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The Amazon advertising platform can be intimidating, particularly if you’re new to online advertising. Advertising costs can spiral out of control if you’re not careful. The money you lose might be the difference between a successful product launch, and one that ends up in failure. 

More than anything, taking advantage of the benefits that Amazon advertising offers involves asking yourself a few very specific questions that will go a long way towards setting you up for online-selling success.

Here are some of the best strategies you need to consider when getting started with Amazon advertising, and five questions that will help make those tactics crystal clear. 

1. Do You Have Clear Campaign Goals?

Are you hoping for more sales of a certain product? Or, are you focused on driving ad impressions for a brand campaign?

Setting specific goals will help give shape and purpose to any marketing strategy. Coupled with thoughtful budgeting decisions, this targeted approach can lead to powerful results.

When trying to craft an effective ad campaign, a seller’s goals are paramount. They act as guideposts that can help direct the strategies taken by Amazon sellers. For example, when pursuing higher conversion rates, targeting potential customers who have already shown interest in similar products may be helpful. If seeking increased traffic for brand visibility or awareness purposes, broadening keyword focusing could enhance reachability.

Your available ad budget can make all the difference. If you have limited funds available, consider starting with sponsored product ads. They’re a great way to stretch those marketing dollars!

At the other end of the spectrum are Amazon Demand-Side Platform ads, (or DSP ads) that while extremely effective, are a more expensive option. 

Amazon Ad Formats

Your sponsored ads format also is dependent upon the overall goal of your Amazon Store. You might consider Amazon Sponsored Product Ads when aiming for spotlighting a single item. Or, Sponsored Brand or Sponsored Display Ads if your goal is to show off multiple products to shoppers.

Sponsored brand ads will also help you to increase brand awareness and can be the right approach if reaching a larger base is what’s important.

You can level up your targeting with Display Ads because Product Display Ads, like Amazon DSP ads, follow shoppers on and off of Amazon. For an Amazon seller, a Product Display ad is a great way to double down on brand awareness and supercharge Amazon PPC ads’ effectiveness. 

2. Have You Researched Your Keywords?

For an Amazon advertiser, keywords are critical. When you’re just getting started with digital marketing, it can be helpful to use a keyword research tool to identify the terms that customers are using. That will drastically reduce your ad spend. Make sure to include these keywords in your ad copy and product titles to increase the chances that your ads will be shown to the right audience. 

How to Decide Which Keywords to Use In an Amazon Marketing Campaign

Relevance: Choose keywords that are relevant to your products AND the search terms that customers are using when looking for your products.

Search volume: You need to consider the number of people searching for each keyword, as well as the competition for those keywords. You may want to try to find a balance between high search volume and high competition.

Conversion rate: Look at the conversion rate for each keyword to determine which ones are driving the most sales.

Cost-per-click: Consider the cost-per-click (CPC) for each keyword. You may want to prioritize keywords with a lower cost-per-click to get more value from your budget.

Search Terms: Use the same language that your target customer is using (in their search queries) when searching for your products. This will help ensure that your ads are shown to the right audience.

Read Reviews: Make sure and include keywords that show up frequently in positive customer reviews to highlight key features of your products.

3. Are You Using Negative Keywords?

 To ensure that your campaigns reach the intended audience, you can use negative keywords to exclude queries which are unrelated to your offerings. This way, you won’t be wasting resources on clicks from people looking for something else entirely

How to Incorporate Negative Keywords in an Amazon PPC Campaign

Exclude irrelevant terms: To ensure that your ad is only shown to relevant customers, add negative keywords for terms that are unrelated to your products or that you don’t want your ad to be shown for. 

Use customer language: Consider adding negative keywords that are commonly used by customers to describe products that you absolutely don’t offer. For example, if you sell men’s clothing but not women’s clothing, you might add “women’s” as a negative keyword.

