Keyword research is the starting point for Amazon SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Amazon PPC (more about our Amazon PPC Services). It describes the process of identifying search terms that potential buyers of your products likely use on Amazon. Once you have selected relevant keywords, you can use them to enhance the relevance of your Amazon product listings, add them as keywords to the backend of your Amazon product listing and target them via Amazon PPC advertising. Effective keyword research driven optimization will increase product visibility, traffic, and ultimately sales.

This article will help you understand how your keyword strategies for Amazon SEO (more about our Amazon SEO Services) should differ from keywords you target with Amazon PPC ads, such as Amazon Sponsored Products, or Amazon Sponsored Brands ads.

How to Conduct Amazon Keyword Research

Amazon keywords research can be conducted in several ways. You can use paid keyword research tools, such as Helium 10 or Jungle Scout, or even use Amazon’s search bar to discover frequent search queries via the auto-complete suggestions provided by Amazon. If you are already running Amazon ads, you can also identify high potential keywords in the search terms reports of your existing ad campaigns. Keep in mind that keyword research is not something to “set and forget”. According to Google, 15 percent of all daily searches on Google are new searches. Expect the percentage to be similar for Amazon and also take into consideration that many other factors, such as seasonality (i.e. search around holidays and gifting periods) will sway search behavior.

For these reasons your keyword targeting needs to be constantly refined and adjusted. For more details check out our blog post on How to Conduct Amazon Keyword Research.

Identify Competitors’ Keywords using Reverse ASIN Keyword Lookup

A very effective way to conduct keyword research is to check which keywords competing product listings are ranking for. In the video below we describe how to use Zonguru to conduct so-called “reverse ASIN” keyword research.

Differences between keyword research for SEO purposes vs. PPC advertising on Amazon

Keyword Research for Amazon SEO

The primary goal of keyword research for Amazon SEO is to enhance the organic visibility of your product listings. The objective is to surface your listings in high positions on the search results page when Amazon shoppers search for relevant keywords.

The challenge with this approach is that highly commercially viable keywords with large search volumes will be extremely competitive and difficult to rank for.

To increase the likelihood of ranking for these keywords, include them in your listing titles, listing bullet points, or the backend keywords of a listing.

Keyword Research for PPC Ads

In principle, keyword research for PPC campaigns works exactly the same as keyword research for Amazon SEO. Once you have identified relevant terms, you target them with ads. Include keywords in product titles to increase the chances that users click on your ads.

Key Differences Between Keyword Targeting Strategies for SEO and PPC

The main difference between keyword targeting for PPC and SEO purposes is that organic clicks are free, but ad clicks are paid clicks. This has strategic implementations. To maximize efficiency you need to determine which keywords present the biggest commercial opportunity.

The Keyword Prioritization Framework

Think of your target keywords in terms of potential reach (Search Volume) and business potential (Commercial Intent).

• Low Search Volume AND Low Commercial Intent: Clearly these keywords are neither critical for SEO, nor PPC. But still evaluate them from a qualitative point of view: Are these seasonal keywords that may become more relevant at a later stage? Or are these keywords that are just starting to trend and may grow in search volume? Examples are keywords related to product characteristics that indicate that a shopper is still in an information gathering mindset (i.e. “35L vs 45L Backpack”).
  
• Low Search Volume AND High Commercial Intent: You wouldn’t want to waste limited title or bullet point copy on keywords that only trigger a very small number of searches. However, if you cannot realistically break into top spots for higher search volume keywords, then these might still be your best shot at gaining sales traction.
  
  In practice, most Amazon sellers aim to identify target keywords that are not as competitive, highly relevant for their products and yet have a sufficient search volume to be worth the effort. To stick with the backpack example, if you sell ultra-light water resistant hiking backpacks, then so-called long-tail search queries such as “ultra-light water resistant 35L backpack” will likely work well for your products.
  
  Key here is to identify true gems, to target them with your PPC ads and in parallel to also optimize your listing for these keywords. The definition of “true gem” is: a cost per click that does commercially make sense for you. 
  
