Amazon Ads: Best Practices

Though the pandemic slashed advertising budgets, Amazon’s advertising revenue grew by 23.5 percent year-over-year in 2020. For many marketers, Amazon’s ad solutions remain uncharted territory. As the e-commerce platform grows, it’s important to leverage your online store with advertising campaigns. With so many sellers and strong competition, it’s difficult to generate sales without a solid advertising strategy and strong online presence. Read on for the basics and best practices to follow for optimized Amazon ad campaigns!

What Are Amazon Ads?

Similar to how Google search works, when you type in a keyword in the Amazon search box and results appear, some of the top results will be sponsored posts, usually denoted with a “sponsored” or “ad” text. These are considered Amazon ads. Sponsored ads specifically target shopping queries or products, and can occupy high-visibility placements on and off Amazon.

Advertisers who want to gain more visibility for their products on Amazon can pay for these positions by bidding on specified keywords, which will lead to higher visibility on the Amazon SERP (Search Engine Results Page). Once a customer clicks on a sponsored ad, the advertiser will then be charged, which means it is a pay per click, or PPC campaign. As a note, the minimum budget to get started with a sponsored Amazon ad is just $1 a day, so it is extremely affordable to start out.?

Types of Amazon Ads

Amazon offers three ad formats: Amazon Sponsored Products Ads, Amazon Sponsored Brands Ads, and Amazon Product Ads, also known as “Product Display Ads.” Sponsored product ads are the most commonly used ads by third-party sellers, allowing you to rank on the first page of search results without having a leading history. Similar to other ad campaigns, Amazon campaigns require technical knowledge and expertise to be effective. I’ve outlined each below so you can better understand which form of advertising can benefit your brand the most!

Amazon Sponsored Product Ads

Sponsored product ads operate similarly to ads that run through the Google Shopping Network. These are the ads that drive Amazon searchers directly to a specific product you’re selling on Amazon. These ads are typically keyword targeted, giving advertisers the option to choose exact, phrase, or broad match types. The results are usually displayed below or above the search results page, as well as on other product detail pages (PDPs).?

Sponsored Brands Ads

Sponsored Brands Ads (previously known as Headline search ads) display within the search results pages, usually as a headline banner ad above the search results. These ads are CPC or cost-per-click, and lead consumers to any specified page on Amazon. After clicking on the ad, users are directed to the brand’s storefront or a specific sub-page of their choosing. These ads are also keyword targeted, and can be used to promote 3 or more products together. However, keyword match-types can only be exact or phrase match, so you’ll need to be specific when launching this type of campaign.?

Product Display Ads

Lastly, Amazon offers product display ad options, or Sponsored Display Ads. These ads are not keyword targeted, but are based on interest segments as well as product page views. They drive shoppers to product detail pages and are priced by a CPC method. Advertisers can choose from a long list of products to target ads to relevant shoppers, allowing them to appear on the customer reviews pages, at the top of the offer listings page, or in Amazon marketing emails.?

Best Practices

Now that you know the basics of Amazon advertising offerings, there are a few things you can do to stand out from the competition in such a massive marketplace. All it takes is being well informed, and you’re well on your way! Here are a few tips to help you get started on the right foot, or to keep in mind when revisiting your existing strategies:

1. Create Well-Structured Campaigns with Keywords

Keyword research is the backbone of every successful Amazon ad strategy. It’s going to get your products in front of the right users who are ready to make a purchase, especially if you’re using long-tail keywords. Buyers who search for something specific like “black over-the-ear wireless headphones'' are far more likely to make a purchase than someone using a vague phrase like “headphones” when shopping. In fact, two out of three Amazon visitors visit the site looking for a specific product.?

Another reason to narrow down your keyword research strategy is to stay competitive amongst other businesses and sellers. The more narrowed down the search term is, the more likely you are to get in front of people who are looking to buy exactly what your business provides. This, in turn, boosts your brand awareness, sales, and creates an improved Amazon SERP.?

1. Define Your Target Audience

Paid advertising and identifying your keywords are important, but keying into your target audience is even more crucial to your strategy. If you don’t know who you are selling to, you won’t know which products your audience needs, how to craft compelling ads, or which keywords you need to use.?

Furthermore, your target audience is the foundation of your strategy. While 2021 Prime Day stats revealed that the average shopper was a suburban female between the ages of 35 to 44 and that females accounted for almost 80% of shoppers on Prime Day 2021, it is likely that your target audience falls within an even more narrow margin. Once you understand your demographics, you can hone in on the content, timing, and strategy behind your ads. For example, if you’re running ads to target people who work full-time, running ads all day may not make the most sense. You’d want to push your ads during lunch hour or in the evening. Understanding these nuances can only help your brand.?

1. Create Well-Structured Campaigns by Product Category

The best strategy here is to have a separate campaign for each of your main product categories and then create ad groups to run more specific campaigns. To clarify, if you sell housewares with a variety of products, you may decide to start ad campaigns with three of your top-selling products (ie: dish sets, cutlery and bakeware). Under each product section, you can then run different ad campaigns with specified keywords. This solid structure will ensure that your ads are relevant, which will ultimately save you extra steps, time and money as you test the success of your campaigns.

1. Write Compelling Copy

Ensure your ad test is not only accurate in terms of what you’re selling, but try and insert some creativity and humor into your ads if possible. Standing out is more important than ever amongst cluttered search results on Amazon. In addition, it is worthwhile to highlight any sales or promotions you are running to create a sense of urgency.?

Your ad copy should also be very specific in terms of what you’re selling. If you’re creating an ad for a water bottle, users want to know how many ounces or cups the bottle holds, whether it’s BPA-free, or if it keeps liquids cold for a certain number of hours and more. While you can’t (and shouldn’t) expose all of a product’s information in the ad text, highlight the most important aspects of your product in the headline and ad text to make it easier for potential customers to find your product - it may be exactly what they’re looking for!

1. Experiment with All Three Ad Formats

Sponsored products ads might appear to yield the fastest results, however, it’s worth it to try out all available options. Sponsored brands ads may lead to more loyal, repeat buyers and you never know what works best for your brand until you try it out. Trying out all three ad types can yield the highest returns and can paint a clearer picture of where to scale and focus your funds in future campaigns.?

1. Create an Enticing Landing Page

When advertising, you want to make sure that you’re redirecting customers to an appealing storefront or landing page. Although there is no exact formula to follow when creating your landing page, there are some standard rules of thumb that can increase your chances of building buyer trust and sales:

• Optimize with Your Branding: Your page on Amazon is a place to showcase your brand’s personality and stand out amongst all other sellers. Don’t leave your brand’s page or product pages looking like everyone else’s. Add your logo to the header, and include lifestyle imagery to make it easy for users to connect with your brand.
• Keep Your Design and Copy Simple: If your landing page is too busy, people will click away. Attention spans are short and users are determined to find products and make purchases quickly. Keep your copy short and to the point using short sentences, broken up text, product specs and information, and use bullet points for easy skimming.??
• Consider Using a Variety of Images & Video: People consume different types of content to solve their problems. Some like to read, while others are more visual. Include a mix of different types of content on your page to appeal to different customers, and don’t forget to include alt. text and image descriptions for accessibility.?

There’s much to explore in the world of Amazon advertising and I’d predict that the platform is only going to continue to grow! If you’re looking to branch into the world of Amazon Ads, or need help building your strategy, our team of marketing professionals is here to help your brand with every step of the process.