Table of Contents
Introduction
Without a doubt, if your product appears on page one of Amazon’s listing for popular search terms, it is more likely to sell. This is no longer a secret, and there are numerous tactics, including what I refer to as “cheap tactics,” in which many sellers attempt to boost their ranking superficially. This will not last long, and your seller account will be banned as a result. Amazon is now taking action against such sellers and third-party companies.
If you look back, all of the strategies for page one ranking on Amazon are focused on the products, with little emphasis on who will actually buy your products, why they will buy them, and what will trigger them to buy your product.
In this blog, I will delve into a new approach to Amazon ranking that is 100 percent Amazon compliant, with a focus on the customer and brand authenticity to serve their customers.
More revenue, repeat buyers, loyal customers, and referrals are the end results.
Data points that impact Amazon Ranking
Data is extremely important in Amazon, and with the implementation of Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, the Amazon system uses multiple data points to determine where to place your product in relation to search. Amazon can also place your products in other places such as –
Within Amazon Search Listing
When user clicks on other product detail page and shows your product
On the Amazon home page of the customer that is based on users search behaviour.
Externally outside Amazon. Yes, Amazon pays to have their products appear in Google searches and other places.
Do you see why it is more important to focus on ensuring that Amazon considers your product to be a preferred one to show in multiple areas?
The Amazon machine operates on data points, and there are numerous data points, both internal and external.
Sales
- Velocity (time interval between purchases)
- History (How many purchases were made in total during a period of time?)
- Unit/Session percentage (SEO has a sub-factor associated to it as well)
Traffic
Internal
Sponsored Ads
Gold Box Deals
Lightning Deals
Traffic from other listings
Frequently bought together
Buyers also purchased
(Those last three are likewise sub-sub factors tied to ranking factor #4, “On Page Activity.”)
Because traffic and conversions are the most important measures in business, keeping an eye on them is essential.
Sessions – Unique Amazon account visits to your page.
Unit Sessions % – Conversion rate (Units divided by Sessions)
External
Google
Facebook
Instagram
Messenger
Email
SMS
Affiliate site
Referral (share buttons)
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
- Keyword Density
- Title
- Search Terms
- Subject Matter Keywords
- Bullets
- Description
- Unit/Session Percentage (as a means of showcasing buyer relevance for keywords)
On-Page Activity
- Add to Cart (Because it is the most significant signal of intent, it is given the highest weighting.)
- Wishlisting
- Reviews
- Questions and Answers
- Review Upvotes
- Click Thru to Competitor
Note: Traffic can be both internal (within the Amazon Ecosystem) and external (external sites, social media, etc.), and it can be both organic (free) and paid.
All of these data points have an impact on one thing: RELEVANCE.
What are the implications of these data points?
By displaying completed purchase intent and an aggregate ratio to traffic, sales and conversions have an impact on relevance. All of this indicates that the keyword is very related to the listing.
Because it brings external visitors to the listing, traffic implies relevance. This demonstrates that the listing was relevant enough to draw attention.
SEO signifies relevancy based on the seller’s optimization (and to some degree, Amazon). The picked keywords are likely relevant because they meet the subcategory.
Relevance is determined by on-page activity, which is based on interest (increased signs of intent). Add to carts, wishlisting, and other similar actions indicate a desire to buy, bolstering the term that brought you there in the first place as relevant to the listing.
There is what we usually say as Customer Trust Factor – How Amazon evaluates whether a sale originated from a “genuine customer“. To put it another way, the two most important ranking elements are: CUSTOMER TRUST + RELEVANCE.
Now that you understand how the algorithm ranks products, you can tell it how to rank yours.
This may sound counter-intuitive but the easy way to rank on Amazon is not to be over-obsessed with ranking but have a focus on your ideal Amazon buyers whom you want to serve and find the way to have more such buyers finds your product.
How many sellers give deep discounts, rebates and other non profit activities to increase the ranking but eventually those are no long lasting. The main reason is none of those strategies are aligned to their ideal buyers on Amazon. None of the brands looking for a buyer who is always looking for another cracking 70% deal all the time, then why to have such strategies at all.
Focus on your products you will be competing with others, focus on your customers then you will create a brand.
Customize your marketing messages and services to the needs of your Buyer Persona.
Download Free WorksheetBefore we deep dive on how to create customer focus Amazon Ranking strategy, let’s understand the core behaviours of buyers on Amazon:
- Amazon is used by 75% of customers to find new items or brands.
