Can you have a signature on a MAP Policy?

This is a complex question. Having a signature on a MAP policy is not illegal, but it is also not a a good idea. First off if you have a signature just to confirm receipt of a MAP Policy, there is probably no issue. If the signature is on the MAP policy and implies an agreement to follow the MAP Policy, it is not unlawful, but the status of the policy is no longer unilateral. It is now a MAP agreement. And that is very different and we do not recommend it. In the U.S., unilateral policies are not subject to antitrust laws against price fixing, but MAP agreements are covered by them and judged under the antitrust standard known as the “rule of reason.” The net effect of creating a MAP agreement, as opposed to a unilateral policy is the loss of two legal defenses. In the past, manufacturers regularly wanted MAP acknowledgements, but, for many years, reputable law firms have been discouraging their use to avoid the risk of compromising unilateral status and the administrative hassle of getting every reseller to confirm. In fact, of the hundreds of Policies we’ve seen almost no one uses Policy acknowledgements or confirmations any more. For more detailed information please reach out.

How do you know if the MAP policy is working

As mentioned above, we look at all the listings and not just the violations. This allows us to get an overall compliance number. If you have 100 violations and do not know how many non-violations there are then you are not seeing the complete picture. We try to keep all of our clients at 95% compliance or more. And as you can see on this image many of our clients have compliance much higher than that!

Well, I’m glad you asked! Not only do we deal with your minimum advertised price monitoring and enforcement issues, but we can also help you grow your sales. We not only monitor all your violations, but we also look at your non-violations. This is helpful in numerous ways. First off if we do not look at all of the non-violations there is no way to know if the MAP enforcement is working (see below) But in addition to this, we have reports who show all dealers who have zero violations. These are the good guys, and many of them you may not have a direct relationship with. Through our reporting, you can reach out to them for marketing purposes. Or you might find dealers who are good guys but who are only listing part of your line. We provide the data you need to reach out to them and get them to carry the whole line.

Who are some of your clients?

Follow this link to see many of our Clients and their MAP policies. This is a great place to learn about what different pricing policies look like.

Do you monitor all our parts, or just a sampling?

We monitor 100% of your parts on third party sites. We’ve found some sellers are very smart and when they figure out you are only monitoring a select few parts from your catalog, they stop violating on those, and continue violating on the rest. In order to get Amazon themselves to follow your MAP policy, you need to monitor and enforce 100% of your parts.

Do you have a yearly contract for your services?

No, our contract is month to month. We have to earn your trust and business every day. We have many clients who have been with us for many years on a month-to-month basis.

How do you know who the violators really are? I know they try to hide their true identities.

The greatest thing about specializing in this industry is that we already know who most of the sellers are. We work with over 130 brands in the automotive and powersport industries and we have the most complete list of dealers’ contact info in the world. When we find a new seller who we don't have contact information for, we have an investigative staff who will dig until we unmask them! We will do mystery buys, and whatever it takes to uncover them. In addition, all of our brands work together in this way, so if one of the other manufacturers has info on a new dealer this will help you right away.

How do you notify violators of their violations?

We send automatic emails directly to the violators with all of their violations as well as the proper MAP price file. We start with a series of pre-written templates, then we work with you to customize them to your Minimum Advertised Price policy. These emails go out automatically, on holidays and weekends and after hours if need be. We are on the hunt at all times so you do not need to be.

What is the difference between a UPP, MRP and MAP policies?

