Amazon SEO - What exactly is it?

The term Amazon SEO might seem a bit confusing to most people. What does Amazon have to do with search engine optimization? Users who have this question often forget that Amazon is the largest e-commerce platform in Germany. Over 50% of all online retail is handled through Amazon.

The search function on Amazon is therefore considered very important: If you manage to achieve good listings in the internal search using Amazon SEO, the chance of selling a large number of products increases.

This becomes interesting for every individual or company that wants to sell products through the platform - regardless of whether from a seller or vendor perspective. Improving the Amazon ranking and appearing higher in product listings should be a prioritized goal. Because a better Amazon ranking not only increases visibility but also, in the best case, the number of products sold.

How Amazon SEO works, what important aspects need to be considered and how you can make it to the top of the product listings, you will learn in this article.

Improve Amazon Ranking, But How?

To get to the bottom of this question, we should take a small step back at this point. Before starting optimization, the characteristics and peculiarities of the Amazon search engine should be known. Because: Like every other search engine, Amazon has its own algorithm that is at least as complex and full of secrets as the algorithm of the search engine Google.

Amazon also does not provide concrete, official information on the functioning of the algorithm. Numerous products are added to the e-commerce platform daily. Accordingly, the Amazon algorithm's task is also to filter out the best from the mass of products and index them by relevance. In summary, there are various factors that influence the ranking within the search results.

In general, the ranking factors are divided into two categories: Indirect and direct ranking factors. These are defined by the Click-Through-Rate (CTR) on the one hand and the Conversion-Rate (CR) on the other.

The Click-Through-Rate indicates how many of the users who see the product in the listing click on the product. The Conversion-Rate goes a step further and shows how many of the users who click on a product ultimately make a purchase. The CTR and CR belong to the general user behavior on the product detail pages and therefore fall under the term of indirect ranking factors.

Ultimately, there are other indirect factors that can be taken into account during optimization. However, the Amazon algorithm primarily prioritizes the aspect of sales.

Example: A product that sells better than others is rated more relevant by the Amazon algorithm than a product in the same category that sells worse. Accordingly, it enjoys a higher ranking in the search results.

From these insights, two fundamental questions arise: How do you get users to click on the product? How do you convince users to make a resulting purchase of the product to increase the conversion rate? At this point, both factors need to be considered a bit more detailed and broken down into their basic components.

Direct Factors of Amazon SEO Optimization

The Click-Through-Rate (CTR) and Conversion-Rate (CR) play an important role in Amazon SEO. To influence the indirect ranking factors, it is important to optimize the direct ranking factors. The direct factors include the optimization measures on the product detail page.

The direct ranking factors at a glance:

• Product Title

• Bullet Points

• Product Images

• Product Description

• Backend Keywords

Improve Amazon Ranking with Optimized Direct Factors

Some elements of the product detail page, such as the product description, are often the first point of contact for many users. Therefore, special attention should be paid to them during Amazon SEO optimization.

Product Title

Whether in search results on Amazon or on the product detail page: The title is an essential element for ranking. It should include product-identifying information in addition to the main keyword. For electronics, for example, this could be the specification of power or an indication of the capacity of a container.

These details, in combination with relevant keywords, make it possible to cover a wide variety of search queries, as the Amazon algorithm takes the title into account when evaluating a search query. If a user is searching, for example, for a microwave of a specific brand plus a specific wattage, then in this case both the brand and the wattage should be included in the title. This way, the algorithm can ideally associate the product with the search query.

It is essential to ensure that the title is not overloaded with too many keywords or too much information. This could have a negative impact on the Amazon ranking in the worst case. A healthy mix of keywords and a meaningful or clickable title should be achieved.

A character length of 80 to 100 characters is recommended for the title. This range varies from category to category. Amazon itself has published style guides for selected product categories that specify which requirements a title should meet.

Furthermore, there are contents that should definitely not be part of the title. These include, for example, product and condition descriptions or a list of compatible products. It is also forbidden to use only uppercase or lowercase letters and special characters in the title.

Bullet Points

Bullet points or product attributes are further factors that help with both the sale of products and the Amazon ranking. Product attributes are especially useful for new customers who either do not know or are not familiar enough with the product. If the product title was not convincing enough, the bullet points offer the opportunity to present further useful information compactly.
As point 1, the most important feature of the product should be listed here. Followed by further USPs that describe the product and its benefits.

