Amazon Standards Ads vs Amazon DSP Advertising: What is the difference?

There are 4 major Amazon Ad types, they are: Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Display, and Amazon DSP. This wide range of choice can create confusion, especially for inexperienced Amazon PPC users.

In this article, we will briefly introduce the three standard Amazon ad types, before diving into Amazon DSP advertising in a lot more detail.

Amazon Sponsored Products Ads

Sponsored Products are ads that show up on the Amazon search result page. If you see the first 2-3 results with the “sponsored” tag on the search page and also in the middle of the product listing then it is sponsored product listing.

Out of the Amazon ad types, this one allows you to use both keywords and product targeting options. It also allows for both automatic and manual targeting types.

Amazon Sponsored Brands Ads

Amazon Sponsored Brands Ad, formerly Headline Search Ads,) are ads that appear both in the search results, product pages (via product attributed targeting), and other places such as the checkout page. These ads normally show up as long rectangular banners in both horizontal and vertical formats.

Another thing to note is that these banners allow for up to 3 different product images under your brand. You can easily advertise the product of different variations and complementary products all in the same ad. By clicking on these ads, you will be either taken directly to the product detail page (for 3 or more products), custom landing page, or your brand storefront (more on that later). Relative to the other Amazon advertising product types (Sponsored Products/Sponsored Display), you get much more creative control.

With Sponsored Brands you get 3 Ad Format types. There are Product Collection, Store Spotlight, and Video. On top of that, you get the option of keywords and product targeting option as well.

Because of the relatively low inventory compare to Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brand ads on average runs on a higher CPC (cost per click). We advise you to run any Sponsored Brands ads after your Sponsored Products campaign is matured.

Amazon Sponsored Display Ads

This ad type appears on the Amazon product listing page. It is a small rectangular or square banner that appears under the listing bullet points. The banner shows the main product image of the ASIN you are advertising for.

There are two types of targeting options, 1) Views remarketing 2) Product targeting. The views remarketing is more automatic, while the product targeting is manual and requires you to give the list of ASIN/Bid information into the campaign.

Before you have created any Sponsored Display campaigns, you should already have some data as to what ASIN has already been converted. This is based on data collected on the Sponsored Product automatic campaign created earlier. This will give you the starting point to create your Sponsored Display product targeting campaign.

For the view remarketing campaign I would start running this campaign type last. The reason being, Amazon requires significant traffic for them to retarget your audience who have visited your product and have not purchased it.

Why Give Sponsored Brands Priority over Sponsored Display?

If possible we recommend running sponsored brands before sponsored display, because as of writing, Sponsored Display still does not support bulk operations. What are bulk operations? Bulk operations allow you to control and change multiple bids in Amazon PPC using a CSV file, it allows the advertiser to have much better bid/spend control as they scale up. Since Sponsored Display doesn’t support this, it’s much harder to scale up these ads. We recommended that you run these ads last. Another way you can manage sponsored display bids is by using an Amazon PPC automation software, which can make automatic bid changes to your Sponsored Display campaigns daily.

Recap: When to Utilize which Amazon Advertising Format

1. First Sponsored Products campaign (Automatic) – run for 2-3 weeks to gather data
2. Second Sponsored Products campaign (Manual) – after you get relevant data from the auto campaigns, the budget depends on the # of keywords you are targeting
3. Sponsored Brands campaigns – create headline ads first, then move on to Sponsored Brands video ads
4. Sponsored Display campaigns – Using the data from Sponsored Products (auto)

Intro to Amazon DSP Advertising

Now let’s dive into Amazon DSP (demand-side platform), Amazon DSP enable the advertiser (sellers) to programmatically buy display & video ad placement off the Amazon retail platform. DSP can reach an audience in the following Amazon own media properties and partners:

• Amazon website
• Fire TV
• IMDb
• Freedive (IMDb Streaming)
• Kindle
• Apps
• Published Partners
• Third-Party Exchanges

For example, a customer goes to Amazon and searches for a product but did not purchase, in the next step the customer then goes to IMDB, sees video ads of the same product he was browsing for, then returns to Amazon to make the purchase. What I described was the successful use case for remarketing a customer using Amazon DSP advertising.

Another thing to add is that DSP offers a lot less control compared to the Sponsored ad types, since it is 100% programmatic bidding, not self-service, and priced using CPM (Cost per mile) instead of CPC (Cost per click). The average conversion can get very expensive, but the potential audience can be massive. Another important thing to note! Sellers need to commit $3000 a month to start with Amazon DSP advertising. This makes this the very last Amazon advertising ad type you want to go with.

Amazon DSP Ad Creative Formats

Amazon DSP advertising features four different types of ad creative formats that differ significantly from the standard Amazon ad products. These are:

• Online Video (OLV): Pre- or mid-roll ads within OTT content and publisher sites
• Streaming TV (STV): Non-skippable full-screen ads on Fire TV and Prime Video
• Audio Ads: Voice-enabled ads that play on Amazon Music, Alexa, and Audible
• Programmatic Display: High-impact creatives across web and mobile

Leveraging these formats allows for more creative control and this can be beneficial for brand building purposes.

Eligibility Criteria for Seller who want to Run Amazon DSP Ads

• You have sales of at least 50K USD a month, with net profit to at least cover the 3K commitment for 2 months
• Your product is selling for at least $30 USD, hard to make the numbers work if your AOV is low
• Your objective is to grow your awareness brand and potential audience
• You are not optimizing for profits
• Understand that it takes a while for the Amazon DSP algorithm to optimize, results not as immediate as say Sponsored Products.