- Keyword research drives a high level of buyer intent.
- More than any other store, Amazon customers has more than 50% willingness to buying new products.
- They have no hesitation about returning items if they don’t like them.
- On lower price ranges, they spend less than $50 each month on Amazon.
- They are on the lookout for the best offers.
- Counterfeit products are a matter of concern for over 70% of customers.
- On Amazon, about 68 percent of customers are doing some window shopping.
- Amazon is used by 72 percent of customers to compare prices.
- Amazon Reviews are trusted by 75% of customers.
What motivates Amazon buyers in their purchasing decisions the most?
There are multiple factors –
Price points – It is the optimal price range not about being the lowest. Note – Lowest could potentially lead to kick back on sales.
Numbers of Ratings or Reviews – here more is better. Build systems to get the consistent streams of reviews from your buyers. Avoid family reviews etc.
Convincing product descriptions or images – A+ product description always stands better than normal one. This is must to have A+ brand content.
Convenience of shopping – This is big factor where you have to do nothing other than your product is marked as Amazon prime. If you are selling on your brand store, your promise for your customers should be to create same convenience and experience as in Amazon. For eg. Next day delivery, 30 days return, 24×7 support etc.
Prior experience with the product or brand – This is where your brands stands on quality of product, customer care, support, engagement and many more comes as one single experience. Build an Amazon Operating System like we do in Fulon so that your buyers are inspired to buy from you again.
Conversions – In short when potential customer visits your product page on Amazon there are elements that will influence his/her decision to buy along with his/her intent –
Images
Title
Price
Reviews & star rating
Questions or FAQs
Coupons
Bullet Points
Enhance Brand Content (A+ Content)
Videos
Images in the reviews
Three stages to gain Amazon Customers
Let’s understand how conversion happens in 3 stages:
Stage 1: Your brand is visible in the search results and is appealing to click on.
Stage 2: The customer analyzes the details and determines if he or she does not qualify your brand.
Stage 3: The customer visits your competitors’ page and disqualifies them until your brand win.
Stage 1 - Key factors in winning the search
Main Image
- Is it appealing?
- Is it enough to fill the box?
- Is it of good quality?
- Is the label, branding, and packaging visually appealing?
- How does it compare favorably against the other products in the search?
Main Title
- Is your title easy to read?
- Is there a good explanation of the product?
- Does it contain the keywords that customers are looking for?
Star Rating and Review Count
The greater the number of reviews and the higher the count, the more likely it is that someone will choose your product over others.
Price
- Amazon customers prefer lower prices and consider price to be a major factor.
- Price per ounce is another important metric that shoppers use to determine which products are the most cost-effective.
Coupons
- This is a simple way to stand out and differentiate your brand.
- It does not play a significant role, but if the budget is limited, the customer may opt for the coupon.
Badges
- The main badges are Best Seller and Amazon’s Choice.
- Amazon’s choice can help you stand out, but Best Seller will help you sell more.
Stage 2 - Factors that may cause customers to disqualify your product
- Second Image – There is no compelling explanation of the benefits or why it is important.
- Other images – There aren’t enough selling points or points of differentiation.
- Low Stock -The quote ‘only 3 left in stock’ reduces conversion rates because established brands are never out of stock.
- Bullet points – There isn’t enough compelling copy about the features, benefits, and why it makes a difference.
- Products related to this item – Sponsored ads aimed at your detailed page may direct visitors to competitors’ listings.
- Enhanced Brand Content – Conversions are reduced when text-heavy content is used. Choose image-rich descriptions with clearly defined selling points.
- Product Videos – The absence of videos suggests a lack of social proof.
- Questions – By creating a FAQ, you remove doubt from the minds of your customers.
- Reviews – Images in reviews provide very strong social proof as well as reassurance that the product is genuine.
Stage 2 & 3 - Components for Winning Product beating the competitors
You go to a palace and see every detail, and you’re blown away. You value every space, whether inside or out. This is how your product detail page should look so that the user experience is so compelling that they will take the time to browse and buy.
The following are the key components that, when implemented, will provide the most compelling reason for your potential customers to buy from your brand.
Main Image
- Make sure the main image fills the entire square.
- Make certain that the writing on the label and packaging is readable.
- Compress it to make it load faster.
- Ensure a clear background.
- There is no text outside of the product.
- Do not overcrowd with unnecessary boxes or jumbled pieces.
