🎧 On the go? Listen to this roundup in audio format.
Welcome to the June edition of the Retail Roundup, your go-to recap of the biggest developments in retail media and marketplace news.
This month, Amazon killed Posts, tightened SFP rules, and expanded its DSP reach with Disney and Roku. Walmart finally rolled out negative keyword targeting and shocked everyone by approving Amazon Multi-Channel Fulfillment.
The trend? Platforms are shedding what doesn’t convert, doubling down on performance, and rewarding advertisers who can keep pace with sharper tools and higher standards.
Let’s get into it.
Amazon Officially Shuts Down Posts
After years of lukewarm performance, Amazon Posts has finally been deprecated. Tucked away in a recent release note, the announcement confirmed what many suspected: Amazon’s latest attempt at building a native content feed has quietly reached its end.
Posts offered brands a way to publish lifestyle images in a scrollable, Instagram-like feed that appeared on product detail pages, category pages, and search results.
While impressions were often strong, because Amazon gave Posts prominent real estate, actual engagement was dismal. Clicks were rare. Conversions were worse.
Despite its visibility, the content mostly amounted to repurposed social posts with minimal adaptation for the Amazon ecosystem.
Pros
- Reinforces the platform's identity: a marketplace, not a content network.
- With Posts removed, PDPs and category feeds are less cluttered, allowing higher-performing assets like A+ content and ads to shine.
- Brands no longer need to spend time repurposing social content that was generating little to no return.
- Amazon’s move reinforces its focus on performance-driven media, helping brands concentrate investment where attribution and ROI are clearer.
- Real estate previously occupied by Posts could be reassigned to sponsored formats, offering more inventory for paid media.
Cons
- The deprecation continues a trend of shrinking opportunities for unpaid brand engagement on Amazon.
- Amazon wants brands to invest in measurable media, not experiment with free tools.
💡Tips
- With organic avenues shrinking, optimize your investment in Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Display, and DSP.
- Shift the resources previously used for Posts toward ad creative that is tailored to Amazon’s high-intent shopping environment.
Amazon x Disney & Roku: DSP Partnerships Go Blockbuster
Amazon is making major waves in connected TV (CTV) by striking two heavyweight DSP partnerships. One with Disney’s ad exchange (DRAX) and another with Roku, the dominant streaming platform. Both were announced at Cannes Lions and signal a significant expansion in Amazon’s premium media reach and cross-platform attribution capabilities.
- Disney’s Real-Time Ad Exchange (DRAX) gives Amazon DSP buyers access to premium inventory like Hulu and ESPN, along with enhanced viewer data.
- Roku unlocks massive reach across free, ad-supported content, plus tighter integration with Roku’s user-level data.
These moves reflect Amazon’s effort to solidify its position in the upper-funnel media landscape.
The goal: let advertisers access high-impact CTV and streaming TV inventory without leaving Amazon’s ecosystem while improving attribution, audience targeting, and frequency management.
Pros
- Consolidated Buying for Premium Inventory: Advertisers can now buy Disney media (Hulu, ESPN, etc.) through Amazon DSP instead of needing separate partners or platforms like The Trade Desk. This simplifies execution for teams seeking scale in a single platform.
- More Efficient Reach Through Roku: Roku offers expansive reach at a lower cost, making it ideal for awareness campaigns. While not premium like Disney, it hits volume goals across free content environments.
- Improved Frequency Capping: Buying across both Disney and Roku within Amazon DSP reduces fragmentation and allows advertisers to better control ad frequency across channels, avoiding issues like overexposure.
- Enhanced Attribution and Signal Clarity: Roku is now sharing user-level data with Amazon, enabling more precise tracking of who saw an ad and whether it led to a purchase. This could help reduce the number of “unallocated” conversions in Amazon reporting.
- Full-Funnel Signal Alignment: It helps reinforce Amazon’s strength in connecting exposure across funnel stages, not just showing ads, but tracing them to outcomes within the ecosystem.
Cons
- Higher CPMs on Disney Inventory: While premium placements drive strong recall and brand lift, they come at a cost. CPMs may increase, requiring thoughtful budgeting to balance impact vs. efficiency.
- Overlap with Existing DSP Partners: Some brands already access Disney or Roku inventory through other DSPs. Shifting to Amazon DSP could cause some internal workflow friction.
💡Tips
- This is a big leap toward unified, full-funnel planning within Amazon DSP. Premium CTV inventory (especially Disney) is now more accessible and measurable. Work with your DSP lead to test campaigns that span Roku and Disney to evaluate reach vs. engagement trade-offs.
- Use Disney for upper-funnel, brand-building campaigns with interactive ad formats; pair with Roku to scale cost-effective awareness.
