The most suitable Amazon advertising ad format to outsmart your competitors

Amazon could never become such a popular eCommerce platform without some serious advertising potential. According to the report, this online retail giant earns more than $11 billion from advertising annually.

The power of Amazon ads is immense, so it’s definitely important to choose the most suitable advertising format to outsmart your competitors. But can you identify the best solution in the overwhelming complexity of Amazon’s advertising system?

If the answer is negative, don’t worry since we are here to give you a hand. Let’s take a look at Amazon ad types and the most relevant advertising practices on this platform.

Key Types of Amazon Ads

If you want to choose the right advertising format on Amazon, you need to know what the platform is offering in the first place. There are five types of Amazon Ads you can experiment with:

1. Amazon Sponsored Ads

Amazon Sponsored Ads are the first and by far the most popular advertising format. They are triggered by keywords and come in the form of display banners. A third-party Amazon seller is only allowed to use this format, which is also why Sponsored Ads are so commonly used.

2. Amazon Headline Search Ad

This format – also known as Sponsored Brand Campaigns – allows merchants to show ads anywhere around search results. In other words, you can place the banner alongside search results, under them, or above them. The best thing about Headline Search Ads is that you can showcase up to three products and customize every component of the ad.

3. Amazon Product Display Ads

Product Display Ads are versatile and interesting because you can place them atop of the offer listings, underneath search results, on product pages, and on customer review pages. Users are free to tailor this format any way they want, while Amazon also offers you solid analytical features to understand the overall performance.

4. Amazon Native Ads

Sometimes you might want to place Amazon ads on your website directly. You can do it through Amazon Native Ads – all it takes is to pick one of the following options: recommendation, search, or custom ads.

5. Amazon Video Ads

Another option is to use video ads on just about any website operated by Amazon. From Amazon’s online store over IMDb to Fire TV, you can publish video ads to impress the audience with visual content.

Practical Tips to Optimize Amazon Sponsored Ads To Outsmart Your Competitors

Amazon Sponsored Ads are the most frequent advertising solution for online retailers, so we recommend testing this format before moving on to other types of ads. But in order to do it properly, you ought to follow the best practices of Amazon advertising. Here they are:

• Optimize product descriptions
  
  Each product you’re trying to sell should be perfectly optimized. You have to use the most relevant keywords when describing SKUs because it will make the listing suitable for future advertising campaigns. Amazon takes into account product descriptions when analyzing different bids, so the initial copy is supposed to match targeted ad keywords.
  
• Take advantage of match types
  
  You probably know already that Amazon relies on three match types in keyword bidding. You should choose the best match type based on your business goal:
  
  – Broad match is great if you want to raise awareness and reach as many prospects as possible.
  
  – Phrase match is suitable for products with multiple variations. For instance, your keyword phrase might be “black shoes” and your ad will appear in searches such as “cheap black shoes” or “black leather shoes.”
  
  – Exact match is limited to searchers who use your keyword or phrase exclusively. For instance, Amazon will only display your ads to users who search for “black shoes” and nothing else.
  
• Beware of campaign organization
  
  To make the most of your Amazon advertising campaigns, you need to organize the whole structure and pay attention to the smallest details if you want to to outsmart your competitors. Campaign organization depends on your target audience, keywords, and business objectives, but the general rule of thumb is to form logical product bundles based on brands, top-selling items, and similar characteristics
  
• Automate keyword targeting
  
  Sellers who are totally new to Amazon advertising should utilize automated targeting when bidding for keywords. That way, you can get the first insights from Amazon directly and then move on to manual customizations.
  
• Fend off irrelevant searches
  
  There are cases when you don’t want to appear in Amazon ads because the keyword or search phrase is not relevant to your business. This is where you can use negative keywords to fend off irrelevant searches. A negative keyword is simply a type of keyword that prevents your ad from being triggered by a certain word or phrase.
  
• Analyze competitors’ keywords
  
  In case your niche is dominated by one or more eShops, you might as well analyze their keywords to see how they are managing to attract so many customers. The point is not to copy and paste their keyword ideas – your portfolio is somewhat different after all – but it may serve as a nice inspiration booster for your advertising campaigns.
  
• Modify bids based on margins
  
  A common mistake among beginner-level advertisers is to set the same budget for all campaigns. Keep in mind that some products have a higher margin than others, so you need to think through each SKU to determine the Advertising Cost of Sale.
  
• Optimize campaigns on the go
  
  Finally, you should keep an eye on your campaigns and make use of Amazon analytics to optimize ads on the go. Although it takes a lot of work, it pays off through campaign performance.

The Bottom Line To Outsmart Your Competitors

Amazon advertising is a powerful marketing tool, but it can only get you so far if you don’t choose the most suitable format and optimize the copy. We showed you how to craft a perfect Amazon Sponsored Ad, so do your best to use our tips and launch a standout eCommerce advertising campaign.

AUTHOR BIO

Emma Coffinet is a digital marketer at the essay review service. Apart from creating standout social media campaigns, Emma is also an expert in online advertising and email marketing campaigns. She is the mother of a lovely toddler and a dedicated yoga practitioner.