Other Images
- There can be up to 7-8 images added.
- These should be created as features and benefits, as well as why it is important to the customers.
- Make sure to include a compelling reason to buy on each and every image.
- Consider whether the image persuades you to buy. If it isn’t, replace the image.
- Use heavy graphics with simple text callouts, but keep the text light.
Product Video(s)
- Make use of the video placement.
- Make sure the video includes text that explains the benefits and why they are important to the customers.
- Assume that customers will watch videos without sound. The less talking and the more animations, the better.
Main Title
- The title should be a combination of key phrases and good copywriting.
- Include the keywords with the highest search volume first in the title.
- Make certain that the title can be read by a human.
- Don’t go over the character limit.
- Check and test the mobile vs. desktop cut-offs, and avoid having “…” in your title.
Visit the Store
- Verify that you have the correct store name.
- Make sure your store has an appealing landing page.
- Customers are more likely to trust you if you have a storefront.
Rating and Review Count
- A high rating is absolutely essential.
- Most customers will disregard anything less than a 4-star rating.
- The more reviews there are, the more social proof there is.
- Never stop trying to increase the number of reviews.
Questions Count
- The number of questions answered is an indicator of social proof.
- The more questions that are answered, the more legitimate the product appears to be.
- Accounts from your own customers can ask questions.
- Your seller account can respond to questions.
Badges
- The Best Seller badge is the king, indicating that you are the top seller in a subcategory.
- Amazon’s Choice badge is also beneficial, though not as much as best seller.
- These badges are obtained by selling the most products for a specific keyword searched.
Coupons
These coupons are eye-catching while searching for products, and they can help increase conversion rates.
The Buy Box
- When a customer clicks on the “Buy Now” button, the seller chosen by Amazon for a buy box receives the sale. You should ideally be the only seller on the listing.
- If you have distributors, keep an eye out for them selling under your product listing, as this can cause you to lose the “buy box.” Losing the buy box wastes your traffic and conversion efforts because the sale is lost to someone else.
Bullet Points
- These bullet points are useful for two things: selling and keyword ranking.
- Because the majority of clients will not read the entire bullet point, it is necessary to capitalize the main selling point.
- Make sure you’re talking about the advantages and why they’re important.
- The remaining bullet points should be used to rank keywords.
- As many high-searched keywords as possible should be included in the bullet points.
Frequent bought together
- This is a fantastic method to build a powerful brand.
- When customers notice that others have purchased multiple items from your store, this is referred to as social proof.
- On Amazon, it’s also a good way to upsell.
Enhanced Brand Content
- Only Brand Registry users have access to this feature.
- This will allow you to use photos to show off your branding and benefits.
- Keep this image-heavy and text-heavy for keyword ranking
- Always keep your attention on the features, benefits, and why it matters to your customers.
Influencer and Publisher Videos
- These types of videos are quite powerful in terms of social proof.
- The comparison and unpacking videos, in particular, can have a significant impact on a sale.
- You can add as many as you want using your own buyer’s account.
Customer Questions and Answers
- Social proof might be found in the form of questions. Customers may disqualify a product if they have questions.
- Including all of the FAQs in this area can result in a significant increase in conversion rates.
- Using your own buyer’s account, you can ask as many questions as you want.
- Analyse competitor questions and, if necessary, ask and answer those questions on your product listing to dispel any doubts.
Customer Reviews
- This is one of the most significant sections of the detail page, so make sure the positive ratings come first.
- The more reviews there are, the more trustworthy they are, the better.
- Customers value reviews and use them to influence their purchasing decisions.
Note: Customers should be considered when creating product listings, particularly considering typical customer behavior. Then, go over all of the different ways you can sell to them. Don’t forget to optimize your pages for conversions.
What are the things to consider on Amazon Content?
- Since Amazon content is different from typical content, the detail page must perform all of the selling.
- Also because majority of clients only glance at the images on the detail page, make sure the second image sells them quickly.
- Features, Benefits, and Why It Matters to Buyers should always be the focus of your images.
- Always explain how your products will improve their lives.
Summary
Amazon’s algorithms are becoming more sophisticated, and they can distinguish between genuine and fabricated sales and reviews. If your brand has a sense of purpose, mission, and values that are shared by your buyers, those “cheap tactics” will not be part of your brand ethos. The goal of this blog was to demonstrate that when you have a core focus on providing real value to your buyers, everything else will fall into place to attract the right buyers.
