Amazon is testing a ‘new’ badge to help shoppers identify new products

More than 40% of e-commerce sales in America take place on Amazon’s website, yet the site has long been criticized for its “discoverability”—that is, the ease in which people can discover new products they might not have known they’ve always wanted.

In an attempt to improve the site’s discoverability and overall shopping navigation experience, Amazon is testing a new “new” badge that will alert customers that the product with the badge has just been added to the site recently, reports CNBC.

Multiple sellers who spoke to CNBC said that right now it’s not clear what the criteria are for getting a product labeled with the “new” badge. It seems that simply adding a new product to the site’s catalog won’t necessarily get the product labeled as new. But any product that does get the “new” badge could see a sales boost, as Amazon’s products that feature other badges typically stand out from the crowd.

Amazon’s existing badges include “top brand,” “best sellers,” and “Amazon’s choice.” An Amazon spokesperson confirmed the existence of the “new” badge testing, saying that the company recently started testing the badge in “select markets for certain customers.” Whether it will roll out to customers everywhere remains to be seen.