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Running and managing successful PPC campaigns require much more than an advertising budget. It also involves endless hours of keyword research, competitive analysis, ad optimization, split testing, and performance tracking. 

This guide will help you get started with your own Amazon PPC advertising campaigns. It also details strategies – if and when the time comes – you can use to determine the best Amazon agency for the job.

Understanding the Fundamentals of Amazon PPC

The first step to becoming an Amazon PPC management expert is understanding the basics of Amazon advertising.

Amazon is a very competitive marketplace with millions of sellers. Amazon’s advertising solutions enable marketers and sellers to boost visibility, increase sales and stay ahead of the competition.

Amazon marketing and advertising use a Pay-Per-Click (PPC) model. Marketers pay when people click on their ads, similar to other digital networks.

Before Amazon launched PPC advertising in 2012, an Amazon PPC agency probably relied on search engine optimization (SEO) to boost visibility. Amazon SEO is still crucial for improving your product ranking, but PPC on Amazon delivers faster results for brands and marketers.

Amazon PPC advertising may appear simple. However, it goes beyond creating a professional seller account, logging into Amazon Seller Central and throwing some dollars into the mix. You need an Amazon campaign management strategy and a developed advertising skill set to run successful campaigns.

How to Get Started with Amazon PPC

Keywords are search terms or phrases that customers use to look for products on Amazon. Using relevant and profitable keywords boosts your ranking and lets users find your ads when they search Amazon using those search terms.

Amazon SEO is critical to long-term success on the platform, and keyword research is an essential piece of the puzzle. With pay per click advertising, keywords are what connects the shopper with your listing.

By understanding how customers search for products and strategically incorporating relevant keywords, you can improve your listings’ visibility, attract potential buyers, and ultimately boost your sales.

Keyword Research Strategies

A Note on AI Keyword Tools:

Amazon’s AI will suggest keywords based on your product and competitor data. These suggestions can be valuable, especially for identifying long-tail variations you might miss. However, AI keyword tools often suggest terms based purely on search volume and relevance matching, without understanding your margin structure or strategic priorities. Use AI suggestions as research inputs, not as your final keyword list. Validate each suggestion against your customer-centric approach and business objectives.

Customer-Centric Approach

To begin your keyword research, do what an Amazon PPC consultant does and put yourself in the customer’s shoes. Consider the words and phrases they would use to search for your specific product. Start by listing keywords that are directly related to your product’s features, benefits, and intended use.

Leveraging Long-Tail Keywords

When you’re just starting out, it’s recommended to focus on long-tail keywords. These are more specific and less competitive compared to broad, generic keywords. For instance, instead of targeting “cutting board,” opt for “handmade wooden cutting board.” Long-tail keywords often indicate higher buyer intent and can help you attract more qualified leads.

Expanding Your Keyword List

To broaden your keyword portfolio, utilize software tools (from companies such as Helium 10 or Jungle Scout) or other keyword research platforms. These tools provide insights into related keywords, search volume, and competition levels. Analyze the metrics to identify high-potential keywords that align with your product and have a decent search volume.

Organizing Your Keywords

Grouping by Themes

Once you have a comprehensive list of keywords, it’s essential to organize them effectively. An Amazon FBA agency will group keywords into tightly related themes and create separate ad groups or campaigns for each theme. This approach ensures better relevance and allows for more targeted optimization efforts.

Starting with Smaller Campaigns

When you’re new to keyword optimization, it’s advisable to begin with smaller campaigns consisting of 10-20 keywords each. This enables better control over your daily budgets and allows for easier performance tracking and adjustments.

Separating by Match Type

Amazon offers different keyword match types, such as exact, phrase, and broad match. To gain granular control over your keyword performance, create separate campaigns for each match type. This segregation facilitates precise analysis and optimization based on the match type’s behavior.

Bidding and Optimization Techniques

Prioritizing High-Intent Keywords

When advertising on Amazon, not all keywords are created equal. Identify the keywords that demonstrate the highest level of buyer intent and allocate higher bids to them. It might mean drilling down into a specific Amazon product category to increase the relevence of your advertising strategy.

This strategy improves your ad rank for those crucial keywords, increases the likelihood of your listings being seen by potential customers, boosts conversion rates, and drives sales.

Setting Conservative Daily Budgets

When you’re in the initial stages of keyword optimization, it’s wise to start with conservative daily budgets, such as $10-15 per campaign. This approach allows you to gather data and assess the performance of your keywords without overspending.

AI-Powered Bidding Considerations

Amazon offers automated bidding strategies that use AI to adjust your bids dynamically. While these can improve efficiency, they work best after you’ve established baseline performance data. Start with manual bidding for the first 3-4 weeks to understand your natural conversion patterns and true break-even ACoS. Once you have that foundation, you can test automated strategies with informed guardrails. Remember that AI bidding optimizes for the metrics Amazon prioritizes, which may not always align perfectly with your margin and strategic goals.

Continuous Analysis and Adjustment

Keyword optimization is an ongoing process. After running your Amazon PPC ad for a few weeks, take a close look at the search term reports to gain valuable insights.

