How to Optimize Amazon Product Listings for Better Sales

Optimizing your Amazon product listings in detail is the first thing to take care of when starting an Amazon business.

The product listing is the foundation of selling on Amazon.

Think about it. It's the place where a user becomes a customer. What the user finds on that page must be compelling enough to make him click “Add to cart”, so the copy of the listing has to be user-friendly and insightful.

Moreover, it's crucial you get the best exposure for your product by ranking high in search results. This is why properly optimizing the listing carries so much weight.

The product ranking is calculated by Amazon's algorithm based on what it can be found on the product listing. We don't know all the features taken into consideration by the algorithm, but we do know about some of the things that have high influence over the rankings.

1. The product title
2. The images
3. The bullet points
4. The product description
5. Reviews

Now let's go over how you can improve your listings.

When creating a product listing, choosing a thoughtful product title is crucial.

The product title is the first thing customers see, so it has to be compelling enough to make them click through. Also, the product title is one of the metrics taken into account by Amazon's algorithm when deciding the product ranking.

Even though product titles have such great importance on Amazon, lots of sellers oversee them and it's one of the main factors for a poor ranking and low sales.

Just adding the main keyword in the title is not enough. You usually have 250 characters to play around with. Some categories allow fewer characters, while others provide more. Either way, you should be using them all.

The brand – It is usually the first thing in the title, but it's not mandatory to be. It depends on how much importance the brand has over the product.

The main keyword – The main keyword you target should be at the beginning of the title.

Additional keywords – The main keyword is not the only search query customers use when searching for your product. They may be using synonyms, variations of the word or adding specific features to the queries.

When you type in a keyword in Amazon's search bar you can see that some suggestions pop up. Those are searches real customers are using on the platform and you should get familiar with them.

In this example, you can see a couple of suggestions starting from the root keyword “air purifier”. If you sell air purifiers that hold any of the features listed below, you should aim to add them to your title as they are terms customers actually use.

When you type a keyword in the Amazon search bar, the auto-complete feature will suggest search queries that customers use.

Features – Details about the product as size, weight, color, quantity (if you sell something that's made of more pieces). Everything a customer should know about.

Environmental friendly – If your product is biodegradable, eco-friendly, and stuff like this, it is best to have it in the title as people will appreciate more something that's friendlier on the planet (or at least some do).

Special benefits – If your product has features and benefits that could differentiate you from your competitors, don't miss the opportunity to make it stand out.

Don't repeat keywords – Amazon itself said that using a keyword multiple times won't increase the value of the keyword. Even if you have the keyword once or five times in the title, the product ranking will be the same. Hence, there's no need to lose precious space for repeating.

Let's look over some product titles I stumbled upon on Amazon.

As you can see in the example above, the title is extremely short. This is not great. The seller didn't take advantage of the keywords he could've targeted in the title.

Adding additional keywords and features like: removes allergens and pollutants, purifying fan in summer, Amazon Echo enabled, night-time auto mode, would make the title so much better.

Now let's take a look at another air purifier.

This seller made a better choice when he chose the title for the product. He added different features customers look for in an air purifier.

What problems does it solve? It's a good fit for allergies, odor, smoke, dust, mold, pets. And all of those features can be found right in the title – the first thing a customer sees.

If someone searches for “air purifier for smokers” (which is a popular search query as Amazon suggests), the second air purifier pops on the first page. As for the first air purifier…it's probably buried deep in the results.

Don't use promotional phrases like “The best price” or “40% off”. It may seem like a great idea to attract customers' attention, but it's against Amazon rules and can get your account suspended.

Don't use formatting elements like:

• ALL CAPS
• HTML codes
• Symbols ($*&!)

Humans are visual, there's no wonder. Especially when they are looking for stuff to buy.

Having high-quality photos with the product is crucial for people to buy from you. Would you trust to order an item online that you can not clearly see in the images? I believe you won't.

You can add up to 9 images on an Amazon product listing and you should take all the place you can get.

The images must be of at least 1000px on the longer side because Amazon has a hover-to-zoom feature you want to work on your images.

White background – The main image must show only the product against a white background so customers can clearly see what they are about to buy and not be confused by other elements.

The product must fill at least 85% of the image – This is not just an Amazon suggestion, but also a best practice for improving conversions. If your listing only shows one little item that you can't even see without clicking through, the customers won't be compelled to see more about it.

Close-ups of the product so customers can see the material, the way it's fabricated, and such.

Close-ups of product's elements or ornaments – For example, if you have to showcase an umbrella make sure you add an image showing the opening system.

As you can see in this example, the image shows the elements of the product like the opening system and also highlights features like windproof, rugged shaft, and ultra durable sturdy.

Showcase the features – Display all the benefits your product brings to customers' life. Show what about your product makes their life easier.

This is a great example of a product listing image that clearly shows the product's features.

How it works – Add images to let customers know how your product works and how it's used.

