You have heard the rags to riches stories. A person comes up with a unique product, lists it on Amazon, and becomes a wealthy entrepreneur in short order. While such stories are sometimes legitimate, they are the exception to the rule. Becoming an overnight success on Amazon is not the norm.
It is not that Amazon is a bad vehicle for selling. It’s actually one of the best vehicles in the online world. The problem is that launching new products is not as easy as it sounds. It is not as easy as typing up a new listing and submitting it to the site. Approach a new product launch the wrong way and your listing may never see a single visitor.
Amazon’s Search Algorithm
The key to on-site Amazon marketing is understanding how the company’s search algorithm works. Unlike Google, which ranks as many as 200 different factors, the Amazon search engine is primarily concerned with relevance and performance. Nail those two things and you should do well in Amazon’s organic SERPs.
But wait, there’s a Catch-22 here. Amazon’s search algorithm, known as A9, punishes new listings for lack of performance. In other words, those listings that generate the most sales automatically dominate the most coveted positions on results pages. So how is a new listing supposed to compete?
Even the most relevant listing will not do well if it hasn’t generated a penny in sales. But without generating sales, it can never rank high for performance. See the problem? This is why Amazon sellers need to work with Amazon marketing experts.
Dedicated Launch Services
A good Amazon marketing company offers new product launch services aimed specifically at sellers trying to get their listings noticed. These are companies whose marketers are fully versed in all of the ins and outs of A9. They know how to get around the performance paradox.
For example, a marketer might suggest a digital marketing strategy to drive traffic from off-site sources. Such sources could be guest post websites, social media sites, or even product reviews. A solid digital marketing strategy can lead buyers directly to product pages or send them indirectly through Google and Bing searches.
Another option is to invest in Amazon PPC campaigns. An Amazon PPC expert knows just how to take advantage of the three types of PPC ads available to sellers. Well-crafted ad campaigns can boost performance fairly quickly, thus leading to better performance during organic searches.
Promotional Content Opportunities
Yet another way to overcome the performance paradox is to invest in as many promotional content opportunities as possible. Creative Amazon marketers look for chances to create unique content that includes carefully crafted text and graphics. Such content can include backlinks directly to new product listings.
Digital press releases are yet another option. Imagine a company launching a brand-new product through an Amazon store. A well-crafted press release will announce that new product without coming off as being too promotional. Then the press release can be distributed through social media and syndication.
The goal for all of these types of campaigns is to drive traffic directly to the new listing rather than relying on Amazon’s search engine. As long as listings are crafted skillfully, driving traffic should begin generating sales. Every sale improves a product listings performance, thus increasing the likelihood that it performs well onsite.
Many Amazon sellers have been discouraged by new listings that do not perform well. They genuinely put their hearts and souls into crafting new listings only to see no results. Well, it is often not their fault. It’s due to the way A9 is written. What’s the solution? Partnering with an experienced Amazon marketing team that knows how to launch new products via PPC ads, backlinks, and promotional content.