When it makes sense to run Amazon Programmatic Ads (DSP Ads)

In general, there are several scenarios that justify using Amazon DSP ads. The most common ones include:

Increasing Upper-Funnel Reach & Brand Awareness

DSP puts your brand in front of a much broader, but also less relevant audience. Placements on fire TV, editorial sites, audio platforms help you broaden awareness for your brand. This is particularly helpful if you have strong, branded assets (i.e. celebrity endorsed)  and want to introduce new product lines, push seasonal campaigns, or reposition your brand.

Amplifying the Reach of Your Ads Beyond Just Amazon

As advertisers reach efficiency frontiers, spending more on the same type of ads does not make sense any more. With a sufficient ad budget saturation is eventually reached and the law of diminishing returns (aka incremental ROAS) kicks in. Use a layered approach to maximize overall campaign efficiency:

• Use Sponsored Products to drive conversions
• Capture new audiences with Sponsored Brands
• Re-engage shoppers via Sponsored Display
• And bring DSP in to close the loop and to boost brand awareness with video or audio ads.

Reaching Shoppers Off Amazon Who Visited Your Listings

This is a classic remarketing scenario that aims at reaching potential buyers beyond the Amazon marketplace. DSP uniquely re-targets users based on real purchase signals, such as:

• Viewers of your listings
• Cart abandoners
• Similar-product audiences

These ads then appear across third-party apps, publisher sites, and streaming platforms—reconnecting shoppers deeply engaged with your funnels 

Building Multi-Media Campaigns for Brand Recognition

If you have strong creatives, standard Amazon ads can be quite limiting in deploying them. If you want to combine display, video, and audio ads, then DSP is your all-in-one hub to execute more complex campaigns. Use lightning-fast audience targeting, frequency caps, and consistent, custom creatives across multiple formats.

Accelerating Luxury, Lifestyle, or CPG Product Launches

Video (OLV/STV) and audio ads shine are great for products that depend on brand driven differentiation and value creation. Introducing fragrances, beauty products, or lifestyle brands requires strong branding to differentiate them from cheaper and more generic options available. The storytelling power of DSP ads helps engage customers emotionally and increases brand recall. This is something that simple product ads cannot deliver.

How to Run and Scale Amazon DSP Campaigns Effectively

When you add DSP to your marketing mix, ensure success by:

Defining Clear Objectives:

• Brand awareness? Traffic? Consideration? Each format serves a nuance. Choose DSP line items accordingly and make sure to select only one main KPI for each campaign.

Layering with Amazon Ad Funnels:

• Top-funnel DSP (awareness via video/audio)
• Mid-funnel Sponsored Brands/Display
• Bottom-funnel Sponsored Products (conversion)

Audience Segmentation:

• Select audiences based on size and level of intent. Basic choices are:

Creative Messaging:

• Strong and well differentiated creatives are a MUST for DSP ads
• Use immersive video for STV/OLV
• Feature product heroes and CTAs in audio ads (“Alexa, add to cart”)
• Maintain brand consistency across text, visuals, and tone.

Measurement & Attribution:

• While DSP advertising cannot compete with standard direct response ads in terms of ACoS, it is still important to measure and attribute sales to optimize ads over time
• Lifestyle targeting: based on purchase behavior or category affinity.
• Retargeting: shoppers who have viewed or bought products recently.
• DSP offers robust metrics: reach, frequency, viewability, eCPM
• Tie performance to onsite conversions, lift studies, and post-campaign attribution

Comparison Table: DSP vs Sponsored Ads: A Strategic Overview

Goal	DSP (Display, Video, Audio)	Sponsored Ads (PPC)
Awareness & Reach	Extremely scalable	Limited; only on Amazon
Funnel Stage	Top/mid-funnel	Mid to bottom (consideration → purchase)
Pricing Model	CPM-based (bigger budgets)	CPC-based (self-serve, micro budgets)
Creative Flexibility	Full-screen video/audio/display	Limited to product listings
Audience Targeting	Lifestyle/behavior, site retargeting	Keyword, ASIN, interest-based targeting
Creative Formats	Video, audio, interactive display	Banner/Carousel/product listing

Conclusion: Amazon DSP Ads only Suitable for Big Sellers

With the proliferation of Amazon PPC options, it is important for advertisers/sellers to know what exactly each Sponsored Ad type does, how it is targeted, and where the ad is placed. You need to make sure that you are using the right ad type for the right situation and product life cycle. For example, you will not need to use a hammer for a screw head as you will not be using Sponsored Brands campaigns if your objective is to make sales. Amazon DSP ads, also referred to as programmatic advertising are certainly a useful tool – but as outlined in this article only for huge brands with significant budgets for brand awareness building. Most sellers are better off with the more tactical standard ad formats that focus on reaching shoppers where they are most likely going to convert: the Amazon marketplace itself.

 Our suggestion is to think and do some careful analysis on each Amazon ad type and plan out carefully on when and how to use these ad types.

About the Author

Rick Wong is a veteran Amazon seller who is into all things Amazon FBA. Having sold his Amazon business, Rick writes and talks about this topic to share his passion for Amazon FBA business building. A data geek at heart, he is currently the Co-Founder of SellerMetrics, a software tool that helps Amazon sellers automate the tedious and manual work of Amazon PPC Optimization. Our tool has been knowing to bring down ad spend and increase sales at the same time, average user can expect a 25% increase in ROI immediately after use, sign up for our free trial to find out.