Create search features that will be applied to scans according to your preferences.

Introduction

Reduce the time needed to launch a new search by using setting defaults. When you run a new search, you will have the option to modify these settings at any time.

By the end of this article, you'll know how to set default settings for:

• The cache 
• Search filters
• Price adjustments

1.  Opening the "Searching" panel

1. Click SETTINGS. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Click Settings. The Settings page displays.
3. Click Searching on the top menu.
   

2.  Selecting a tab

    The Searching panel has three tabs: 

• CACHE
• SEARCH FILTERS
• PRICE ADJUSTMENTS

3.  Running a cache search

3.1  Understanding cache

There are two kinds of searches on Tactical Arbitrage: live search and cache search.

• A live search scans company websites looking for current product information. That's a good thing. The downside is that it takes more time than a cache search.

• A cache search checks the data in the Tactical Arbitrage cache memory. Every search run by our users is temporarily stored in cache memory which makes the scan much faster.

Searching the cache has good and bad points. The good point is speed. A cache search produces results faster than a live search. 

A cache search has three drawbacks. 

• Product data (e.g. prices, availability, etc.) in the cache might be out of date.
• The list of products that meet your search filter thresholds might be incomplete.
• Product promotions are generally captured during a live search. Relying on cache only searches could you missing special deals.

You're not forever stuck with old data, however.

Here's what we like to do:

1. Run a cache search with the 3-day cache period.
2. On the View Data page, find promising products using filters (e.g. ROI, gross profit, etc.).
3. Use the Update tool to get current information for the most promising products.

3.2  Menu options

Each search portal is listed on the Cache panel. Each portal has a cache menu.

1. Click the grey box next to a scan type name. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Select a search option: LIVE ONLY or a cache period.
3. Repeat for other search portals, as required.
4. Click SAVE.

   

4.  Customizing search filters

The search filters panel has six groups of settings. Each group is described below.

4.1  Setting search style

The search style group has two tools.

a. Home country
Set your home country by clicking a flag.

b. Seller type
Seller type is important because it affects the fee calculations.

1. Click the grey box. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Select FBA or MF.

4.2  Setting title/image match

This filter removes products if the title/image match score falls below a threshold that you set.

Our suggestion is this:

• Set the first field to Good
• Set the second field to Great

In our experience, this combination yields good, clean results.

4.3  Setting domain search sets

This tool lets you create a group with multiple websites. It's a time saver if you run frequent searches in a niche area. It's also a useful tool if you assign tasks to a virtual assistant.

4.3.1  Creating a group

1. Click CREATE NEW. A new field displays.
2. Enter the name of the group in the box.
3. Click ADD.
4. Click the field Select domains for your list. A drop-down menu displays.
5. Scroll through the list and check the websites you want to include in the group.
6. Click the blue SAVE button.
7. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the orange SAVE button.

   

To see the saved group in action:

1. Open a new tab and then open the Product search portal.
2. Click the field next to Website. A menu displays the websites in your group.

   

4.4  Setting exclusions

Exclude means the algorithm removes items from the search results based on your criteria. 

Why exclude anything?

Many reasons, actually.

• You might not be legally allowed to sell a type of product. 
• You want to avoid a category of products outside your niche.  
• You've been banned from a website (and you don't want any more nasty letters from lawyers).

How to exclude

Click a blue box to add exclusions. As shown in the above image, there are many types of exclusions. These include product categories, brand names, and domains.

• After clicking a blue box, a panel displays. There are two kinds of input: select items from a menu or manual entries. 

For more information about exclusion filters, see:

• Exclusions

  

4.5  Setting rank filters

This tool lets you exclude products if they don't achieve a minimum sales rank on Amazon. 

1. Toggle ON the switch to activate this filter.
2. Click the SET VALUES button to see the default thresholds. A new panel displays.
3. Click a flag to set your home country.
4. Manually change default values for any category, if you wish.
5. Click Save.

• Note: You can raise or lower the rank threshold by changing the Category Product Count figure. Click the field and then select a percentage on the menu: 4, 7, or 10. The smaller the percentage, the higher the threshold.

  

4.6  Setting competition analysis

Is there a lot of competition for a product? This tool gives you a partial answer. 

This tool tells you the number of sellers offering a product with a price close to the Amazon Buy Box price.

• By seller, we mean the number of FBA or MF sellers.
• By close, we mean a price inside a percentage range of the Buy Box price.

1. Click the field. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Select a percentage on the menu. The smaller the number, the smaller the gap between the sellers' prices and the Buy Box price. 

   

5.  Setting price adjustments

The Price Adjustments panel has four groups of settings. Each group is described below.

5.1  Setting discounts

There are two discount tools. 

5.1.1  Reverse Search Domains & Multi-Bulk Discounts

You can set discount figures for reverse searches, bulk searches, and auto updates. You might have seen this tool on other pages. It's the same important tool, so it's available in multiple locations. Changes you make to a page in one location appear in all locations.

1. Click the SET DISCOUNTS button. A new page displays.
2. Update discount information for each retailer (i.e. source discounts, cashback, and giftcards).
3. Click SAVE.

• Note: Populate the discount fields yourself (based on your own research and experience) or acquire a list from a third party. Import the list of discounts as a csv file.

  

5.1.2  Select Cashback and Giftcard Services

Select the cashback and giftcard services you follow or subscribe to.

1. Click the SELECT button. A new page displays.
2. Scroll through the list and check the box for each company you use.
3. Click the blue icon to open the company's website in a new tab.
4. Click SAVE at the bottom of the page.

   

5.2  Prep and ship

Once you know your prep and shipping costs, you'll want to use this tool to lock in the default figures. It's a great time saver. The cost figures you enter here are used all across your Tactical Arbitrage account.

1. To use this tool, toggle ON the switch (blue).
2. Click a flag to select your local currency.
3. Enter a cost figure for each category.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click SAVE.

   

5.3  Virtual FBA Buy Box

If you are an MF seller, use this tool to create a virtual FBA (VFBA) price. The VFBA price is calculated as a markup on the MF price.

1. Click the field. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Select a percentage on the menu.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click SAVE.

   

5.4  Virtual books

This handy pricing tool works best in one unique situation.

Let's say there is a used book offered on Amazon by an MF. There are no FBA offers for the same title. 

Let's also say you have a used copy of the same title and you want to sell it FBA. The problem is you can't establish a market price because there are no comparable FBA offers.

In this situation, the Virtual Book tool automates used book pricing. It sets your used book FBA price based on two factors:

• book condition
• buy box price for a new book on Amazon

There are four used book condition categories. You set a price for each condition category as a percentage of the Amazon new book price. Prices are calculated percent less than the new book price.

1. Click the grey box beside a book condition. A drop-down menu displays.
2. Select a percentage.
3. Repeat for other book conditions.
4. Click SAVE.