registry). Most tools below require it. See the Brand Registry and trademark playbook.

IP AcceleratorAn Amazon program that connects brands without a trademark to Amazon-vetted legal providers. Amazon says it offers competitive rates and faster Brand Registry enrollment.

Professional selling planThe Amazon seller plan most brand tools require, listed at $39.99 a month plus selling fees as of October 2026.

A+ ContentEnhanced images, comparison charts and text below the bullets. Amazon cites its own data claiming up to 8% higher sales for basic A+. See the A+ Content guide.

Premium A+A larger A+ format with more interactive modules; Amazon claims up to 20% higher sales from its own data. See Premium vs standard A+.

Brand StoryAn A+ carousel about the brand that can appear on all of its product pages.

Brand StoreA free, multi-page storefront on Amazon you build without code. See how to build a Brand Store.

Brand AnalyticsAmazon's search and purchase reports for Brand Representatives, including Top Search Terms, Market Basket, Repeat Purchase Behavior and Demographics. See the Brand Analytics playbook.

Search Query PerformanceA Brand Analytics report showing impressions, clicks, cart adds and purchases for top queries, with your brand's share of each.

Manage Your ExperimentsAmazon's A/B testing tool for images, titles, bullets and A+ Content; Amazon suggests 8 to 10 weeks for a test you time yourself.

Amazon VineFree products for invited reviewers called Vine Voices. As of October 2026, Amazon lists $0 for up to 2 units, $75 for 3 to 10 and $200 for 11 to 30 per parent product, for FBA products from Brand Registry brands with fewer than 30 reviews (Amazon Vine).

Customer Reviews toolA Brand Registry tool that lets brands contact customers who leave reviews under three stars to offer a refund or support. See the negative review playbook.

Request a ReviewA button on each order that sends Amazon's standard review request. See review request automation rules.

Subscribe and SaveRecurring orders on a schedule; FBA products of eligible brands are enrolled at a 0% seller-funded discount, and sellers can fund an extra 5% or 10%. See the Subscribe and Save playbook.

Brand Tailored PromotionsA Brand Registry tool for discounts aimed at specific groups of your brand's shoppers. See the Brand Tailored Promotions guide.

Project ZeroAn Amazon program that lets eligible Brand Registry brands remove suspected counterfeit listings themselves, on top of automated protections. Amazon invites brands to enroll once they meet its criteria. See Project Zero and Transparency.

TransparencyAmazon's serial code program: each unit carries a unique code checked before it ships, to stop counterfeits.

Alexa for ShoppingAmazon's AI shopping assistant, which answers shopper questions using listing content, reviews and A+. See noun phrase optimization.

Want a second set of eyes on this? Book a free 30-minute call, email Ian at [email protected], or call or text 719-257-3557. Bring a report or a notice full of terms you are not sure about and we will walk through what it means for your brand.

[05] Listings and catalog

Catalog and Listing Terms

TermPlain meaning

ASINAmazon Standard Identification Number, a 10-character code for each product page; most start with B0. See Amazon catalog management.

Parent and child ASINsA parent groups variations such as size or color; each child is a buyable version. See parent-child variations.

GTIN and UPCGlobal barcode numbers. A UPC is the common 12-digit GTIN in the US, licensed from GS1. Each variation needs its own.

Backend search termsHidden keywords in the Generic keyword field that help a listing get found but are not shown to shoppers. See choosing backend keywords.

Browse nodeThe category location a product sits in within Amazon's category tree. The wrong node can hide a product from category browsing.

Flat fileA spreadsheet template for creating or editing many listings at once, often the only way to fix variation and attribute problems.

Suppressed listingA listing hidden from search because of missing information, a pricing error or a policy issue. See why listings disappear from search.

Featured Offer (Buy Box)The offer shown with Add to Cart and Buy Now. Amazon says competitive pricing, fast shipping, good seller metrics and staying in stock help win it. See Buy Box optimization.

Listing hijackerOur shorthand for a seller who adds an offer to your listing with counterfeit or different goods, or changes your page content. Amazon uses "hijacking" for variation abuse: adding invalid products to your variation family or removing valid ones. Report it through Brand Registry; our catalog management guide covers the fix.

[06] Stock and account health

Inventory, Fulfillment and Account Health Terms

TermPlain meaning

FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon)You send stock to Amazon, which stores, packs, ships and handles returns, for fees by size and weight. See the FBA fees breakdown.

FBM (fulfilled by merchant)You ship orders yourself or through a 3PL. See FBA vs FBM.

Seller Fulfilled PrimeA program that lets you show the Prime badge on orders you ship yourself after passing a 30-day trial. See Seller Fulfilled Prime economics.

AWD (Amazon Warehousing and Distribution)Amazon's low-cost bulk storage that can auto-replenish FBA. See AWD vs FBA.

MCF (Multi-Channel Fulfillment)Amazon picks, packs and ships orders from your other channels, in unbranded packaging by default. See one catalog across Amazon and TikTok Shop.

IPI (Inventory Performance Index)Amazon's score for how well you manage FBA stock, based on replenishing popular products, keeping the right levels and fixing listing problems (Amazon inventory guide).

Days of supplyHow many days current stock lasts at current sales. Amazon's guide flags more than 90 days of supply as excess and suggests about two months.

Aged inventoryFBA stock stored too long. Amazon charges monthly for items stored more than 181 days. See storage and aged inventory fees.