- If you’ve been using multiple DSPs to access this inventory, test a consolidated strategy on Amazon to reduce complexity and media waste.
- These integrations aren’t just about reach; they also unlock interactive ad formats, even in a CTV context. “Mid-funnel engagement” is now possible on TV screens, using interactive creative overlays and clickable elements.
Amazon Operational Crackdowns: SFP, Returns, and “Final Sale” Badges
While the retail media headlines have been focused on these new partnerships, Amazon has quietly rolled out a slate of tightened operational policies that will impact both 1P and 3P sellers.
These updates target fulfillment, returns, and liquidation practices and reflect Amazon’s ongoing mission to enforce higher standards across its supply chain.
1. Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP) Gets Stricter
Amazon has long held SFP to a high bar, but enforcement has historically been lenient. That’s changing. New rules rolling out in late June and early July raise the bar and limit re-entry opportunities.
Key Policy Changes:
- Sellers now have only 3 SFP trial attempts per calendar year (previously unlimited).
- Must fulfill at least 100 Prime-eligible orders per month, evenly distributed throughout the week.
- Only 14 calendar days to appeal a suspension, and just 4 days to respond when Amazon requests information.
2. Vendor Returns Policy Gets Costly
Amazon is also revising how it handles frequently returned items on Vendor Central, applying pressure to reduce poor-performing SKUs and increase accountability.
New Return Options:
- For items flagged with a "frequently returned" badge, Amazon now gives vendors two options:
- Take the product back with a 100% refund, plus a 10% shipping and handling fee.
- Allow Amazon to dispose of the item, but still pay the same fees as above, plus a disposal charge.
It’s like Amazon is saying: your product has a return problem, and we’re not eating the cost anymore.
This applies specifically to 1P vendors, who are bound by wholesale terms and limited in how they manage returns once products are in Amazon's possession.
3. “Final Sale” Badge Signals a No-Return Liquidation Move
Amazon is also piloting a new “Final Sale” badge on select 1P SKUs. Visually similar to Lightning Deals or Best Deal tags, this badge prominently states “No Returns”, a significant shift from Amazon’s traditionally lenient return policy.
Intended for liquidation of less popular SKUs (e.g., uncommon sizes), this could create customer confusion and an increase in refund requests as the items are non-returnable.
Pros
- Stronger Prime Delivery Standards: Tighter SFP rules ensure only reliable sellers qualify, helping protect Amazon’s Prime promise and customer satisfaction.
- Vendor Accountability: The return policy changes push vendors to address problematic SKUs rather than rely on Amazon to absorb returns silently.
- Liquidation Tool for Vendors: The Final Sale badge could help vendors efficiently move excess or slow-moving inventory.
- Operational Clarity: These updates offer clear-cut policies around appeals, performance metrics, and cost-sharing, cutting down on ambiguity.
Cons
- More Barriers for Sellers: SFP now requires more volume, discipline, and rapid responsiveness, raising the bar for participation and reducing seller flexibility.
- Increased Costs for Vendors: Return policy changes now impose significant fees whether items are returned or disposed of, potentially squeezing vendor margins.
- Customer Experience Risk with Final Sale Badge: Shoppers accustomed to Amazon’s generous return policy may not notice or understand “Final Sale,” leading to frustration, negative reviews, or customer service strain.
- Limited Transparency: For now, Final Sale is a vendor-side-only test. Sellers don’t have access to the program, and there’s limited visibility into its impact or profitability.
💡Tips
- Only pursue SFP if you’re confident in volume and speed. For most brands, the risk/reward equation now leans heavily toward FBA unless fulfillment infrastructure is rock-solid.
- Audit high-return items. Review PDP content, sizing charts, and customer Q&A to identify and resolve friction points before they start costing you.
- If you’re part of the pilot for Final Sale badges on your items, make sure you know your profitability well. This move may help with excess inventory, but if the discount is eating all your profits, you might be better off returning the item and selling elsewhere.
Walmart Adds Negative Keyword Targeting, Sponsored Product Conquesting, and New Measurement Tools
Walmart Connect has rolled out several long-awaited features to its self-serve ad platform, including:
- Negative Keyword Targeting: Finally allowing advertisers to block unwanted search queries and improve campaign efficiency.
- Sponsored Product Conquesting: Officially enabling brands to target competitor terms, a capability that had quietly existed but is now formalized.
- Measurement Items: Deeper data tools that give advertisers more insight into performance, especially around incremental impact.
These updates bring Walmart’s ad tech offering closer to parity with Amazon and mark a move toward greater control and transparency for brands running retail media on the platform.
Pros
- Keyword Precision: Negative keywords enable brands to cleanly separate branded vs. non-branded campaigns, reduce wasted spend, and optimize for incrementality.