Exclude non-converting keywords: Have you noticed that certain keywords have a low conversion rate (and are costing you money)? Consider adding them as negative keywords to improve the overall performance of your campaign.

Exclude out-of-stock products: If you have products that are currently out of stock, add them (temporarily) as negative keywords to prevent your Amazon ad from being shown for those products.

4. Have You Optimized Your Amazon Listings? 

Amazon listing optimization is often referred to as Amazon search engine optimization (SEO). It’s the process of making carefully considered improvements to your listings to help them rank higher in product searches on Amazon.com. 

Best Practices for Optimizing an Amazon Listing

Use relevant and descriptive keywords in the title and bullet points: Include relevant and descriptive keywords in the title and bullet points of your listing. That will help it rank higher in search results and attract the right customers.

Include high-quality product images: Use clear, high-resolution images that show your product from different angles and in use.

Write a detailed and informative product description: Use the product description to provide detailed information about your product and its features.

Utilize product features and benefits: Use the (bullet-pointed) product features and benefits section to highlight the key features and benefits of your product.

Don’t forget the backend keywords: Use the backend keywords field to include additional relevant keywords that are not included in the title and bullet points.

Optimize for mobile: Keep in mind that for Google and Amazon alike, optimization for mobile means that you are using up to date practices. Paying attention to the many Amazon shoppers using smartphones is also just good business. 

Follow Amazon’s guidelines: Make sure to follow Amazon’s guidelines for listing content and formatting to ensure that your listing is eligible for the Buy Box and other promotional premium placements.

5. Do You Know How to Monitor (and Adjust) Your Ad Campaigns?

Staying on top of your ad campaign status is key for successful advertising. Constantly monitor performance and make the necessary changes. Altering budgeting or refining targeting/copy will ensure maximum results! A well-managed campaign will prove invaluable in creating brand visibility and engagement.

Track your campaign performance: Use the Amazon Advertising reports to track the performance of your campaign, including metrics such as impressions, clicks, and conversions. This will help you understand which keywords and ad groups are performing well as well as those in need of changes.

Monitor your budget: Keep an eye on your budget to ensure that you are staying within your desired spend.

Test different ad copy and targeting: Experiment with different ad copy and targeting to see which combinations are most effective in driving clicks and conversions. A/B tests that compare ad copy are particularly effective.

Keep an eye on your competition: Monitor your competitors to see what they are doing with their Amazon PPC campaigns. This can help you stay competitive and identify opportunities to highlight features exclusive to your product. 

All in all, getting started with Amazon advertising can be a handful. But if you have a plan and keep your objectives in mind, you can unlock its potential. 

Setting specific goals, budgeting thoughtfully and testing different strategies are the foundations of any successful marketing campaign and is a great place to begin when starting an Amazon Advertising strategy. 

Whether you’re just starting out or want to take your campaign to the next level, Amazon Advertising offers many opportunities for marketers to make their mark – the only limit is your imagination!

How Canopy Management Can Help

As Amazon’s marketplace becomes increasingly competitive, Amazon advertising has grown in complexity. It’s no longer enough to have “good business instincts” as many entrepreneurs do. 

It’s a different ballgame now. 

That’s why many experienced Amazon sellers are reaching out to the ad team at Canopy Management. Our expert Amazon PPC and DSP pros are a big part of why Canopy partners show an 84% average profit increase. 

Want to be part of the Canopy Tribe? Find out more right here. 

Canopy Management is a full-service marketing agency for Amazon sellers. Our team consists of former Amazonians, multi-million dollar sellers, and award-winning experts. When you consider the many ways that Canopy Management can help you grow your business, you’ll see why selling on Amazon is much easier “under the Canopy.”

• Strategic Growth Planning
• Listing Copywriting Optimization
• Listing Photography
• Product Videography
• Advertising Management
• Customer Service
• Demand Side Platform (Amazon DSP)
• Amazon Posts
• Full Service Management
• Amazon Review Aggregation