For example, you will want to identify non-performing keywords and consider pausing or removing them. Instead, allocate more budget to keywords that are driving conversions.

When you truly understand the valuable data and underlying metrics, you’re better able to create efficient PPC campaigns that help you stand out from the crowd.

How AI is Transforming Amazon PPC Management in 2025

Amazon has integrated AI across its advertising platform, but that doesn’t mean you should let AI run your campaigns on autopilot.

The platform now offers AI-powered features like automated bidding strategies, dynamic budget allocation, and AI-generated keyword suggestions. These tools analyze vast amounts of data faster than any human could, adjusting bids in real-time based on conversion probability, time of day, and competitor activity.

Where AI Excels in Amazon PPC:

AI handles the repetitive, data-intensive work exceptionally well. Automated bidding strategies can make thousands of micro-adjustments daily, responding to conversion patterns humans would never spot manually. Amazon’s AI analyzes your historical performance, seasonal trends, and real-time competitive dynamics to optimize bids continuously.

Dynamic budget allocation shifts spend toward your best-performing campaigns without constant manual rebalancing. AI-powered keyword discovery surfaces search terms you might miss in traditional research, especially long-tail variations and emerging product searches.

Where AI Falls Short:

AI can’t understand your business strategy. It doesn’t know you’re launching a new product and willing to accept higher ACoS temporarily to build organic ranking. It won’t recognize that certain keywords drive customers with higher lifetime value, even if initial conversion rates look mediocre.

Amazon’s AI optimizes for the metrics you give it—usually conversions or revenue—but it can’t factor in margin differences between products, strategic category priorities, or competitive positioning goals. It makes mathematically optimal decisions based on limited inputs, not strategic business decisions based on your complete picture.

The Human + AI Approach That Actually Works:

The most successful Amazon PPC strategies use AI for execution while humans maintain strategic control. Set your campaign structures, match types, and negative keyword strategies based on your business goals. Then let AI optimize bids within those guardrails.

Use AI-suggested keywords as a starting point, not a final list. Review AI recommendations through the lens of relevance, margin, and strategic value. Override automated bidding when launching products, running promotions, or pursuing specific ranking objectives.

Monitor AI performance weekly and adjust constraints based on what you observe. AI is a powerful tool for executing your strategy efficiently, but you need a strategy worth executing.

Questions to Ask Your Amazon PPC Agency About AI:

If you’re evaluating agencies, ask how they balance AI automation with human expertise. Agencies relying entirely on Amazon’s automated tools or third-party AI platforms without strategic human oversight will optimize your campaigns for Amazon’s goals, not yours.

The best agencies use proprietary AI and automation to enhance human decision-making, not replace it. They build custom tools that surface insights and automate repetitive tasks, freeing their experts to focus on strategy, creative testing, and business-level optimization.

Amazon PPC Management Services: Is Outsourcing the Answer?

Amazon advertising is a powerful tool for businesses looking to increase their visibility and sales on the Amazon marketplace. However, managing PPC campaigns can be complex and time-consuming, especially for those without extensive experience or expertise in the field.

This is where Amazon PPC management services can be invaluable.

The Benefits of Working with an Amazon PPC Management Service

Partnering with a professional Amazon PPC management service offers a number of advantages. The best agencies employ teams of certified Amazon Advertising specialists with in-depth knowledge of the platform, algorithms, and best practices.

As your business grows, your advertising needs may become more complex. A well-established PPC management service can seamlessly scale your campaigns, ensuring consistent performance and efficient use of your advertising budget.

They stay up-to-date with the latest changes and trends, ensuring that your campaigns are consistently optimized for maximum performance.

For a lot of entrepreneurs, the biggest benefit of outsourcing your Amazon PPC management can be the significant time and resource savings. By entrusting this task to a dedicated service, you can focus on other critical aspects of your business.

How Do I Choose the Right Amazon PPC Agency?

Choosing the right Amazon PPC service provider involves several key considerations. First, look for a provider with a proven track record of delivering successful results, which can be assessed through case studies, client testimonials, and reviews. Ensure the service provider employs certified Amazon Advertising specialists who have undergone rigorous training and demonstrated expertise in managing Amazon PPC campaigns.

Transparent reporting and communication are crucial. A reputable service provider should offer regular, clear reports on your campaign performance, strategies, and any optimizations made. Customized strategies tailored to your specific business needs, goals, and target audience are essential, rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.

Inquire about the tools and analytics platforms the service provider uses to gather and analyze data, as well as their approach to data-driven decision-making. Evaluate their pricing structure and contract terms to ensure they align with your budget and business needs, prioritizing transparency and flexibility.

How an Amazon PPC Expert Optimizes Your Campaigns

An experienced Amazon PPC expert can optimize your campaigns in several ways. Just like you might do to get started, they conduct thorough keyword research to identify the most relevant and profitable keywords for your products, ensuring your ads are shown to the right audience.