  So why focus both SEO and PPC efforts on these keywords? The reason is that by breaking into a top spot for a great keyword offsets a virtuous cycle on Amazon: Amazon is optimizing its search results for products that sell well. Clearly consumers like these products and by doing so Amazon also maximizes its own revenue. So by using your PPC ads to accelerate the sale velocity of a product listing for a particular keyword, your organic ranking for this keyword will improve as well.
  
• High Search Volume AND Low Commercial Intent: These are often category-type of keywords (think “hiking backpacks”). While search volume for these keywords is high, shoppers who search for these terms are likely still in the “navigational” phase of their shopping journey. If you can rank organically for these keywords that’s definitely highly beneficial, but despite their navigational characteristics these keywords are typically competitive. In most cases bidding on them with your PPC campaigns is something you want to avoid as low conversion rates will often result in poor ACoS. Things are different if you are a very well established brand in your specific niche and many shoppers likely know your brand and are in fact looking for it. 
  
• High Search Volume AND High Commercial Intent: While these keywords are clearly commercially the most appealing ones, they will likely also be expensive in terms of cost-per-click. A high CPC may in the end still mean that you can not run profitable ads targeting these keywords. So running effective campaigns and fine-tuning your bids is critical to win. To help our clients scale PPC campaigns in this highly competitive territory is why we have developed our own proprietary Amazon bid management software. Its advanced algorithms automate bidding to ensure your bids are fully optimized according to your ACoS goals.
  
  Besides Amazon PPC, you should also try to target these keywords with Amazon SEO. Be realistic when making this decision. Do you have a realistic chance of breaking into the top 1-10 search results? Consider how your listing compares with competitors listings that currently take the top spots. Can you compare with them in terms of number of user reviews? Can you compete on price? Does your product alleviate major weaknesses of competing ASINs?
  
  In other words, is there a compelling reason for shoppers to purchase your item instead of the current top search result? If the answer to these questions is “yes”, then target these keywords via Amazon SEO, but if the answer is “no”, then settle for slightly less competitive keywords.
  
  Keep in mind that ranking in top positions is absolutely key in order to get clicks. The reason therefore is that on Amazon “the first three items displayed in search results account for 64 percent of clicks” (Source: Search Engine Journal).
  

How to Run Low ACoS Campaigns for Highly Competitive Keywords

How to Implement Amazon SEO and Amazon PPC Strategies

Understanding the distinct approaches and goals of keyword research for SEO and PPC on Amazon can help you develop a comprehensive strategy that enhances both organic visibility and targeted ad performance that ultimately drives more traffic and sales.

How Many Keywords Should you Add to an Amazon PPC Campaign?

When you first create a campaign for Amazon PPC, you inevitably get to the steps to add your keywords. The question then becomes, “how many keywords/targets should you be adding to your ad group?” Many inexperienced sellers will add as many keywords as possible and sometimes hit the 1000 allowable keywords limit in the ad group.

The experienced sellers on the other hand will limit the number of keywords because they are thinking about the following:

• Manageability
• Scalability
• Campaign Budget
• Campaign Objective

To Succeed on Amazon Utilize a Holistic Approach to Search Optimization

For a comprehensive Amazon marketing strategy, it’s crucial to balance keyword optimization for both SEO and PPC purposes. While in some cases both go hand in hand, Amazon SEO gives the option to optimize your listings for keywords that would be prohibitively expensive to target with PPC campaigns. Your Amazon PPC search ads on the other hand allow you to ensure maximum exposure for highly converting search terms.

By integrating well-researched keywords into your product listings and running targeted PPC campaigns, you can maximize your product’s visibility and sales potential by aligning your organic and paid search efforts. Start with thorough keyword research, use a combination of primary and long-tail keywords, and continuously optimize your listings. To gain a competitive edge chat with us to learn how our advanced bid optimization software can help you scale your Amazon business.

Related readings: Our tipps for Amazon retargeting ads and our guide on Amazon Ad creative best-practices.

The post Advanced Keyword Strategies for Amazon SEO vs Amazon PPC appeared first on SellerMetrics.