Stranded inventorySellable stock in a fulfillment center that is not listed for sale, usually because the listing broke.

Reorder pointThe stock level that should trigger a new order, based on daily sales, lead time and safety stock. See the reorder-point formula.

Account Health RatingAmazon's 0 to 1,000 score of how well an account follows policy, color coded by risk (Amazon selling policies). See protecting account health.

ODR (order defect rate)The share of orders with negative feedback, an A-to-z claim or a chargeback. Amazon advises keeping it under 1%.

Late shipment and cancellation ratesFor orders you ship, Amazon advises keeping late shipments under 4% and cancellations under 2.5%.

[07] Regulated products

Compliance Terms for Supplements and Skincare

TermPlain meaning

cGMP (current good manufacturing practice)The federal rules for making, packaging, labeling and holding dietary supplements, in 21 CFR Part 111 (eCFR). See how to vet a supplement manufacturer.

COA (certificate of analysis)A document showing test methods, limits and actual results for an ingredient or batch. See the COA guide.

ISO/IEC 17025The international standard for the competence of testing and calibration labs; buyers look for it when judging a lab's results.

TIC (testing, inspection and certification)Amazon's program under which an approved third-party provider tests or validates supplement documents and submits results to Amazon directly, as described by Epstein Becker Green in January 2026 (EBG). See Amazon supplement testing requirements.

Structure/function claimA claim about how an ingredient supports normal body structure or function, such as calcium builds strong bones. Supplements using one need FDA's disclaimer and must notify FDA within 30 days of marketing. See structure/function claims.

Supplement Facts panelThe required nutrition-style box on a supplement label. See the Supplement Facts panel guide.

MoCRAThe Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022, which added facility registration renewed every two years, product listing and serious adverse event reports within 15 business days (FDA). See beauty and skincare brand management.

Prop 65California's law requiring warnings about exposure to listed chemicals. See Prop 65 for supplement brands.

FTC review rule16 CFR Part 465, which bans fake reviews, paying for reviews with a set sentiment and suppressing reviews. See the Amazon review strategy.

These definitions are general information, not legal or regulatory advice. For claims, labels or testing decisions, talk to a regulatory attorney.

[08] Shopify, TikTok Shop and next steps

Multichannel Terms, and How to Put Them to Work

TermPlain meaning

GMV (gross merchandise value)Total value of orders before fees and returns, the main sales number on TikTok Shop. See TikTok Shop brand management.

GMV MaxTikTok Shop's automated ad type, which TikTok says optimizes for your shop's total channel return. See GMV Max explained.

TikTok Shop Account Health RatingA 0 to 1,000 score in which every shop starts at 200; at 150 a shop loses new listings and new mega campaigns for 7 days, per PPC Land's June 29, 2026 report (PPC Land). See TikTok Shop account health.

Shop Performance ScoreTikTok Shop's separate 0 to 5 score that gates affiliate marketing, campaigns and settlement speed.

Creator affiliateA TikTok creator who earns a commission for selling your product in videos or LIVE. See the creator affiliate guide.

CRO (conversion rate optimization)Testing changes to a store or product page to turn more visitors into buyers. See Shopify CRO.

Pricing parityKeeping prices consistent across channels so one does not undercut another, which also affects the Amazon Featured Offer. See multichannel brand management.

Open your last monthly report

Circle every term you could not explain to a partner in one sentence, and look it up here.

Check the five health numbers

Account Health Rating, order defect rate, IPI, aged inventory and stranded inventory. Any one in trouble is this week's first job.

Compare ACoS, TACoS and break-even ACoS

If ACoS sits above break-even on a product, ads lose money on every sale there.

List the Brand Registry tools you are not using

Vine, A+, Brand Store, Manage Your Experiments, Brand Analytics and the Customer Reviews tool are included with Brand Registry.

Run a scored audit

Use the brand health audit or the brand management checklist to turn the terms into a priority list.

Do it yourself if the terms are familiar and you have the hours

If you can explain most of this page and spend a few hours a week in Seller Central, keep running it and buy projects as needed. A free listing audit is a good start.

Get help if the terms keep turning into problems

If you are reading notices about suppressed listings, aged inventory or account health more often than you are fixing them, that is the work a brand manager takes over.

How Evolve helps. Our Amazon brand management plans put one brand manager on every term on this page. Our prices, as of October 2026: Brand Support, 5 hours for $750 a month; Brand Manager, 10 hours for $1,250; Brand Manager Plus, 20 hours for $2,000; Full Brand Management, 40 hours for $3,600. Plans are paid upfront and month to month, hours do not roll over, and work beyond a plan is $150 an hour. Ad spend and fixed-price production are billed separately; see the pricing page. Questions about a term in your own account? Email Ian at [email protected] or call or text 719-257-3557.

[09] Sources

Where These Facts Come From

Amazon Ads: ACOS guide

advertising.amazon.com · Open source →

Amazon Ads: Sponsored Products

advertising.amazon.com · Open source →

Amazon Ads: Sponsored Brands

advertising.amazon.com · Open source →

Amazon Ads: Amazon Attribution

advertising.amazon.com · Open source →

Amazon Ads: Amazon DSP

advertising.amazon.com · Open source →

Amazon (sell.amazon.com): Brand Referral Bonus, Oct 20, 2023