Unlike most sellers, the best agencies also have teams of data strategists, product managers, and software wizards that are able to build bespoke, high converting PPC optimization processes.

They analyze data and market trends to develop and implement effective bid strategies, ensuring you’re bidding competitively while maximizing your ROAS.

Continuous performance monitoring and reporting are key aspects of an Amazon PPC expert’s role. They provide detailed insights to help you understand your campaign’s strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement. Through A/B testing and data-driven optimizations, they refine various aspects of your campaigns, such as listing copy, targeting, and bid strategies, to achieve better results over time.

How Canopy Management Can Help

Ready to partner with a team that has the systems and expertise to scale your brand?

Canopy Management delivers end-to-end eCommerce growth, leading the industry in Amazon marketplace strategy while powering expansion through Shopify, Meta, and Google. Our full-funnel approach — from marketplace optimization to customer acquisition — has generated over $3.3 billion in partner revenue and made us the trusted growth engine for brands worldwide.

Schedule a strategy session with our team to discover exactly how our proven frameworks can accelerate your growth.

Frequently Asked Questions About Amazon PPC Management

How long does it take to see results from Amazon PPC?

Most Amazon PPC campaigns show meaningful results within 45-60 days of structured optimization. The first 2-3 weeks focus on data collection, weeks 4-6 on refining targeting based on performance, and weeks 8+ on scaling what works. Accounts starting with ACoS above 40% typically see 8-15 percentage point improvements in this timeframe. New product launches take longer—usually 90-120 days to build sufficient sales velocity for organic ranking impact alongside advertising results.

What’s a good ACoS for my Amazon products?

There’s no universal “good” ACoS—it depends entirely on your profit margins. Your break-even ACoS equals your unit margin percentage. If you have 35% margins after all costs, then 35% ACoS is break-even. For sustainable profitability, target 5-10 percentage points below break-even. Some brands intentionally advertise at break-even on new products to build organic ranking, but that’s a strategic decision made with full margin awareness. Calculate your break-even first, then set targets based on business objectives.

Should I use AI tools or hire an agency for Amazon PPC?

AI tools excel at execution but can’t build strategy or understand your business goals beyond the metrics you feed them. If you’re spending under $5,000 monthly and have internal PPC strategy expertise, AI-powered tools can execute your plan efficiently. Above $10,000 monthly spend, agencies typically deliver better results by combining AI efficiency with strategic human expertise. The question isn’t AI versus human—it’s whether you have the strategic bandwidth to direct AI tools effectively while managing everything else in your business.

Can I manage Amazon PPC myself or do I need an expert?

You can manage Amazon PPC yourself if you have time to learn the platform and monitor performance weekly. Many sellers successfully manage campaigns at spend levels under $5,000 monthly. Agencies become cost-effective around $5,000-10,000 monthly spend, where optimization improvements (typically 15-25%) exceed management fees. Beyond $10,000 monthly or when managing multiple brands, expert management usually delivers measurably better results. The break-even question: will the agency improve performance enough to cover their fee plus generate additional profit?

How much should I budget for Amazon PPC advertising?

Most successful brands allocate 10-30% of revenue to PPC, depending on category competition, margins, and growth stage. New product launches often require higher spend (20-30%) to build initial velocity. Established products with strong organic sales can maintain visibility with lower spend (10-15%). Budget at least $1,000-1,500 monthly for meaningful testing—below that, daily budgets become too small for reliable data. Calculate your break-even ACoS first, then budget based on how much revenue you can profitably generate at that efficiency level.

What’s the difference between Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and Sponsored Display?

Sponsored Products promote individual listings in search results and on product pages—they’re keyword-targeted and typically deliver the best direct ROI. Sponsored Brands promote your logo and multiple products at the top of search results, requiring Brand Registry and working best for brand awareness. Sponsored Display uses audience targeting to show products based on browsing behavior. Most strategies use Sponsored Products for sales and ranking, layer Sponsored Brands for visibility, and test Display for retargeting. Start with Products, add Brands once profitable, then test Display strategically.

How do I know if my Amazon PPC agency is doing a good job?

Track three core metrics: sales growth, ACoS trend, and Total ACoS (TACoS—ad spend ÷ total revenue). Your PPC sales should grow while ACoS stays at or below target. TACoS should decrease over time as ads drive organic ranking. Quality agencies provide transparent reporting, proactive strategy communication, and clear performance explanations. They should conduct regular audits, test new structures, and adapt to changes without prompting. Red flags include vague reporting, missed meetings, or inability to connect their actions to your business outcomes.

What are negative keywords and why do they matter?

Negative keywords prevent ads from showing on irrelevant searches that waste budget. When someone searches “free dog toys” but you sell premium toys, that click costs money with near-zero conversion probability. Check your search term report weekly—any query with multiple clicks but zero sales is a negative candidate. New campaigns typically need 15-30 negatives added in the first month. Mature campaigns add 5-10 weekly. If you’re adding 50+ weekly, your targeting is too broad—fix your match type strategy instead of endlessly blocking bad searches.