There are many myths about the Amazon A9 algorithm. Some think they have found “the thing” that takes your product directly to the first page. This strategy may have worked in the early days of Amazon, but now the Amazon algorithm has become more complex, many different factors playing a crucial role.
Basically, it is important to understand that Amazon tries to show the most relevant product for the search query. This is about meeting the needs of the customer as well as earning the most commission. Amazon tries to sort by purchase probability.
Only Amazon knows the exact factors of the ranking algorithm. The findings presented here are based on years of experience. There are direct and indirect factors on the Amazon algorithm. Some factors are influenced by other circumstances, and therefore have only an indirect impact on the ranking. Through a targeted optimization of the products (direct influence) the visibility in the organic search can be demonstrably increased. As an Amazon agency, intomarkets has specialized in Amazon SEO and has acquired the following insights:
Amazon ranking factors
Direct influence: click through rate (CTR)
The click-through rate is an important factor for long-term organic ranking. If your product is clicked on more often in the search results than the competitors´ one, Amazon assumes a higher relevance for the respective search query. Above all, this means that the product remains on or reaches page 1 in the long term. Clicks on PPC ads as well as organic clicks have an influence on it.
Indirect influence: product rating / Amazon review
The number and quality of the ratings has no direct influence on the ranking, but on CTR. The customer pays close attention to the number and average evaluation number of products. It is not important to have much more evaluations than the competitor, but to have high-quality evaluations that emphasize the own product. A product with 20 reviews and 4, 8 stars on average will be sold better than a product with 500 reviews and 2,5 stars on average.
Indirect influence: main picture
The main picture is another indirect factor that influences the CTR. A high-resolution / sharp main image attracts the customer’s interest and gives him the first visual impression of the product. The importance of the image is shown by the latest adaptation on the search results page. Depending on the category, the customer can now view the first two or the first three images of the product listing without clicking on the product. For this reason, it should be ensured that these images are of particularly high quality and show the product from different perspectives in order to increase the probability of a click.
Indirect influence: brand
A well-known brand name enormously increases the probability of a click. If your own brand is not sufficiently well-known, such as Nike, it is important to choose a clear or memorable brand. When searching for baking accessories, the “Christmas Bakery” brand arouses more confidence than “International Trading Ltd”, because a direct reference to the name of the products can be deduced.
Direct influence: product title
The product title has both direct and indirect influence on the ranking. The customer searches for keywords in the title and compares them with his search query: the better the title matches the search query, the higher the CTR. It is particularly important to generate more and more traffic via mobile devices. For this reason, the most important keywords should be displayed under the first 70 characters, since more characters are not displayed in mobile mode. A maximum of 200 characters should not be used in the title.
In addition, the most important keywords should be placed in the title because they have the greatest influence on the keyword ranking. A product optimization under Amazon SEO aspects offers the basis for this.
Direct influence: bullet points
The bullet points should contain additional synonyms or mid-tail keywords that match the search query. Ideally, the USP should be highlighted here. Actually, the most important thing to take into account regarding Bullet Points is that only 1,000 bytes are available in total and a maximum of 250 bytes for each. If a bullet point is longer than 250 bytes, it will no longer be indexed. If the total number of bullet points exceeds 1,000 bytes, they are no longer indexed. The most important content should be among the first three bullet points, because only these are displayed in mobile mode. If the customer wants to display all five bullet points, he must first click on them intentionally.
(In-) Direct influence: product description
In fact, many sellers are of the opinion that the product description is not indexed, but this is not the case. The product description is indexed. For this reason, it is important to add more keywords here. In addition, the product description is displayed mobile in front of the bullet points, so it is important to define a clear message at the beginning of the description before it is abbreviated by”…” and the customer first has to click on it to get further information. A maximum of 2,000 bytes can be used in the product description.
Indirect influence: presentation techniques
Addressing specific target groups when setting up product listing is important for all areas. Depending on the product, different stylistic means should be chosen to appeal to the potential customer. For technical products, a simple listing of the facts can be more effective than a text written elegantly.
Direct influence: sales history
Amazon tracks the entire course of the product and includes this in the placement. The CTR, conversion, total sales and sales development over the period since release of the product play a role here. For products with a long term bad sales history it is more difficult to get back into the ranking, because Amazon tries to place the best converting products on top. Because of the past, Amazon assumes that other products will sell better. For this reason, “older” products require more patience than newer products.
Direct influence: number of returns
Just as Amazon aims at placing the products with the highest sales probability further in the front, it is important for Amazon to place products with a low return rate further up. A lower return rate means higher income for Amazon and more satisfied customers. The customer seems to have found a product that meets his expectations.
Indirect influence factor: customer reviews
The number and quality of seller reviews have an indirect impact on product listings. Problems with customer support or delayed deliveries have a negative impact on performance and can lead to a worse ranking.