Organic Traffic and Paid Amazon Ads: How Do They Interact?

If you’re investing in paid Amazon advertising, you might have noticed that a change in campaign performance brings about a similar change in organic traffic.

The reason for this is simple: there is a natural symbiosis between organic and paid Amazon performance.

Paid ads drive people to your listings, and the consequent sales contribute to a better rank organically. An improved organic rank increases your visibility in the Amazon SERP, which in turn leads to higher brand recall and conversions.

Below, we take a closer look at the interplay between organic and paid Amazon traffic and explain why it’s important to be strategic about both as a merchant.

The Correlation Between Organic and Paid Amazon Search

Both organic and paid search are key pillars of Amazon marketing.

Organic search focuses on product listings that appear naturally on the Amazon search engine results page. Amazon’s A10 algorithm considers these products the most relevant to the shopper’s query, so they’re given priority placement on the SERP in order to satisfy user intent.

Paid search, on the other hand, comprises product-focused advertisements that appear above the organic listings in Amazon search. It allows sellers to gain more visibility by paying to place their items at the top of the Amazon SERP. Paid search also offers greater control over where your products are displayed, such as after product information on detail pages.

For brands contemplating which technique to adopt, it’s important to know that combining organic search and paid Amazon search delivers better results than using either on its own.

Paid ads help improve organic visibility

Organic clicks are hard to come by on Amazon, especially when you’re a new brand.

Unknown brands are risky and usually lack a strong sales history, which, in turn, negatively impacts their organic performance. Paid ads can change this by directing traffic to your listings, improving your brand awareness and driving sales for your products.

Even if people aren’t clicking on your ads, seeing the same name on the Amazon SERP repeatedly will make them recognize your brand and remember what you sell.

Paid search offers keyword ideas for SEO

Keyword research is an integral part of your organic and paid search campaigns. However, finding high-converting keywords to include in your organic listings requires significant effort and time. Paid search makes things easier by showing you the words shoppers use to find and buy your products.

You can use data from Amazon’s advertising reports to regularly optimize and update your product listings. By doing this, you give yourself the chance to earn leads and sales organically. And once you’ve built up an affinity with your target customers, you can redirect your paid spend to another ad group or campaign.

Organic visibility can drive more ad clicks

When an Amazon user searches for something, they see a combination of paid ads at the top and organic listings underneath. Often, they skip past the paid listings because seeing the word “sponsored” feels intrusive and they’re being forced to click through. That said, when they see an organic result from the same brand as the one advertised, they’ll be fine with clicking the paid ad.

It might be because seeing the same brand twice improved its recognition, or it could be that users feel only credible brands can afford to occupy this much digital real estate on the Amazon SERP. Whatever the reason, organic visibility can help improve your paid click-through rate.

Good organic traffic can improve paid search ROI

High organic traffic on Amazon indicates that your product listings are well-optimized, increasing the likelihood of conversion. In this case, directing your paid search traffic to these listings can ensure optimal ROI of Amazon ads by increasing the conversion rate.

Moreover, the sales generated from the synergy between organic and paid search will increase the sales velocity of your product, which in turn contributes to the sustainability of your SERP rank.

Conclusion

Most brands with an Amazon presence have organic search and paid search teams working in different silos. But the reality is these two strategies are more intertwined than they are separate. To get the most traffic and conversions for your listings, consider using a combination of organic and paid marketing to improve your performance on the Amazon marketplace.