Editorial policy and news standards.

Who we are

The PPC Spider news desk is run by the strategists who manage Amazon, Walmart, TikTok Shop and retail media accounts at PPC Spider. We write for brand owners, sellers and the people who run their accounts, so every story ends with what to do next. We are a marketing agency, not a newspaper, and this page explains how we keep the two apart.

What we cover

Seller news is organized into departments: Amazon advertising, FBA and fees, Prime Day and deal events, policy and account health, Walmart, TikTok Shop, retail media networks and Shopify and DTC. A story is published when a marketplace changes a fee, a policy, a program, an ad format, a tool or a deadline that changes what a seller should do this week.

We do not cover general ecommerce gossip, funding rounds or executive moves unless they change something for sellers. We do not publish press releases as stories.

How a story is chosen

The desk monitors the marketplaces' own channels (Seller Central and Vendor Central announcements, Amazon Ads release notes, help page changes, newsrooms, developer and API changelogs) and a short list of trade publications. A change becomes a story when a strategist on the team would mention it to a client. If it would not come up on a client call, it does not get written.

Sourcing

We report a change only after it is confirmed by the marketplace itself (announcements, official help pages, newsrooms and press releases) or by at least one reputable trade publication that cites the marketplace. Every story lists its sources at the end, with links. We do not publish rumors as fact; when something is reported but unconfirmed, we say so plainly and label it as such.

Screenshots from Seller Central, Ads consoles and help pages are used only when the text cannot be linked, and they are dated.

Numbers and claims

We never invent statistics, client results, survey figures or quotes. Fees, dates, limits and percentages are quoted from the source and dated. When sources disagree, we tell readers to confirm in Seller Central rather than pick a number. Estimates are labeled as estimates. The same rule applies across the whole site: service pages and SpiderOS pages describe how things work, and any sample dashboard is marked as sample data.

How a story is written

Every news story follows the same shape: what changed, in one or two sentences; who it affects and from when; what to do about it, as a short list; and the sources. Headlines describe the change, not a reaction to it. We avoid urgency language unless there is a real deadline, and then we state the date.

Guides and explainers are evergreen and are reviewed when the marketplace changes the thing they describe. Each guide shows the date it was last updated.

Updates and corrections

Marketplace stories move. When facts change we update the same article, show the update date and keep the original publication date. If we get something wrong we correct it quickly and note the correction at the top of the story. Send corrections to admin@ppcspider.com with "News correction" in the subject line; a strategist reads every one.

Independence and advertising

PPC Spider sells marketplace management services and SpiderOS software, and our articles link to them where relevant. We say so here so readers can judge. Advertising and sponsorships, when present, are labeled on the page and never change what we report. Sponsors do not review stories before publication, do not choose topics and are not told what we are writing. The advertise page sets out what we accept.

If a link on the site earns us a commission, it is labeled as such next to the link. We do not accept payment for product reviews or for placement inside editorial content.

AI assistance

We use AI tools, including our own SpiderOS, to monitor sources, flag changes and draft summaries. A strategist checks every fact against the sources listed before a story is published and is responsible for it. AI does not publish on its own, and we do not generate quotes or figures with it.

Reader data and comments

The newsletter is sent only to people who signed up, and every issue has an unsubscribe link. We do not run comments on the news desk; reactions and tips go to admin@ppcspider.com, and we credit readers who flag a change first if they want to be credited. See the privacy policy for how we handle your information.

Contact the desk

Tips, corrections and questions: admin@ppcspider.com. If you are a marketplace, a trade publication or a software company with a change that affects sellers, send the official source and we will read it.