We often share in-depth and specific updates to Amazon Advertising and Amazon DSP. Both are immensely important to brands throughout the industry. In fact, Amazon’s share of total digital ad spend is expected to continue growing to 9.7% in 2021. With this, we find it equally important to go back to basics from time to time. Now that a new year is in full swing this blog post should serve as a timely reminder of what it takes to be a successful advertiser on Amazon. Continue reading for a few critical considerations for your brand's Amazon Advertising campaigns.
The phrase 'retail readiness' is one we expect to hear more often throughout this year. It may be a new buzzword, but it's not a new concept for brands that sell on Amazon. Retail readiness is all-encompassing of what makes a product successful on Amazon. And it's key to making advertising efforts worthwhile. At the foundation of this is product detail page optimization. Elements such as titles, image libraries, bullet points, A+ content, for example. Pricing, reviews, response rates, and inventory levels also contribute to retail readiness.
Brands should always have this at the forefront of their Amazon Advertising campaigns and strategy, especially this year. With the increase in traffic and competition, the opportunity to drive return via advertising is greater than ever. And, because of this, there's little margin for error or shortcuts.
Having a strong keyword strategy to support advertising efforts is a basic concept that should be explored on a deeper level. To start, it's beneficial to measure the search volumes of your brand's keywords on a regular basis. Search volumes for top-performing keywords and more general keywords, often fluctuate. Being aware of how these levels are changing can help advertisers adjust their spending as needed to remain efficient. Not to mention, doing so makes it easier to discover new search queries to focus on based on what's happening within a product's category.
Keywords are crucial in proving products are relevant. And, subsequently, providing customers with a positive user experience, a top priority for Amazon. So, it's worth considering this and taking your keyword strategy for advertising a step further. We suggest including top-performing keywords through a product's detail page, A+ content, and Stores. Doing so will reinforce a product's relevance as well as future organic sales.
Placing more budget toward bottom-of-the-funnel traffic that's more likely to convert makes sense. However, this way of thinking prevents brands from reaching customers in the research and discovery phases. And, in a sense, limits brands from building awareness and remaining top of mind throughout a shopper's journey.
At MPS, we target shoppers throughout the funnel and ensure each tier has its own goals to measure against. Doing so allows our clients to use a holistic approach and leverage branded, non-branded, and product-specific keywords.
When it comes to campaign structure, being well-organized is crucial. Naming conventions and taxonomies can help brands stay on track and focus on what matters most, profitability. Especially as it relates to manual bidding and keyword management.
As we've learned over the years, Amazon is constantly evolving. In addition, consumer behavior is bound to change as we move through the pandemic. Not to mention, campaigns require regular adjustments, now more than ever. By staying organized brands can ensure their budget is spent as efficiently as possible. At MPS, we pay close attention to total impressions on the campaign and keyword levels.
While this post is Amazon-focused, these considerations apply to any marketplace. With the above in mind, brands will be in a strong position to create and run successful Amazon Advertising campaigns and more. This year will be filled with new opportunities to leverage what Amazon has to offer in order to compete and succeed. We look forward to what develops and will be sharing updates on our website and social channels.
If you could use the support of a strategic partner, schedule a free consultation. And, as an official Amazon Advertising partner, we’re here to answer any questions about your efforts. Finally, should you be interested in learning more about our clients’ results, explore advertising-related case studies on our website.