中文 (中国)
Last updated on March 19th, 2023
Written by Nicasio Co III
Your work doesn’t stop after you click the “Submit” button. To master Amazon paid ads management, you have to learn how to analyze report data. It all starts with an in-depth understanding of standard digital advertising metrics and e-commerce marketing metrics that Amazon provides. This variety of metrics could help you properly conduct Amazon PPC optimization for your campaigns.
In this article, we will identify which sponsored ads you can utilize as a seller. Moreover, we will help you establish a basic understanding of Amazon’s different metrics, the different ways to view report data, and how to use metrics to make your ads more relevant to customers.
Which party are you allowed to join? Nope, not that kind of party. We’re talking about the two types of sellers on Amazon, as defined below:
First-party and third-party sellers have their respective platforms: Vendor Central for the former, and Seller Central for the latter.
It’s important to distinguish between the two to understand which type of Amazon paid ad you should manage.
First-Party Seller | Third-Party Seller |
Invite-only registration. | Anyone can join. |
Automatically receives Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) Prime Badge. | You have an option to have an Amazon FBA Prime Badge. |
Amazon controls the standard pricing. | You have full control over the pricing of your product. |
You have the privilege to create ads using Amazon Marketing Services (AMS). | You can create ads inside Seller Central. |
Paid ad types: Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, Product Display Ads | Paid ad types: Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands |
Paid ad targeting methods: keyword level | Paid ad targeting methods: keyword level, interest level, product level |
While it’s difficult to get a Vendor Central membership, consider being a third-party seller as a stepping stone to become a big-shot merchant in the Amazon marketplace in the future.
Moving forward, we will use the term “seller” to avoid confusion between the two parties.
Before we proceed to explain how to use the report data from Amazon, let’s define each metric that will help you optimize paid ads and develop the best Amazon PPC strategy.
The only way to check how your Amazon PPC campaign is performing is through various metrics that Amazon generates. Let’s identify each one:
As we proceed, we will explain to you how to use these metrics to improve your Amazon paid ads management.
Where can you find these valuable metrics? There are three ways to access and retrieve them:
Last year, Amazon redesigned its advertising console to be more flexible and user-friendly, as shown below:
The advertising console has several functions:
The advertising console provides account-level data for Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands. You can access it by clicking the Reports menu on the dashboard.
This feature is available to both types of sellers, as mentioned above. The only difference is the type of report and paid ad each seller can view. You can access the complete list here.
Overall, there are eight downloadable reports you can use to manage your Amazon paid ads, as listed below:
Available for: Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands
Available for: Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands
Available for: Sponsored Brands only
Available for: Sponsored Brands only
Available for: Sponsored Products only
Available for: Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands
Available for: Sponsored Products only
Available for: Sponsored Products only
According to InfoWorld, the Application Programming Interface (API) is a way to interact with a separate software component or resource programmatically. In this case, it is the Amazon Advertising API, a way to automate, scale, and optimize Amazon paid ads.
Here are the advantages of using the Amazon Advertising API:
Since it is not enough that you know how to set up PPC on Amazon, you should learn to master a few tricks to tweak poor-performing Amazon PPC campaigns or improve ads with high conversion rates.
First, determine your campaign objective. Why is this important? It helps you measure the performance of your campaigns. If your goal is to improve sales efficiency, look closely at metrics like ACoS, RoAS, sales, CTR, and conversion rate. On the other hand, if you want to increase brand awareness, the only metric you should monitor is impressions.
Have you decided what your objective is? Good! Now, you may start applying the Amazon PPC optimization tips below:
There are two scenarios you may face when it comes to budget. It is either you use your entire budget, or underspend.
When you use your entire budget, it only means you don’t allocate an adequate amount for that day. The downside is you may lose sales. Luckily, you can adjust your budget any time, and changes will take effect immediately. How will you know if you’re running out of budget? Amazon sends an out of budget notification via email and advertising console. Alternatively, you can decrease bids/budgets of low-performing campaigns, and instead use the budget for higher-performing campaigns.
If you’re underspending, you have an opportunity to increase the visibility of your existing campaigns and keywords that are performing well. Besides, you can create a new campaign for products that don’t have a sponsored ad yet.
Boost your sales by removing underperforming ASINs. Yes, you must learn to let go to reach satisfactory sales performance. How can you trace this? Review your Advertised Product report and look for metrics that have the:
Moreover, you can also track best-selling ASINs by doing the opposite. Advertise those ASINs with the lowest ACoS and highest RoAS.
But if your objective is to maximize brand awareness, make sure your advertised ASINs have passed the retail readiness test. A retail-ready ASIN has the following characteristics:
Amazon has high regard for relevant keywords. If you have an understanding of the digital marketing strategies of Amazon, one of which is to focus on customer experience, relentlessly. The online shopping titan’s mission is “to be Earth’s most customer-centric company.” Take note that it isn’t seller-centric, but customer-centric. Hence, when a customer enters a keyword on the search box, Amazon only displays relevant information related to the customer’s search term. Amazon serves to please their customers. And you should, too.
If you notice some of your keywords are not performing well, you must optimize right away. Here are the tips you should consider doing:
Amazon operates in a real-time auction environment to decide which ads to display based on their bid price. The general rule is the seller with the highest bid grabs the top spot in the search results, followed by the second highest, and so forth. Other than the bid price, the product’s relevance or keyword matters as well.
In a nutshell, once you have mastered reading and interpreting the report data, the possibilities to optimize and manage your Amazon paid ads are endless. However, keep in mind that optimization is a continuous process and not just a one-time thing. Make it a habit to review and analyze your performance data regularly. In this way, you can build a successful and thriving Amazon business.
Are you not getting enough conversions from your Amazon PPC campaigns? Seller Interactive has a team of expert Amazon consultants willing to help you with Amazon paid ads management. For inquiries, email [email protected].
Last updated on March 17th, 2023 Written by Ken Zhou When looking for the best item on the Amazon marketplace, those at the top of search results are always our first options. It's an open secret: sponsored items are the first to appear, so we immediately think they're bestsellers or have good reviews. But what […]
Last updated on March 17th, 2023 Written by Ken Zhou Most answers online will say it takes 7 to 10 business days. It's correct, though applicable only in some circumstances. The answer is much more specific, depending on someone’s role in the marketplace. For starters, buyers and sellers go through different processes to get their […]
Last updated on March 17th, 2023 Written by Ken Zhou It’s no secret that Walmart is one of the most meticulously crafted marketplaces in the world. On top of that, they’re also meticulous when it comes to maintaining the performance of their sellers, which must be on par with their standards. While it has only […]