When I ask sellers how they plan to fix a stuck reinstatement appeal, 70% to 80%
By Chris McCabe · June 23, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
When I ask sellers how they plan to fix a stuck reinstatement appeal, 70% to 80% of them tell me the exact same thing: "We're just going to escalate it."
But when I ask them how or where they are escalating, things get incredibly vague. The word itself requires real world context, or it loses all meaning.
Too many people think "escalating" means firing off an email to Jeff Bezos or Andy Jassy and hoping a senior executive bails them out.
Newsflash: Jeff left the CEO role 5 years ago next month, and Jassy's kinda not doing things the way Jeff did. Stop living in the past!
That email is dropping straight into background noise, and "Executive Seller Relations" reps who respond aren't what they used to be.
Old concepts applied to new situations get you nowhere.
A real escalation requires a targeted strategy directed at specific leadership or internal compliance teams. Leadership level reviews and phone calls are needed, not the usual runaround nonsense.
If you actually produce a proper escalation, you need to be ready for how Amazon replies. When they call you (if they do) and it's not some run of the mill Account Health rep, are you ready?
Do you know what you lead with? Do you anticipate what they will ask?
Know the answers before Escalation leads even call you, and take advantage of the opportunity to avoid waiting, or avoid useless cases.
When leadership team specialists and escalation managers call you, you'll need to avoid wasting time expressing frustration with the "take you in a circle" nature of Amazon's communication. That'll never change.
If more needs to be provided, request specifics. Revise an appeal based on what you're specifically told is needed to resolve the matter.
If you miss the call entirely because it "looked like spam" or the call wasn't from a 206 area code, you're doing this wrong.
It could be from ANY area code, or be scrambled digits to mask where it's coming from. Still, PICK IT UP. I know it's a pain, but you'll thank me.
Push for an escalation and feature the best mobile number in the request, but don't let the incoming call go straight to voicemail.
If you are pushing an escalation channel, keep your eyes glued to your phone. A real conversation with an escalation specialist is worth a hundred generic case replies, don't throw that opportunity away.