The old adage that the “customer is always right” is making a strong comeback thanks to Amazon’s A10 algorithm. Amazon has never been shy about its generous return and refund policies, nor about applying its standards to 3rd party sellers. In fact, Amazon sellers that choose the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) service provided by the e-commerce platform enjoy many benefits, such as having Amazon handle logistics, customer service and returns, which lead to increased consumer trust and more sales. These benefits also come with a strict adherence to Amazon’s policies and Amazon doesn’t just listen to their customers, they tend to side with them on nearly every occasion. Now more than ever, as the A10 algorithm puts a high priority on Seller Authority, it’s still crucial for sellers, even FBA sellers, to prioritize their feedback management for several reasons.

Negative Feedback Affects Your Product Listing’s Rank

Amazon uses an algorithm popularly known as A10 that takes into account a myriad of information to determine the relevance and credibility of a seller’s listing. Negative feedback on a seller’s account is a strong signal to the algorithm that the listing may not be trustworthy or of high quality. According to Amazon’s released information about the changes between A9 and A10, and confirmed by data from multiple Amazon seller tools, the new A10 algorithm prioritizes the customers’ experience, and a seller’s feedback rating is a direct reflection of that.

When you receive negative feedback, it will lower your listing’s visibility, making it harder for potential customers to find and purchase your products. This can lead to a decrease in your sales and profit margin. In addition to hurting your listing’s rank, negative feedback damages your reputation in the Amazon marketplace and decreases the number of promotional opportunities you’ll have available in Seller Central. In addition to these new impacts driven by A10, potential customers have always seen negative feedback as a signal to choose to buy from a different seller instead.

In the past, FBA sellers were content to mostly ignore, or at best take a passive approach, to Negative Feedback management. After all, if Amazon is handling pick/pack, shipping, and customer service, wouldn’t they handle feedback management too? Unfortunately they don’t. Amazon does auto remove most of an FBA sellers’ negative feedback, at least when the feedback is blatantly about Amazon’s services. There is a limit, however, to an algorithm’s ability to recognize vague language. When negative feedback isn’t auto removed, your seller account and bottom line pay the price. With the way A10 works, it’s more important than ever that FBA sellers attempt to get rid of every negative feedback on their account.

Positive Feedback serves as a Form of Social Proof for Potential Buyers.

Potential buyers view positive feedback as a confirmation that their decision to buy is backed by a long history of other customers’ good experiences. It smoothes the conversion process. The more feedback you have, the more trust a casual browser will put into your products. It tells them that, “hey, others have bought from this seller and were happy with the result, chances are that if I buy their products, I will be too.” 

High feedback ratings boosts customer trust and confidence in your ability to provide a positive experience. By staying on top of your feedback, you are differentiating your business from competitors and therefore attracting more customers to your listings. The nature of seller authority is such that it rewards sellers that take action before their competitors do, but penalizes sellers that fail to take an action once their competitors have already done so.

A Good Feedback Rating Protects Your Account from Suspensions

Amazon’s business model prioritizes customer experience, and they do so because they want customers to come back and buy from the platform again and again. That’s why Amazon’s policies are quite stringent towards sellers, and sellers violating these terms may find their accounts flagged with warnings, issued suspensions, and eventually even banned permanently. From Amazon’s point of view, even a single negative experience can potentially cost Amazon thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars that the customer would have spent in their lifetime.

If you’ve ever unknowingly violated an Amazon policy, the quickest resolution is often afforded by raising an appeal. The appeal process, however, is opaque and depends a lot on the Seller Support team or other teams depending on the violation in question. Data shows that sellers with great seller feedback generally see shorter response times and have their issues resolved favorably more often than sellers with lower feedback scores. By maintaining high levels of positive seller feedback, FBA sellers essentially demonstrate to Amazon that they recognize the customer’s lifetime value. These sellers, in turn, are the kind of sellers that Amazon wants to have continued to operate on their platform.

Winning the Buy Box Increases Significantly with High Feedback Ratings.

The Buy Box is the prominent call-to-action (CTA) button or box on an Amazon product detail page. It allows a customer to quickly add an item to their cart or make a purchase with just one click. When multiple sellers offer the same product, the Buy Box rotates between them if all signals are the same, but winning the Buy Box more often is possible when one of the sellers differentiates themselves from the other. Winning the Buy Box more often is crucial for maximizing a sellers’ sales.

