Amazon’s A9 algorithm is a product ranking algorithm, which determines the purchase likelihood of products and then ranks them in a specific order. It assigns numbers to products based on how well they perform in their category and subcategory. If a product is number 1, the faster it sells on Amazon.
The A9 considered direct and indirect factors. Direct included some traditional SEO content factors like product copy, title, and description, as well as availability of the item and the price of the item as compared to competitors. Out of stock items would not rank high, if they ranked at all. If the price of an item is drastically higher than a competitor’s, the algorithm would give precedence to the cheaper product.
Indirect factors include sales history, customer feedback, image quality, product reviews and more. Amazon’s new A10 update adds even more weight to these indirect factors.
Amazon A10 Algorithm Updates
The A10 update adds more significance to the intent of the buyer. One of the main purposes of the update was to remove fake and fraudulent sellers from the platform to protect users and provide them with a better shopping experience. While Amazon PPC campaigns are still considered by the algorithm, customer behavior factors have more importance.
Relevancy in Customer Behavior
Amazon prioritizes product relevancy to match user intent, which the A10 algorithm update reinforces.
The update looks at seller authority, which charts how long the seller has been active on Amazon Marketplace, their overall rating and performance metrics, and the amount of products in their feed. Older sellers with a trusted background will get precedence over newer sellers. Amazon also looks at off-site sales to track how well a product linked to an Amazon account sells from a branded website. If a product performs well separate from Amazon itself, then Amazon will rank the product higher.
The selling history of a product is also considered – if a product consistently and historically sells well and customers highly review it, then the product will rank higher. Focus on organic sales, as that means customers are searching for and exactly finding your product, making it relevant and desirable.
Ensure your Amazon product listing is complete. A complete product description – from bullet points to titles to manufacturing dimensions to images – will help increase your conversion rate, user impressions, and relevancy to user’s searches. All these factors are considered by the A10 update. Including images in your product listing is a must because it impacts your click-through-rate and helps confirm user intent.
Customer feedback is critical. Slow order processing speed and a high order defect rate will make Amazon drop your product’s rankings. Respond to reviews and answer questions, as sellers answering questions about their own products offer more accurate and more relevant information to searchers, increasing their likelihood of converting.
All these factors work together to create your Amazon ranking. While there is no single factor to magically and instantly boost your ranking, you should focus on providing the relevant product for your searchers. When customers can reliably find what they are looking for, Amazon’s A10 algorithm will take notice.