[fusion_builder_container type="flex" hundred_percent="no" equal_height_columns="no" menu_anchor="" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" class="" id="" background_color="" background_image="" background_position="center center" background_repeat="no-repeat" fade="no" background_parallax="none" parallax_speed="0.3" video_mp4="" video_webm="" video_ogv="" video_url="" video_aspect_ratio="16:9" video_loop="yes" video_mute="yes" overlay_color="" video_preview_image="" border_color="" border_style="solid" padding_top="" padding_bottom="" padding_left="" padding_right=""][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type="1_1" layout="1_1" background_position="left top" background_color="" border_color="" border_style="solid" border_position="all" spacing="yes" background_image="" background_repeat="no-repeat" padding_top="" padding_right="" padding_bottom="" padding_left="" margin_top="0px" margin_bottom="0px" class="" id="" animation_type="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_direction="left" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" center_content="no" last="true" min_height="" hover_type="none" link="" border_sizes_top="" border_sizes_bottom="" border_sizes_left="" border_sizes_right="" first="true"][fusion_text columns="" column_min_width="" column_spacing="" rule_style="" rule_size="" rule_color="" hue="" saturation="" lightness="" alpha="" user_select="" awb-switch-editor-focus="" content_alignment_medium="" content_alignment_small="" content_alignment="" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" sticky_display="normal,sticky" class="" id="" margin_top="" margin_right="" margin_bottom="" margin_left="" fusion_font_family_text_font="" fusion_font_variant_text_font="" font_size="" line_height="" letter_spacing="" text_transform="" text_color="" animation_type="" animation_direction="left" animation_color="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_delay="0" animation_offset="" logics=""] There are a lot of different types of policies, and a ton of different initials to describe them. Here is the best way to keep them straight. First of all, good policies are all “Unilateral”, whether they are MAP, UPP, MRP, or whatever. What this means is that the manufacturer is issuing a one-sided policy. It is just stating “This here is the way it is! And we are not looking for agreement from you.” This avoids a ton of legal problems that we are happy to discuss with you if you reach out to us. The second thing to keep in mind is that one type of policy, MRP- Manufacturer Resale Policy, refers to the price a product is sold for, and the other policy MAP Minimum Advertised Price, refers to the price it is “advertised” for. These differences create a lot of confusion but that is the essence of it all. If you would like to hear more details please reach out to us here . [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

How do you deal with Amazon?

This is a big question and there are many variables. If you want more details please reach out and we will be happy to discuss this topic. Here are a few things we might suggest. If Amazon buys from you directly you can talk with your buyer and ask them to clean up. This has worked for some clients, but it might take some convincing. If you have contact information for your buyer at Amazon we can send violation notices directly to them. If you do not sell to them directly, or if they refuse to come into compliance the next step is usually to cut off their supply. If you know where they are getting the product from then sometimes simply putting them on a Do Not Sell list will take care of them. It is important to note that cutting Amazon off should not affect overall sales. If Amazon is not selling the product themselves then someone else will be selling them on Amazon. If you do not know where they are getting the product from we will help you figure it out. One powerful technique is to prohibit anyone from selling your products on Amazon. We have more and more brands who are doing this. Some brands threaten this in order to get Amazon cleaned up. Remember, Amazon wants to have the most complete catalog and they want to carry your brand, so you do have some leverage.

FAQs Archive - MAP Services

Can you have a signature on a MAP Policy?
This is a complex question. Having a signature on a MAP policy is not illegal, but it is also not a a good idea. First off if you have a signature just to confirm receipt of a MAP Policy, there [...]
How do you know if the MAP policy is working
As mentioned above, we look at all the listings and not just the violations. This allows us to get an overall compliance number. If you have 100 violations and do not know how many non-violations there are then you are [...]
What else do you do?
Well, I’m glad you asked! Not only do we deal with your minimum advertised price monitoring and enforcement issues, but we can also help you grow your sales. We not only monitor all your violations, but we also look at [...]
Who are some of your clients?
Follow this link to see many of our Clients and their MAP policies. This is a great place to learn about what different pricing policies look like.
Do you monitor all our parts, or just a sampling?
We monitor 100% of your parts on third party sites. We’ve found some sellers are very smart and when they figure out you are only monitoring a select few parts from your catalog, they stop violating on those, and continue [...]
Do you have a yearly contract for your services?
No, our contract is month to month. We have to earn your trust and business every day. We have many clients who have been with us for many years on a month-to-month basis.
How do you know who the violators really are? I know they try to hide their true identities.
The greatest thing about specializing in this industry is that we already know who most of the sellers are. We work with over 130 brands in the automotive and powersport industries and we have the most complete list of dealers’ [...]
How do you notify violators of their violations?
We send automatic emails directly to the violators with all of their violations as well as the proper MAP price file. We start with a series of pre-written templates, then we work with you to customize them to your Minimum [...]
What is the difference between a UPP, MRP and MAP policies?
There are a lot of different types of policies, and a ton of different initials to describe them. Here is the best way to keep them straight. First of all, good policies are all “Unilateral”, whether they are MAP, [...]
How do you deal with Amazon?
This is a big question and there are many variables. If you want more details please reach out and we will be happy to discuss this topic. Here are a few things we might suggest. If Amazon buys from you [...]

FAQs

Can you have a signature on a MAP Policy?

How do you know if the MAP policy is working

What else do you do?

Who are some of your clients?

Do you monitor all our parts, or just a sampling?

Do you have a yearly contract for your services?

How do you know who the violators really are? I know they try to hide their true identities.

How do you notify violators of their violations?

What is the difference between a UPP, MRP and MAP policies?

How do you deal with Amazon?

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