dash/APPLICATIONS
  • home
  • solutions
    • data studio >
      • / amazon advertising data
      • / amazon operations data
    • advertising studio
  • resources
    • data studio report templates
  • services
    • account audits
    • advertising training
    • inventory consulting
  • pricing
  • more
    • community
    • release notes
    • blog
    • whitepapers
    • training
    • ---------------------
    • contact us
    • about us
    • jobs
    • ---------------------
    • join our partner program
    • refer a lead

our blog chatter

check out our latest insights, expertise, and ideas

How Does Amazon Work?  The Amazon Game Explained

6/9/2020

0 Comments

 
​A lot of people want to know, “How does Amazon work?”. Warm up the Wayback Machine, we are going back to the early days of Amazon to trace the lineage of what I call ‘The Amazon Game’.
​
Picture

What you need to know about Amazon Search
​

  • Amazon has evolved, but the origins of the platform are relevant today
  • Advertising plays a different role on Amazon than it does on other search platforms
  • Amazon PPC Advertising is not optional so plan for it in your financial models
​

The Origins of Amazon Search
​

The origins of Amazon Search began in the early 2000’s as Amazon expanded far beyond books and it became imperative to improve “how to serve customers with the most relevant products”. At first read you may think, “Just like Google, right?”, but not so fast. 

Google search was designed to facilitate customer research while Amazon was designed to drive a sale. This may seem like a distinction without a difference, and maybe in the early days it was, but as the platform has evolved it’s become very important indeed.

As Amazon ‘learns’ what products are purchased for specific customer queries, it increases the product’s organic search relevancy and ranking for that query.  And while the algorithm’s inputs and relative weighting are a well-kept secret, a Brand that focuses on the factors that support conversions will win in the end.
​
The 4P’s of Marketing (Product, Price, Place, Promotion) are a good place to start, but they need to be translated to the idiosyncrasies of Amazon: 
  • Product = Product Reviews, Seller Feedback, Images, Infographics, Titles, Bullets, Enhanced Brand Content
  • Price = Buy Box, Off-Platform Price Competitiveness, Free Shipping
  • Place = Search Ranking, Relevant Meta-Data and Proper Indexing, Prime Eligibility
  • Promotion = Sample Packs, Bundles, Coupons, Deal Placements… and ADVERTISING?
​
Picture

The Emergence of Amazon Pay-per-Click Advertising
​

Fast forward to 2012 when Amazon enters the Pay-Per-Click Advertising game. 

The discussion for launching Amazon Advertising, specifically Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising, provided a great philosophical discussion internally. 

On one hand, the ‘Sanctity of Search’ and ‘Preserving Customer Trust’ were foundational principles for Amazon.  But on the other, there were valid use-cases for which advertising would improve the customer experience.

One example arises with the question of what to do when a new model of a top-selling product launches for the upcoming season. Do you surface the old top-selling television, or its new and improved replacement model? It is in the ‘Customer’s best interest’ to be served the newest model efficiently and advertising placements were a valid means for doing so.
​
And while it did lead to some bad behavior by Vendors, namely forgoing Co-op funding or cost reductions on unprofitable products to fund their advertising efforts, these were eventually addressed over time.  But regardless, Amazon had opened Pandora’s box, added a powerful new weapon to a Merchant’s arsenal in the process, and increased the complexity of how Amazon works.
​

Changing the Amazon Game
​

With the launch of Amazon PPC Advertising, Amazon changed the game and the distinction from Google Search becomes clear.

With Google there is a separation between Church and State; advertising conversions do not influence organic search results.  For Amazon, if your ads convert, not only will Amazon serve your ad more often for that targeted query, they will also boost the ranking of your organic placement for that same query. 
​
This new reality fundamentally changed how the Amazon Game is played and made advertising a critical component of a brand’s success.  And not only did it add complexity to an already convoluted platform, but also ushered in the era of ‘Operational Marketing’… which we will get to in a separate post.

Why Should You Care about Amazon Advertising?
​

If you are on Amazon, Advertising is not optional. Even if Amazon is not a priority for your business, a brand’s terms need to be defended to avoid losing customers to your competitors… fortunately, this can generally be done cost effectively.  And if you are looking to grow your Amazon business, a sophisticated (objective-based, operationally-minded) customer acquisition strategy is imperative for success; the marketplace is an arms race and you cannot leave your best weapon on the sidelines.  
Picture
todd vanderstelt | founder | dash/APPLICATIONS
as a former Amazonian, todd is an amazon expert who works with brands, agencies, and investment firms to demystify the platform while leading the development of our amazon focused solutions.

