Though still trailing Google and Facebook, Amazon has made large strides in the digital marketing world. According to eMarketer (via Fortune), Amazon became the third-largest online advertising platform last year with an estimated $4.61 billion in ad spend (144.5% increase year-over-year). In a Search Engine Land survey of over 600 marketers, over 80% said they plan to expand their Amazon advertising budget in the next year, with many electing to shift their investments from other channels like display and paid social toward Amazon.
The “Shopper’s Search Engine”
While Amazon has traditionally loomed menacingly over small online retailers, the marketing opportunities available on the platform have simply become too significant to dismiss. Per eMarketer, almost half (46.7%) of all product searches begin on Amazon, as more users bypass Google on their way to finding the items they want. If your business is not there to meet them, you’ll miss out on hordes of potential customers.
If that’s not enough to grab your attention, Amazon users tend to show greater purchase intent than those searching on Google. This is understandable, as consumers typically browse the ecommerce giant in a ready-to-buy mindset. Amazon will only continue to dominate product search queries in 2019 and further assert its status as the “shopper’s search engine.” If retailers don’t already have a presence on Amazon, they need to begin seriously considering it.
Optimizing for Amazon
Selling on Amazon doesn’t necessarily mean surrendering your individuality. Amazon Stores provide a fully-featured environment in which to promote your brand and products. But like any store, you need to keep yours in optimum shape while attracting shoppers looking for what you have to sell. During last year’s edition of our annual #SEOWeek event, we offered an introductory look at how you can use Amazon to fuel organic growth. Many of these strategies apply here as you establish your brand on Amazon.
Keep in mind that Amazon’s A9 algorithm puts special emphasis on factors like conversion rate. If your products convert better, they will be more visible. To maximize conversion potential, we recommend optimizing every element of your product pages. These include product titles, descriptions, images, and more.
You’ll also need to do your homework on keywords by investigating the terms users are searching to find you on Amazon. Per Search Engine Land, 70% of Amazon searches are long-tail, so it’s vital you capture traffic from these multi-word phrases that represent greater purchase intent. Leverage relevant keywords in your product titles and descriptions without over-stuffing to give yourself an edge.
When it comes to product descriptions, offer potential customers all the information they need. Amazon typically rewards comprehensive, guide-style content on product pages, so make your product descriptions as detailed and helpful to consumers as possible while remaining focused and concise. Bullet points are your best friend here. Don’t forget to further enhance your listings with high-resolution images showcasing your products, making your pages visually attractive and informative.
The Customer Is Key
Whether you’re advertising on Google or Amazon, a customer-based strategy is essential. Fulfill your audience’s needs in every micro-moment with quality content specifically tailored toward helping them convert. As you adjust your Amazon product pages for more conversions, try some of these tactics on your own ecommerce site and see how it affects your performance on other ad platforms.
What else do today’s retailers need to know about tomorrow’s search marketing trends? Catch up on our previous blog posts detailing contextual search, automation, machine-readable entity IDs (MREIDs), the “ideal customer” myth, responsible marketing, voice-to-screen devices, and top-of-funnel marketing.
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