Originally published on March 23, 2016, updated November 17, 2020
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Over the next few months I’ll be talking about how to increase your product’s visibility and sales on the Amazon marketplace. Before we jump into all the different tactics however, let’s talk about the platform’s search engine. Understanding the logic behind the search engine results page (SERP) will aid in developing tactics to rank higher in search.
The A9 subsidiary of Amazon is an entire company dedicated to managing product search for Amazon and other clients. Using a combination of data, customer traffic patterns, and an index of the text found on millions of product pages, A9 uses complicated algorithms that are designed to show a customer what they are most likely to buy based on their search query.
While the details of what is considered by the search engine algorithms are not published, we do know a few things about it. First is that recent sales and conversion history are weighted heavily. Amazon will show products with a high conversion rate for a specific search query, products it knows its customers will buy. This means that if customers are not already buying your product, Amazon is not going to rank it well in its search results.
There are other factors that have begun to play a larger role in recent months, including product reviews, pricing, fulfillment method, and seller account health. If you and another seller have a great sales history for a certain keyword, the FBA seller will have the upper hand on the FBM seller. We see similar trends with product reviews, pricing, and seller account health. Amazon weighs all these different factors when deciding which product to show first.
The emphasis on sales history however, naturally leads to the question, how do I help a poor performing product or a brand new listing if the search engine is programmed to ignore it? There are several methods a seller can use. Be warned, however, that Amazon has begun to crack down on sellers who use tactics intended to manipulate the system. On February 2, 2016 Amazon announced it added new language to its list of prohibited seller activities prohibiting any attempt to manipulate the search and browse experience on the Amazon marketplace.
In the next few months I’ll be covering “white hat” or legitimate Amazon SEO tactics and how you can give your new products a boost. Here’s an overview of some of the tactics that are used to help increase your visibility in search:
A well rounded strategy encompassing the above tactics can make a big difference for new or some poor performing products. Using the right keywords to describe your products, giving customers a compelling reason to buy, getting sales jump started and convincing Amazon that you can provide a great customer experience through order fulfillment are all key parts of an Amazon SEO strategy. Stayed tuned over the next few months to learn more.
Originally published on March 23, 2016, updated November 17, 2020
This post is accurate as of the date of publication. Some features and information may have changed due to product updates or Amazon policy changes.
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