​https://www.dashapplications.com/about-us.html
Picture
0 Comments

What are the Fundamentals of Amazon?

6/2/2020

0 Comments

 
It has become a universal truth that Amazon has turned the world of Retail on its head. Having spent the past decade working for and with Amazon, I have had a front row seat to the disruption. And despite its importance as both a retail and advertising channel, it is still often misunderstood.
​
It is easy to be distracted by the constant stream of policy changes, the launch of new ad units, or shiny ‘Beta’ launches, but it is the fundamentals of Amazon that determine whether or not your brand succeeds or fails… both on the platform and off. And as true as that statement was in the early days, it has only become more so as Amazon has grown in importance.
So, to get us back to the basics, let’s start with a simple question, “What exactly is Amazon?”
​

What you need to know about Amazon
​

  • If you can not win the Buy Box, it all falls apart
  • Optimize your detail pages so customers can find you in Amazon’s Search Results
  • Use your detail page content to educate and motivate customers to convert
  • Amazon affects sales in other channels, and other channels affect sales on Amazon 
​

Amazon is a Marketplace
​

​Generally speaking, anyone with access to your product can list it for sale on Amazon.  Amazon allows these sellers, authorized or not, to compete for the ‘Buy Box’, the mechanism through which the vast majority of sales are routed (as opposed to ‘More Buying Choices’.) 

​The primary determinations for the Buy Box winner are price and inventory availability. This is great for customers, who value selection, price, and convenience, and serves as the foundation of the famous Amazon Flywheel. For Brands however, it can mean price degradation, inconsistent signals for Forecasting and Inventory planning, and an inability to promote your products through advertising.
In short, if you cannot consistently win the Buy Box, you will not succeed on the platform.

Picture

Amazon is a Search Engine
​

​With millions of products available for sale, Amazon serves as a Search Engine to deliver customers with the most relevant products based on the query they have entered. In order to do this successfully, Amazon uses the meta-data and detail page content to ‘understand’ what the product is and how best to surface it in search results. 

You may have heard the term ‘Detail Page Optimization’, the purpose of which is to ‘optimize’ your pages for Amazon’s Search algorithms. The trick here is to balance content written for algorithms, with content written for customers… my next point.
​

Amazon is an Unassisted Sales Floor
​

Once a customer lands on your detail page, it comes down to the quality of the content to determine whether or not you achieve a sale. I like to think of this in old-school retail terms, namely the challenge of the ‘Unassisted Sales Floor’. But instead of retail displays, ‘Point-of-Purchase’ (POP) materials, and informative packaging, it is images, videos, infographics, titles, bullets, ‘Enhanced Brand Content’, and reviews that do the selling.

There are plenty of best practices to find out there, but my best recommendation is to shop your pages like a customer. Do you give them all the information they need to make a purchase decision? And just as importantly, if they determine that this product is not for them, are you empowering them to shop across your line to keep them within your Brand?
​

Amazon is a Brand Builder and Breaker
​

This final point speaks to the importance of Amazon as more than just a sales channel.  Amazon acts as a multiplier of all the good and bad of your business. Have strong reviews of your product on Amazon? It will help your Brick & Mortar conversions, and may even help you win floor spots in the first place. 

But the inverse is also true. Gone are the days of dumping overstock in some far-away region, or leaving it to unchecked distributors to get your products out in the market. Any missteps your business makes has the potential to disrupt, if not destroy, your brand. 
Amazon has a famous saying: “Start with the customer and work backward”, which is a great mental exercise regardless of your business. But for Brands today, I would also consider: “Start with Amazon and work backwards.” You will be happy you did. The health of your Brand depends on it.
​

Why Should You Care About the Amazon Fundamentals?
​

Customers are on Amazon, and whether you like it or not, your products likely are as well. Rather than cede control to some third-party without your same standards, best to tackle the channel head on and establish control over how Amazon represents you to the world. And if it becomes a great sales channel for your Brand as well, bonus!
Picture
todd vanderstelt | founder | dash/APPLICATIONS
as a former Amazonian, todd is an amazon expert who works with brands, agencies, and investment firms to demystify the platform while leading the development of our amazon focused solutions.