Similar to the title, bullet points are suitable for capturing relevant keywords. In this way, the algorithm is conveyed the product's relevance on another level, impacting the Amazon ranking. But beware: It is important to pay attention to the number of keywords in the bullet points. It's not about placing as many keywords as possible, but selected, unique, and product-related ones.

For the character length of bullet points, Amazon specifies a length of 200 to 250 characters including spaces. This length deviates slightly from category to category. This specified length should be used to convincingly present the product to the customer briefly and concisely. Too short bullet points risk conveying too little information. Too long, however, carry the risk that the customer is not willing to read the entire text.

Bullet points indirectly influence the purchase decision, while at the same time being of immense importance to the Amazon algorithm due to the use of relevant keywords.

Product Images

Product images are more important than they might seem at first glance. Haptic aspects are lost in an online shop like Amazon. This missing dimension must be compensated by very good product images to make it easier for users to imagine the product despite the lack of haptic perception. The images do not affect the Amazon ranking, as they do not contain keywords.
They rather awaken the potential buyer's interest through their quality and informational character.

Product images on Amazon are divided into two categories, defining individual requirements: Main Images and Alternate Images.
The main image appears as the first image on the product detail page and in the Amazon search result list. To meet the requirements, it must be depicted on a completely white background. Furthermore, only the actual product may be shown.
Alternate images, on the other hand, intend to convey further emotions to the customer through different angles. Likewise, alternate images provide additional information, such as dimensions or weight specifications.

There are two things to consider with product images to increase the click-through rate.
On the one hand, the quality of the images is crucial. Product images should always be uploaded in the maximum resolution. This is the only way to ensure that the user can see every smallest detail of the product. On the other hand, the informational content of the images must be taken into account, including typical application areas, compatibility with other devices, size comparisons within the product, or required tools for assembly.

Such information is usually covered through the use of alternate images. Product images thus have a significant impact on the shopping experience and purchase decision while also contributing positively to Amazon SEO.

Product Description

An element that expands the overall shopping experience by one level is the product description. It became clear with the product images that additional information can be recorded in image form. However, since search engines primarily work text-based, we now have the opportunity to describe the product more precisely in the product description.

Since the customer still has no possibility of holding the product during the purchasing process, the product description comes into play additionally.

The product description provides space for more keywords on one hand. On the other hand, it should make the product more lively through its content. Sellers and vendors on Amazon also have the option of using so-called A+ Content for their product descriptions.

This feature allows them to expand their product descriptions with images and graphics from a wider selection of templates. This not only makes the description itself, but the entire product page much more appealing.

Integrating and using A+ Content on product detail pages does not primarily improve Amazon ranking. It rather shows as another way to convince the customer of the product and thus stand out from the competition.

Even if A+ Content does not directly affect Amazon SEO optimization, search engines recognize and index these contents. And this ultimately reflects positively in the rankings.

Backend Keywords

Backend keywords are another factor in Amazon SEO optimization. They also have an effect on the Amazon ranking. Compared to the frontend keywords found on the product detail page in the title, bullet points, or description, backend keywords, as the name suggests, are located in the backend.

These can be stored in the seller or vendor central under the category product details. A character limit of 249 bytes is available. This raises the question of why keywords can be stored here again, when there are already enough opportunities to present keywords in the frontend?

Compared to frontend keywords, backend keywords differ in their orientation. For frontend keywords, it is especially important to ensure that these keywords are as closely related in topic to the actual product as possible. These keywords should have high relevance. Backend keywords, on the other hand, are not directly related to the product.

Backend keywords are also indexed by Amazon's algorithm and therefore play a role in Amazon ranking. To gain an advantage from this, it is advisable to include keyword variations such as frequent typos, old spellings, materials, or abbreviations.
This way, assumed spelling mistakes made by users while searching are caught to lead users to the right product regardless.

In short: By using backend keywords, you are in a way thinking for your potential customers.

The Internetwarriors Support You in Your Amazon SEO Optimization

Amazon SEO is an area that offers a lot of potential while also posing some hurdles. Indirect and direct optimization factors contribute significantly to increasing the Amazon product ranking. Better visibility on the platform also comes with increased conversion rates.

In practice, successful Amazon SEO optimization requires quite some effort. As a 360° full-service online marketing agency, we accompany you gladly in this sprint. Don't hesitate to contact us so that you can also stand above all others in the Amazon ranking in the future.

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