While discussing your brand’s marketing strategy, it’s a safe bet that platforms like Facebook and Instagram will be mentioned as part of the advertising efforts.
But what about Amazon? Whether you like it or not, the conglomerate is here to stay, so it could be worth it to embrace an Amazon ad strategy.
Business owners or brand managers who aren’t familiar with how to advertise on Amazon should think of it like pay-per-click (PPC) ads that run on platforms like Google. This means the business only pays when a shopper clicks on the ad.
When a shopper enters a query into the search bar, some of the results shown will be listed as Sponsored — these are Amazon ads.
Digital marketers or business owners who want to gain more visibility will pay for these higher positions by bidding on specific keywords. As shoppers click on the ad, the advertiser will be charged.
This only scratches the surface, however. There are a variety of Amazon advertising options.
Shoppers can also find ads within the product listing, either near the top by the product details or further down the listing. This creates even more opportunities for brands to get their products in front of the targeted audience.
It’s important to decide which strategy is best for your brand and budget before getting started.
Amazon Advertising Strategy
To determine the best strategy for your brand will take the skills of an industry expert to create a tailored strategy. But this guide can help business owners and brand managers get a better understanding of what goes into advertising on Amazon and how it could work for their brand.
Determine Goals
Amazon allows advertisers to align their targets(s) with their goal(s) as part of a well-thought-out plan, whether it’s to drive more sales or boost brand awareness.
Some businesses may want to use the Advertising Cost of Sale (ACoS) as a goal metric, while others can deem impressions as a success metric if brand awareness is the goal.
Amazon divides product pages into Objectives, making it easier for marketers to determine which works best for the brand depending on the goal(s).
Test Sponsored Brands vs. Sponsored Products
Testing sponsored brands compared to sponsored products means the advertiser will need to have an understanding of each.
Using the generic search of pumpkin coffee provides a variety of results, including a sponsored brand at the top of the page.
This sponsored post highlights a few different options from the Starbucks brand. It may or may not be the result I want, but this type of ad ensures the brand is front-and-center.
But, when I click one of the specific products (dark roast, for the win) I am given an ad for an individual product within the Starbucks dark roast listing.
This shows us the difference between a sponsored brand and a sponsored product. A sponsored brand post can display a few products or services and is best suited for increasing awareness either around the brand or product line.
A sponsored product is a cost-per-click (CPC) ad that promotes an individual product. So, brands that are looking to drive sales to a specific product would be wise to choose this option.
Unfortunately for the San Francisco Bay company, I prefer caffeinated coffee so I chose not to click the ad.
Choose What to Advertise
Advertising popular products can create a greater chance to convert clicks into purchases. Or perhaps the company has a product that needs increased awareness.
When choosing what to advertise, keep the strategy goal(s) in mind. It’s also important to determine if Amazon is the right platform to showcase the product. Assuming it is, then ensure the product is competitively priced and there’s plenty in-stock.
Clear, Concise Messaging
Like other forms of advertising, Amazon ads work to entice shoppers to visit the company’s product detail pages. Even though it’s the product detail page that will ultimately turn shoppers into customers, the ad is incredibly important.
The product detail page should include accurate and descriptive titles, high-quality images, relevant, and useful product information.
But to get the shopper over to the product page, the ad needs to include clear, concise messaging, in addition to enticing imagery.
Even though the example above did not lead to a click or conversion, it was still clear and to the point. The product simply wasn’t for me. But I’m likely to remember the name, so maybe I will purchase from the company in the future.
Utilize Negative Keywords
Nobody likes wasting money, especially when it comes to advertising. To help limit wasted advertising dollars, include negative keywords into the strategy.
A negative keyword — or keywords, is a group of words or phrases that are used so that ads are not served to people who are less likely to convert.
Since my search was generic — pumpkin coffee, I was served with a plethora of brands and forms of coffee. Beans, grounds, instant, K-Cups, you name it. But, if I specified the brand or the format, then I would have been more determined in what I wanted out of the search results.
For this reason, marketers may want to include a negative keyword so that the ad is less likely to show for someone who is not interested.
Negative keywords that don’t relate to the product should also be included to avoid wasting ad spend. For example, if my search was for decaf coffee, an ad for caffeinated coffee would be wasted. So, caffeine or caffeinated could potentially be negative keywords.
Work with an Expert
Ultimately, selling and advertising on Amazon can have a significant impact for businesses. And this merely scratches the surface in terms of how to advertise on Amazon and creating a tailored strategy can be a tedious process.
To ensure the strategy being used is working for the brand, isn’t missing areas of opportunity, or wasting funds, it is important to have a team at the helm who has a vast understanding of the efforts.
As consumers continue to flock to the company for their online shopping needs, it may be worthwhile to embrace advertising capabilities available on the platform.