​https://www.dashapplications.com/about-us.html
Picture
0 Comments

amazon advertising bi-weekly — 3 ways to report on amazon advertising API data

5/31/2019

5 Comments

 
Picture
sam hager, president dash / AMAZON
​​https://www.dashapplications.com/about-us.html#team
In our last article, we described the data that’s available in the Amazon Advertising API to give you a sense for what to expect when you first connect. The obvious next question is, “Now that I have the data, what do I do with it?”
​
As an agency that manages multiple brands or a brand that operates on the Amazon platform, you are painfully aware of the ongoing requirements to inform and direct your clients or stakeholders through the Amazon abyss. We collectively refer to this process as ‘reporting’ as a means to communicate the state of a brand’s Amazon presence and performance. Agencies and brand owners know that reporting can be both a best friend and a worst enemy. Below we explain limitations on ‘Operations’ data, advantages of Amazon Advertising API data for reporting, and three ways to report on Amazon Advertising API data designed to avoid common issues. We are not endorsing any one tool in particular that we mention by name, and you should do proper due diligence of each solution to ensure that it will work for your agency’s or brand’s use case.

Read More
5 Comments

amazon advertising bi-weekly — what is in the amazon advertising API?

5/16/2019

1 Comment

 
Picture
sam hager, president dash / AMAZON
​​https://www.dashapplications.com/about-us.html#team
Last week we explained the advantages of getting your data through the Amazon Advertising API versus manual report downloads. This week, in our Amazon Agency Bi-Weekly, we break down what data lives within the Amazon Advertising API so you know exactly what to expect when you first connect. I’ll be speaking on this topic and more at Boulder Startup Week on May 16th — check out the session details here.

How is the Amazon Adverting API data different from the manually downloaded reports?

According to our Amazon contacts, the Amazon Advertising API and the manual downloads are both populated from the same data source. As such, the data that can be found in the manual downloads, can also be found through the Amazon Advertising API. However, trying to find comparable manual report data in the Amazon Advertising API data is not straightforward, and you’ll need to know the where and how to track it down.

Read More
1 Comment

amazon agency bi-weekly: when’s the right time to advertise on amazon?

4/15/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture

sam hager, president dash / AMAZON

​https://www.dashapplications.com/about-us.html#team

Your clients will want to know why and when they should allocate marketing budget to Amazon. This week we examine the decision factors you and the brands you manage should consider before spending advertising dollars on Amazon.
Picture
Timing is everything — make sure it’s right for your Amazon Advertising clients.
When you are working with a client that is new to the Amazon platform, advertising is without a doubt one of the most effective ways to jumpstart sales and gain traction for your client. However, there are some things to consider before you start spending marketing dollars on behalf of your client.

Read More
0 Comments

    Archives

    July 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    October 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019

    Categories

    All
    Advertising
    Amazon
    Amazon Advertising Performance
    Amazon Campaigns
    Amazon Data
    Amazon Listings
    Amazon Reporting
    Amazon Reviews
    Cycle Stock Optimization
    Inventory Exceptions
    Inventory Management
    Inventory Open To Buy
    Inventory Open-to-buy
    Inventory Optimization
    Inventory Planning
    Inventory Position
    Lead Time
    Lead-time Accuracy
    Lead Time For Forecasting
    Lead Time For Inventory
    Lead Time For Ordering
    Open-to-buy Software
    Overstocked Inventory
    Safety Stock Calculation
    Understocked Inventory

    RSS Feed

Picture
data, reporting, and tools for amazon agencies, brands, and investors

products & services

DATA STUDIO

REPORTING

ACCOUNT AUDITS

AGENCY TRAINING

ADVERTISING TRAINING
denver
boulder
fort collins
raleigh
+1 (833) dashAPP

© 2021 Dash Applications LLC.  All Rights Reserved.
sitemap
terms of use
privacy policy
copyright notice
  • home
  • solutions
    • data studio >
      • / amazon advertising data
      • / amazon operations data
    • advertising studio
  • resources
    • data studio report templates
  • services
    • account audits
    • advertising training
    • inventory consulting
  • pricing
  • more
    • community
    • release notes
    • blog
    • whitepapers
    • training
    • ---------------------
    • contact us
    • about us
    • jobs
    • ---------------------
    • join our partner program
    • refer a lead