Empowering Amazon DSPs: DEFT Milestones Achieved and the Road Ahead

We are incredibly proud to share what we have accomplished together at DEFT. We are all working professionals who believe in making our industry better, and we have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to make real change happen. It’s this shared belief that drives us forward.

We understand the daily pressures of running an Amazon Delivery Service Partner (DSP) business—from sudden fleet maintenance spikes and intense seasonal peaks to the challenge of meeting ever-changing scorecard metrics. We know that declining profit margins and a partnership that often feels one-sided can be disheartening. This is why we created DEFT: to provide real, practical support for DSPs like you and to advocate for changes that will make the Amazon DSP business model stronger and more profitable.

Below are the major milestones we have achieved together and outline our strategic goals for the rest of the year. Our mission is to help you optimize costs, reduce stress, and build a sustainable, thriving business.

Key challenges DSPs face include:

• Navigating frequent fleet maintenance and unexpected breakdowns
• Managing tight margins and increasing operational costs
• Meeting evolving Amazon scorecard requirements
• Retaining and supporting dedicated drivers amidst high turnover
• Handling complex administrative demands with limited resources

Each of these hurdles can feel daunting when faced alone, but together, we can turn them into opportunities for growth and improvement.

Laying the Foundation for Advocacy and Protection

We officially started our journey in November 2025, proudly self-funded by a small group of dedicated people who understood the real challenges DSP owners face. To ensure we had the proper legal framework to protect our community and advocate effectively, one of our very first steps was engaging an experienced attorney. This foundational move gave us the structural integrity needed to operate as a true partner in progress for you, ensuring that our initiatives always stand on solid legal ground.

• Established a self-funded organization led by experienced DSP professionals
• Secured legal counsel to lay a strong foundation for advocacy and member protection
• Developed operational guidelines with member interests at the core
• Built trust and transparency from day one to empower all participants

Building a Secure and Anonymous Community

We know that speaking up about driver turnover, increasing insurance costs, and administrative burdens can feel risky. To provide you with total peace of mind, we engaged the American Association of Franchisees and Dealers (AAFD) to handle our membership processing and booking, keeping everything completely anonymous. Alongside this, we created a dedicated website equipped with seamless membership onboarding, and established a robust mailing list and communication channel. This ensures that you receive timely, crucial program information without ever compromising your privacy.

• Partnered with AAFD to ensure fully anonymous membership processing and bookings
• Launched a secure, easy-to-use website, with member-only access and onboarding
• Set up a mailing list to deliver critical updates directly to you
• Member only Forum: Established a secure forum for open communication, feedback, and resource sharing
• Prioritize your privacy and safety while building a trustworthy sense of community

Member Tip: Use our anonymous feedback tools to voice your concerns, share your success stories, and connect with fellow DSPs while protecting your identity.

Amplifying DSP Voices Through Data and Growth

To truly drive change, we needed data that reflected your reality. We launched our first DEFT DSP Satisfaction Survey and proudly published the findings publicly, shining a light on the real operational hurdles DSPs face. The community’s response was overwhelming, leading to a 20% growth in our membership. Carrying this momentum into 2026, we launched our second DEFT DSP Post-Peak Survey, once again publishing the results to keep the industry informed. These data-backed insights are vital tools for proving the need for efficiency and empathy in the DSP ecosystem.

• Satisfaction Survey: Conducted the first official DEFT DSP Experience Survey, gathering direct feedback from current Amazon DPS. Publicly published survey results to bring greater transparency to industry challenges
• Post-Peak Survey: Ran a follow-up Post-Peak Survey in 2026. Publicly published survey results to bring greater transparency to industry challenges
• Membership: Achieved a 20% increase in community membership in response to our advocacy efforts

Tip: Take part in our surveys to ensure your voice helps shape future initiatives and secure resources aimed at solving real problems for your business. – Subscribe to our email list

Delivering New Tools and Expanding Our Reach

Equipping our members with actionable resources is at the heart of what we do. Recently, we held a public live session with our legal council to foster direct collaboration. We also launched a newly redesigned member website featuring a much-improved forum user design, making it easier than ever to connect with peers and share stress management techniques. Furthermore, we introduced our “Win/Win” proposal tools specifically designed to help members share ideas on how to improve the DSP program without increasing costs to Amazon. To keep our community engaged and informed daily, we successfully launched our official X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook pages.

• Webinar: Hosted a public live session with Councils to encourage open collaboration and knowledge sharing
• Upgraded Member website: Rolled out an improved member website with an upgraded forum for peer support and networking.
• Launched “Win/Win” proposal: A collaborative tool for members to brainstorm and refine business improvement ideas
• Social Media: Launched official X (@DEFT_US) and Facebook page to keep everyone connected and up to date

Member Tip: Log into the new forum weekly to share real-life DSP success stories and discover cost-saving opportunities vetted by your peers.

Setting Our Sights on the Future: Goals for the Rest of the Year

While we are incredibly proud of what we have built thus far, our work is just beginning. Moving forward, our core goals are clear and actionable:

• Grow our Membership: The larger our community, the stronger our collective voice becomes.
• Communicate and Engage: We will continue to foster deep connections within our network, sharing strategies for driver retention and fleet efficiency.
• Continue to Survey DSP Providers: We will keep taking the pulse of the community to ensure our initiatives align perfectly with your evolving needs.
• Negotiate with Amazon: We are finalizing two concrete goals and requests based on your feedback that we will take directly to Amazon. Our aim is to negotiate terms that lower your costs, improve driver satisfaction, and create a truly balanced partnership.

Becoming a DEFT member is your gateway to an exclusive community built to empower growth, foster collaboration, and facilitate the sharing of invaluable insights within the Amazon DSP ecosystem. If you are ready to cut costs, not corners, and gain support at every turn, we invite you to become a part of a dedicated network of DSP professionals who are ready to make the Amazon DSP program the best it can be. Join DEFT today, connect with your peers, and position your DSP for lasting success.