- Official Conquesting: Sponsored Product conquesting becomes a fully sanctioned tactic, allowing brands to go after competitors’ traffic confidently.
- Greater Transparency: With new measurement capabilities, brands can better analyze what’s working, segment performance, and build smarter strategies.
- Less Inflated ROAS: Previously, Walmart ROAS often looked artificially high because brands couldn't block their own branded terms in campaigns. That illusion is now removed, giving a more honest picture of performance.
- Encourages Operational Rigor: These updates will force brand teams to be more “scrappy” and strategic, less passive, and more performance-focused.
Cons
- Late to the Game: Features like negative keywords have been table stakes on Amazon and Google for years. Walmart is still playing catch-up.
- More features = more responsibility. Less experienced teams may now struggle to keep up without retail media expertise.
- ROAS May Drop: As keyword targeting tightens and branded term inflation is curbed, Walmart's performance metrics may start to look more modest, possibly leading to uncomfortable questions from leadership.
💡Tips
- Split your branded vs. non-branded Walmart campaigns to get cleaner ROAS insights.
- Use negatives to prevent internal cannibalization.
Walmart Now Allows Fulfillment via Amazon’s Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF)
In a surprising and long-awaited move, Walmart has officially begun allowing sellers to use Amazon’s Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF) to fulfill Walmart Marketplace orders.
This is a significant policy reversal. Previously, sellers who used Amazon to fulfill Walmart orders risked suspension. Now, with certain conditions in place, the two retail giants have opened a “two-way street,” enabling fulfillment collaboration between competing ecosystems.
Key conditions:
- Plain packaging only: No Amazon-branded boxes or packing slips.
- No Amazon Logistics: Sellers must use unbranded carriers like USPS or UPS.
- Data and logistics must stay neutral: Walmart doesn’t want to be the billboard for its rival’s logistics empire.
While it’s not a front-page announcement, this truce may quietly accelerate Walmart Marketplace adoption, especially for Amazon-first brands looking to expand with minimal friction.
Pros
- Lower Barrier to Walmart Expansion: Amazon-first sellers can now test Walmart Marketplace with little operational overhead, using their existing FBA inventory. This removes a major friction point in multi-marketplace scaling.
- Mutual Recognition of Reality: Walmart is acknowledging that many sellers think “Amazon first, Walmart second,” and is taking steps to make cross-platform growth easier rather than fighting it.
- Operational Simplicity for Small Sellers: This is particularly beneficial for small to mid-sized brands that don’t yet use Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS) or third-party logistics (3PLs).
- Reciprocal Flexibility: Amazon also reportedly allows fulfillment using Walmart’s logistics infrastructure, suggesting a broader easing of competitive tensions between the platforms.
- No Need for Immediate WFS Migration: Sellers can now validate Walmart’s demand before investing in WFS, making test-and-learn strategies more viable.
Cons
- Walmart Brand Perception Risks: Despite unbranded shipping, some risk remains that customer experience might be linked back to Amazon, potentially diluting Walmart’s brand control.
- Unproven at Scale: This is a new policy shift. Operational hiccups, delays, or compliance issues may surface as sellers begin adopting the model.
💡Tips
- Sellers focused on Amazon can trial Walmart Marketplace without investing in new 3PL contracts or WFS onboarding.
- Brands can use MCF to fulfill overflow demand during peak season if Walmart's inventory is low.
- For brands trying to centralize inventory and reduce split logistics, this opens a path to greater operational efficiency.
- This may evolve; stay alert for changes in fulfillment eligibility or enforcement from either platform.
Looking Ahead
This month’s developments paint a clear picture: retail platforms are entering a more focused, more demanding phase.
Amazon is shedding low-performing experiments like Posts and pushing deeper into premium, full-funnel media with its Disney and Roku partnerships. At the same time, it’s raising the bar for operational excellence, whether through stricter SFP rules, higher return penalties, or experimental “Final Sale” policies.
The message is clear: if a tool doesn’t drive measurable performance, it’s out.
Walmart, for its part, is finally catching up on the fundamentals. Search upgrades like negative keywords and official conquesting will give marketers more control and transparency, long overdue. And by allowing Amazon MCF to fulfill Walmart orders, they’ve signaled that growth now outweighs rivalry.
Across both platforms, the stakes are getting higher. Brands that succeed will be those that can adapt quickly, deploy media efficiently, and meet rising expectations on fulfillment and performance.
Give It a Listen
You can tune in for the full interview with Armin Alispahic and Ross Walker on the Ecommerce Braintrust hosted by Julie Spear and Jordan Ripley.
This show gives you access to the world's best brains when it comes to building momentum online for established consumer brands. Join in and listen to discussions with expert guests about e-commerce strategies, trends, and innovations.