Like Google or Bing, Amazon is a search engine, and you need to think about how to optimize your listings. Amazon does update its algorithm, so your listings should be optimized accordingly. If you’re new to the Amazon selling game or if you haven’t thought about optimizing your listings yet, we have some tips for you!
1. Research Keywords
Many sellers don’t utilize keywords in their content, causing them to miss out on huge opportunities. Keywords increase your product’s visibility on Amazon and help you rank higher in search results. When writing your content, it’s best to include as many relevant keywords as possible. Choose keywords that could match search queries of your target customers.
Keywords can be as short as one word or be a longer string of words. Especially on Amazon, many customers will search detailed queries to find exactly what they’re looking for. That means that sellers should include more long keyword phrases, referred to as long tail keywords, in their content. But not all long tail keywords are valuable. Choose keywords that have a decent amount of monthly volume. We like to include keywords that have at least 2,000 monthly searches on Amazon.
We recommend using Amazon tools to conduct research and help you identify potential keywords. At Nozani, we like to use Merchant Words, Scope, and Safari Scout. These tools combined identify search volume of keywords and generate keyword suggestions.
2. Prioritize Keywords in Content
Not only do you need to research your keywords but you need to prioritize them correctly in your content. Here is the order of where you should place your most relevant keywords:
- Product Title: Place your most relevant keywords in the first 5 words of your title and then include other keywords after.
- Bullet Points: Amazon places importance on the first 5 or so words of each bullet point, and then considers the rest of the content in the bullet points. Each bullet point is ranked in order of importance. Therefore, the first 5 words in the first bullet are more important than the first 5 words in the fifth bullet. But the first 5 words in the fifth bullet are weighted more than the remaining content in the first bullet.
- Backend Keywords: Backend keywords are not shown in your content, but they are considered in Amazon’s algorithm. Include unique keywords that you weren’t able to fit into your content. You could get penalized for having duplicate keywords in the front end and back end. These keywords have a 250-character cap.
- Product Description: The product description is the last place Amazon looks for keywords, but it can be a great place to put extra keywords as you persuade customers to buy your product.
3. Carefully Craft Your Title
Because the title has the most SEO value, it needs to be optimized correctly. Here are some tips to implement when creating your title:
- Capitalize the first letter of each word
- Write numbers not numerals (7 not seven)
- Spell out and instead of using &
- Don’t include size or color (unless it is a relevant detail)
4. Maximize Character Counts
Amazon gives sellers a specific amount of characters for the title, bullet points, and product description. While the numbers may vary by industry and may change if the seller uses Vendor Central, the general characters counts are as follows:
- Title: 200 characters
- Bullet Point: 400 characters (per bullet point)
- Product Description: 2000 characters
- Backend Keywords: 250 characters
Maximizing your character counts ensures that you are getting the most out of your content. While you don’t have to take up the entire field, you shouldn’t leave a lot of character real estate blank when you could fill it with relevant keywords.
5. Optimize Images
Images are becoming increasingly more important on Amazon. On mobile devices especially, images are the first thing that customers look at when making a purchasing decision. Here are general guidelines for your product photography to shine on Amazon:
- White background with good lighting
- Good resolution and zoomable (at least 1000 x 1000 pixels)
- Highlight product benefits and uses
We recommend that you include product shots on a white background, lifestyle images, and infographics to boost conversion rates and optimize your product listings. If your images are better and more informative than your competitor’s images, then you are more likely to get the sales.
6. Get More Reviews
All Amazon sellers know that reviews play a HUGE part in conversion. Many customers look at product ratings and reviews when making their decision, and Amazon takes these factors into account to determine which products make it to the top of the search results. It can be hard to get good reviews, but they are worth it in the end.
Unfortunately, not all reviews will be good ones, but responding to negative reviews is a key part of Amazon SEO. Offer a refund or a replacement for broken products. Responding to negative reviews shows that you care about what the customers think and that you want them to have a good experience with your brand.
7. Create PPC Campaigns to Kickstart Sales
Amazon considers sales performance when ranking products on search results. If a product sells more frequently than another, Amazon will push that product higher on the results list. But for new products trying to pave their way in the market, having constant sales might not be a feasible goal at first.
PPC campaigns can boost sales to help you improve rankings on Amazon. They appear as the “sponsored products.” These ads show up in search results for keywords that you choose. PPC campaigns can help you sell inventory faster and give you the visibility you need.
Unlike Google PPC ads, Amazon PPC ads actually increase your organic rankings! Plus, it’s pretty simple. Just a few dollars per day can go a long way toward boosting sales.
8. Fill Out Relevant Categories
Amazon provides categories and sub-categories for all products. It’s crucial for sellers to make sure that their products are listed in the right categories. You will be prompted to select categories for products when managing your page. If you don’t know what to choose, at least choose something! Any category is better than no category.
9. Take Advantage of EBC/A+ Content
EBC/A+ content is additional branded content that allows sellers to take up more real estate on an Amazon product listing page. EBC is the enhanced brand content Amazon provides to sellers on Vendor Central, while A+ is the content Amazon provides for sellers on Seller Central.
Both A+ and EBC content gives more information about your brand, not your product. There are several templates available that include both text and images to capture the customer’s attention. This content can increase customer engagement and boost overall sales between 3% and 10%.
By following these tips, you will be on your way to outranking your competition on Amazon. If you need more information about any of these tips or would like help implementing them, contact us at Nozani.
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