Amazon made record profits in 2020, raking in $100bn dollars in sales in the final quarter of the year. Staggering figures like that become less of a surprise when you learn that over 60% of all online consumers now start their product search on Amazon.
Undoubtedly, a captive global audience living under lockdown restrictions helped Amazon’s accounts in 2020. But it also underlined the importance for retailers to have an e-commerce strategy which capitalises on the rapid change of pace from high street shopping to online.
To get the most out of selling on Amazon, a solid marketing strategy that reflects the different options available to brands on the platform is essential.
The options available also depend on whether you’re a seller or a vendor. Sellers are often individuals who list, sell, and distribute their products through Amazon themselves while vendors are usually big brands who sell their products to Amazon which then resells the products to users.
Below we’ve outlined the core steps to take in order to make Amazon a successful part of your e-commerce strategy.
Boost your Brand Image
Branding that helps you stand out from the crowd is vital in any marketing activity, online or offline.
The great news about placing your brand on Amazon is that you can continue your branding efforts from your website and packaging to your Amazon listing. Provided your brand is enrolled in Amazon’s brand registry, you can take advantage of a suite of tools designed to help you build your brand and create a better experience for your customers.
Create a Brand Store
Creating a brand store on Amazon provides you with a physical retail space to educate your audience about your products, share your brand story, and present your entire catalogue free from your competitors’ listings.
A brand store on Amazon is fully customisable using predesigned templates into which you can place images, video, and text. Creating a brand store also provides you with a unique, trackable Amazon URL which can be used on marketing activities outside of Amazon. For example, check out the Artelac brand store, designed and built by our team.
Rev up your Reviews
On Amazon, 77% of consumers are influenced by products with the best ratings and reviews. This makes generating a consistent number of quality reviews integral to long-term success on Amazon.
Amazon recognises the social influence reviews have in encouraging users to make a purchase. Because of that influence, Amazon also has strong guidelines for brands asking for reviews.
- Automated Seller Feedback Requests: Amazon can automatically request reviews from a shopper as soon as the item has been delivered. This option is only open to Sellers on Amazon, not Vendors.
- Early Reviewer Program: The early review program encourages select shoppers to provide feedback on products with minimal reviews in exchange for £1 – £5 in Amazon credit. Sellers can enroll in this program for £60.
- Amazon Vine: The Vine program invites the most trusted reviewers on Amazon to post reviews about new products. This program is available to Vendors on Amazon at the cost of £500 per product which will net the Vendor 30 reviews per product.
Outside of generating reviews through Amazon’s review programs, positive reviews can also be grown from managing the community of shoppers buying your products. Responding to customer queries and responding to poor reviews can help resolve issues that customers may have faced and ward off users from leaving poor reviews.
Optimise Product Listings
Optimising your product listing is essential if you want potential customers to find and purchase your products. Entering relevant product keywords into your product title and description can improve your organic visibility while using high-quality images and informative graphics can help share the product details, uses, and answer common questions.
Create A+ Content
A+ Content can be used to add images, comparison charts, split text, and add simple formatting to your product listings. Amazon estimates that A+ Content helps boost sales by as much as 10%. It is also another opportunity to share your brand story outside of your brand store page.
Advertising on Amazon
Amazon is the third biggest digital ad platform in the United States behind Google and Facebook. But where those platforms allow brands to advertise more than just products, there is no ambiguity about what users are looking for on Amazon – it is purely product focussed and full of customers ready to shop.
Amazon Advertising Campaign Options
Amazon advertising consists of three main advertising solutions:
- Sponsored Product Ads allow you to advertise an individual product listing to shoppers as they browse search results and other product detail pages.
- Sponsored Brand Ads promote your brand by featuring up to three of your products within a single headline ad.
- Product Display Ads intercept consumers as they browse the competitor’s products and redirect to the advertisers listing.
Targeting customers using the different ad formats can be done by using keywords, categories, and competitor product Amazon Standard Identification Numbers (ASINs).
Advertising cost is calculated at a pay-per-click level, so you only pay when someone clicks your ad. Each click’s cost depends on the popularity of each keyword, category and ASIN you are targeting, meaning you will pay more in competitive niches. Monitoring bids closely to stay in line with your budget and objectives is an essential part of a well-managed Amazon advertising strategy.
Planning your Amazon Marketing Strategy
If you are ready to put what you have learned into practice, then we hope you find the advice in this article useful.
If you are a vendor planning your own Amazon marketing strategy or want to learn more about how Amazon could fit into your existing marketing mix, then get in touch with us and we will walk you through the steps to make 2021 your best year for e-commerce yet.