Using FBA will already give you a leg up on non-FBA listings when it comes to winning the Buy Box. Experienced sellers know, however, that a higher feedback score is a way to differentiate you from other FBA sellers and increase your chances of winning the Buy Box. The Buy Box algorithm is not straightforward, by any means. Data shows that it is primarily awarded on factors like offer price and the geographic location of the seller’s goods. However, when price is more or less equal, and geographic location isn’t a factor thanks to FBA, each seller’s feedback score and other customer service metrics have a prominent impact on Buy Box percentage.

If you use tools to monitor your Buy Box percentage, you’ll find that positive seller feedback is an essential factor that Amazon considers when determining which seller will win the Buy Box on listings that are hyper competitive, or listings where factors such as price and geographic location can’t play a strong role. When you have a high feedback score, it directly contributes to improving seller metrics that calculate your probability of winning the Buy Box.

Not Getting Trapped in the “Poor Customer Loop”

It’s a common customer service complaint wherein a customer will buy something that they didn’t properly read the product description on and then get an item that’s totally different from what they thought they ordered. Of course, this will result in negative feedback even though it’s not the seller’s fault that the customer failed to read the description and got an item they didn’t want. This is a common negative feedback on Amazon FBA sellers’ accounts because the automated algorithm doesn’t categorize such complaints as falling under fulfillment responsibilities.

Customers that pay attention to product details are also much more likely to pay attention to a sellers’ feedback score when shopping. They are more likely to buy from sellers with a high feedback score than from sellers with a low score. This means that if your negative feedback isn’t disputed and removed, you’re risking losing these detail oriented customers. At the same time, you’ll still get customers that don’t pay attention to details and are more likely to leave you negative feedback that isn’t your fault – resulting in a vicious loop of less satisfied customers but a higher chance of unsatisfied customers.

This loop is compounded by the fact that today’s Amazon customer is not the same as just 5 years ago. Data shows that an increasing number of shoppers differentiate between 3rd party sellers by reviewing the feedback score. Although these customers do not yet make up the majority of Amazon shoppers, their numbers are swelling each year thanks to more and more articles, videos, and even communications with Amazon Customer Support team members that encourage customers to pay attention to a seller’s feedback score. Don’t let your account fall into the “Poor Customer Loop” by making sure to address each and every negative feedback that you receive.

Better Feedback Ratings Equals Better and More Opportunities

In Animal Farm, George Orwell famously wrote “all animals are equal but some are more equal than others” and this is just as true in the Amazon marketplace as it is in government (be it animal run or human run). Not every seller gets the same opportunities, deals, and promotions offered through the platform. Invitations to feature items on Deals may be extended more frequently to sellers that Amazon thinks will offer the best customer experience. Lightning Deals, for example, are offered to sellers who have at least 5 feedback ratings per month and have an overall rating of at least 3.5 stars, but those are the minimum requirements. Amazon’s business model relies on customers coming back and buying on their site again and again, and they will offer better and more opportunities to sellers that contribute to that ethos.

Like with many elements of selling on Amazon, meeting the minimum requirements isn’t difficult. However, to be truly successful on the platform, the best sellers understand that their performance metrics must rise well above the minimum. With the new A10 algorithm in place, keeping your feedback score high won’t just impact back-end opportunities anymore, but directly help your listings rank higher as well. It is more important than ever, therefore, to take an active look at your feedback and make sure to take steps to improve your feedback score.

Conclusion: FBA Sellers Must Stay on Top of Seller Feedback

ust because Amazon takes care of warehousing, customer service, and logistics doesn’t mean that an Amazon FBA seller can afford to ignore feedback management. Getting feedback and listening to what your customers are saying can give you insights into customer satisfaction, product quality, and most importantly – help you maintain and build Seller Authority on Amazon. There are plenty of opportunities that open up for you when your seller account maintains high feedback ratings, and it all boils down to getting more sales and in turn, having higher profit margins.

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