Dimensions – Use an image showing the size of your product. It can be as simple as a table or you can use a human body as a standard. You can see both of the approaches in the examples below.

Show the packing – This depends on the product and on the package itself. But showing the package can be a game changer. Take as an example the following watch. Watches are often bought as a gift. When you give someone a gift you want the package to be nice. This watch has an amazing box that definitely has value in generating conversions.

This seller made sure to show the awesome packing that comes with the product which absolutely makes a difference in customers decision to buy.

Show the product from every angle – When you go into a store to buy something, you take the product in your hands and turn it around to see it from all possible angles. It's how you analyze the product. Well, on Amazon you can't hold the product, you can just see what's provided.

Think about what you would like to see about your item if you were in the store and show those features in the images for the customers to see them. You have the possibility of using 360 views.

The bullet points show on the right side of the images and are the first thing users read after clicking on a product listing.

They carry a lot of weight regarding customers' decision about purchasing your products so they should be compelling enough to get users' attention.

There are 5 bullet points of 150 characters each (for most categories). You don't necessarily have to use all the characters, but you should use as many as possible to list down all the features of your product.

Keywords – This is one of the places you want your keywords to show up. Us as many keywords as you can but make sure that you are not repeating them and you don't stuff the content. Keep it readable and enjoyable, you write it for customers firstly.

Features – Give details about the product's features. How can it be used? What colors does it have? What problems does it solve?

Highlight the advantages – How's your product different than the other ones out there? What strengths does it have?

As you can see, the following listing has compelling bullet points, highlighting all the features that might trigger users' interest to buy.

The next one though didn't play the bullet points to his advantage at all. He just stated a couple of traits of the product but way too dull and apathetic.

You can find the description of a product if you scroll down in the product listing page.

Here is the place where you take the bullet points and start talking about them in more detail. Write about everything there is to know about the product.

Try to answer all the questions customers might have about your product.

Example of a well put together product description

One way to come up with things to write about in the description is to check other Amazon product listings of similar products and look into the “Customer questions & answers” sections. There you'll find things customers are interested to know about your product.

In the “Customers questions&answers” you can find valuable content you can add to your product description

Even though you can't directly influence the reviews like you can with the product title or images, you must take action so you generate quality reviews.

Having reviews is extremely important both for customers and for your product ranking.

Customers look for feedback when deciding on a purchase because they have more confidence in buying something if they see real people being pleased with the product.

Amazon also knows how important customers' experience is so the reviews are taken into consideration by Amazon algorithm when deciding the product ranking.

The number of reviews is not the only important aspect. Their quality also matters. There are reviews that only state “good product”.

Example of short customers reviews

Opposing, there are detailed reviews talking in more detail about the customer's experience with the product. There can even be pictures and videos of the product.

Example of a detailed review which carries more weight than a simple “Great product” review

The more details there are in the review, the better.

In general, you should receive reviews for around 2-5% of the sales.

When you first launch a product you can run promotions in order to get the sales going. Along with the sales, you'll also get some reviews to start with.

Getting back with a follow-up email asking for feedback after a purchase was made should be on your to-do list every time you make a sale. When you ask for reviews, you'll get them. Not everybody will get back to you, but you won't get any reviews if you don't ask.

Run some testing. If you think that how you arrange the words in a sentence or how a simple photo looks like doesn't have much power over customers decisions, you are wrong.

A simple change in your title can generate more click-throughs.

Using a different image can trigger the curiosity of more people.

Don't be afraid to test different titles and images. A/B testing is part of any successful marketing strategy. It's a technique required when running successful advertising campaigns, and should also be used on the Amazon product listings.

Choose two different titles and images and run them for a couple of weeks so you can collect data about how each of them did. Make sure that you don't make any other significant changes so you know what influences the click-throughs and conversions.

For example, let's say you sell cat clothing. The cat you choose as a “model” can have a huge impact on your CTR and conversions. Some breeds are more appealing than others in customers' eyes. Maybe a Siamese cat will attract more clicks than a Persian cat.

You should be testing it and see which is the best option for your listing. Afterall, you want to reach the maximum of sales, don't you?

Now that you know how your Amazon product listings should look like, it's time to move on to optimizing.

Most importantly:

• Your main keyword should be at the beginning of the title
• Target different keywords in the title while keeping it readable and relevant
• Don't repeat keywords
• Specify the main features of the product in the title
• Use the bullet points to highlight all the benefits and features
• Upload high-quality images that show the product in detail
• Use the product description to answer questions customers might have about the product
• Always ask for reviews after a purchase was made
• Test, test, test

Optimizing the product listings should be the first thing you take care of when starting to sell something on Amazon. Only after you have the perfect listing should you start running PPC campaigns and promotions.

A great product listing is what makes the difference between a successful seller and a mediocre one.

I know you want to be successful, so take good care of your listings!

What other tips do you suggest when optimizing a product listings? I would be happy to hear from you!