7 Ways to Use Amazon Sponsored Products

Did you know Amazon surpassed Google in product searches, growing from 46% to 54% in a span of only 3 years?

It’s not surprising, as many people go to Amazon as the default place to look for the products they intend to buy.

Since the intent is there, Amazon is a great place to use PPC ads. This is what Amazon Sponsored Products offer – greater visibility to users with the intent to buy. However, you have a lot of competition, so you must know how to do it right.

For Amazon Sponsored Products tips, read on to see how you can use the platform to boost your sales.

1. Choose Automatic or Manual Campaigns

There are 2 targeting types in Amazon Sponsored Products: automatic and manual. In automatic targeting, Amazon sets the target for you based on the product details. With the latter, you provide the keywords yourself.

They have different advantages; automatic targeting can cover various search terms you might not have thought of otherwise. However, you won’t be able to control your bids on specific search terms, but only on 4 predefined “containers” (Complements, Substitutes, Close match, Loose match).

Manual targeting gives you the most control over the keywords and the bids. You can set bids on a keyword level, for example, but you can also bid on an ad group level. With this type of targeting, you’ll have to perform extensive keyword research and use the right keywords.

You can use both campaigns, though, and use them to optimize each other.

2. Use the Right Keywords

It’s the keyword research that will shape your Amazon campaign, so you must treat it like you would any SEO campaign. The important thing to remember is that the keywords should be relevant to your product. These should generate the type of traffic you want coming in.

You may also look at the best-performing keywords of your competitors. You’ll have to look at the product title and the bullet points for the relevant keywords; then, check the product rankings by using those keywords as the search terms. The top products with the keyword in the title likely have that keyword as a key driver of their sales.

You may also use tools to simplify this process. Some tools will let you view the keywords that a product is ranking in when you enter its ASIN. Once you’ve figured out the keywords that work for them, you may consider bidding for these keywords, as well.

3. Use Long-Tail Keywords

Speaking of keywords, look into bidding for long-tail keywords, as well. Many sellers make the mistake of opting for shorter terms, which will bring in more traffic. This might work for some, but it’s missing one crucial element for conversion: the intent.

With long-tail keywords, the intent to buy is there since the searcher is already aware of what they want. Casual browsers would usually use shorter keywords, but a searcher with a specific thing they want will use longer keywords to filter out the products they don’t need.

These are the kind of shoppers you’d want to appeal to since they’re a lot closer to buying. You can target them with your ads by bidding on long-tail keywords.

4. Refine Your Product Targeting

Not only do you have to use the right keywords, but you also have to identify negative keywords. These are the keywords that will result in low click-through rates and low conversion rates. You may even lose money on these keywords if enough people click the ad more than the people who buy.

Use negative keywords to further ensure your ads are appearing only on relevant search terms.

5. Learn How It Affects Your Organic Rankings

Amazon Sponsored Products campaigns don’t have a direct influence over your product’s organic ranking. However, it can have an indirect positive effect on your rankings if you do it right. The better your products do, the higher your product ranking goes.

Amazon takes into account the number of sales your product gets into its rankings. This means the sales that your paid ads generate will contribute to the increase in your ranking.

Not only that, but the ads may also help your product achieve Best Seller badges, Amazon’s Choice badges, and more. The product gets an overall boost in visibility, sales, and more due to the sponsored ads, which then leads to higher rankings.

6. Choose the Right Products to Feature

Review the performance of your campaigns on a regular basis to see which are doing well. If one campaign isn’t turning in profits, there are 2 reasons. One, you may not be bidding on the right keywords or two, the product itself may not be worth the campaign.

It’s okay to remove certain products from your campaigns to ensure your ad spend goes into the clicks that would convert. Focus on creating targeted campaigns around the highest rated products on Amazon. Check your catalog, too, for out-of-season items and products that might be low in stock.

7. Run It for 2 to 4 Weeks cycles

Like with other marketing campaigns, you won’t usually see results right away. You’ll have to wait for 2 to 4 weeks to see if it’s working as intended or not. This also allows you to tweak and optimize the campaign as you go.

Note, however, that you’ll need to optimize the campaign on a regular basis even if you think you’ve got the formula down. Its performance may be steady for now, but if you don’t monitor and optimize it once in a while, you’ll lose your progress.

3 to 4 weeks is also a good duration for your automatic campaigns to run if you’re planning to use them for improving your manual campaigns. Take note of which search terms are performing best on the automatic campaign. Then, incorporate that to your manual campaign.

Use the Amazon Sponsored Products Feature the Right Way

There’s a lot to consider when using the Amazon Sponsored Products platform. Still, putting in the effort to see what works is worth it. With our guide, you should be able to stand out from the competition.

But why stop here? We have more useful tips and tricks to keep you ahead.

If you need help with your Amazon campaigns, don’t hesitate to reach out to us today!

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Also published on Medium.