Best Practices for Content Management and Optimization on Amazon

Content management and optimization on Amazon is important for many reasons. Customers need to find your products before they can buy them. When a shopper enters keywords into the search box, Amazon matches them with products that contain those words in their titles and descriptions. Once shoppers land on your product page, the quality of the content influences whether they make a purchase. By providing relevant and complete information for your product, you will increase visibility and sales.

Optimizing Amazon Product Titles

You only have a moment to catch the eye of a shopper. Your product title should echo what would be on the physical packaging. Remember that each individual word in the Product Title is searchable on its own. For example, a product called Laura Ashley Sophia Collection 300-Thread-Count Pillow Cases (Blue, Queen, Set of 2) is better than Blue Pillow Cases. This is because the recommended Product Name above includes the following information:

Brand – Laura Ashley
Product line – Sophia Collection
Material or key feature – 300-Thread-Count
Product Type – Pillow Cases
Color – Blue
Size – Queen
Packaging/Quantity – Set of 2

Optimizing Bullet Points for Amazon Product Listings

Testing shows that well-crafted bullet points increase sales. This information highlights important or distinguishing facts about your product. Use the following optimization guidelines as you craft your bullet points:

Highlight the five key features you want customers to consider. This can include dimensions, age appropriateness, skill level, contents, etc.
Maintain a consistent order. If your first bullet point is country of origin, keep that same order for all your products.
Reiterate important information from the title and description.
Begin each bullet point with a capital letter.
Write with sentence fragments and do not include ending punctuation.
Do not include promotional and pricing information.

Optimizing Amazon Product Images

Effective product images inspire customers to buy your product. They can also reduce returns. If your listing features images that misrepresent the product, customers will notice. Optimizing your product images can minimize confusion. It is important to check your image quality based on the following guidelines:

The image matches the product description in size, color, and so on.
The product is recognizable.
The image is a photo and not a drawing.
The photo is taken at a flattering angle.
The product is focused and well-lit.
Close-up shots are not obscured by highlights or shadows.
The product occupies at least 80% of the image area.
The image depicts the entire product.
Backgrounds are simple and clean so as not to distract from the product.
Provide as many different images as possible. Many product categories allow for the inclusion of swatch images and alternate images.

Optimizing Product Listings for Amazon Search Terms

Amazon allows you to add search terms for your products. These should only include generic words that enhance the discoverability of your listing. For example, if you are selling headphones, your search terms can contain synonyms such as “earphones” and “earbuds.” Search terms are not required fields, but they can increase visibility. Here are some best practices for providing search terms:

Do not include product identifiers such as brand names, product names, compatible product names, ASINs, UPC codes, and so on.
Do not provide inaccurate, misleading, or irrelevant information.
Do not provide excessively long content. Respect the limits that are set for different fields.
Do not provide redundant information that is already captured in other fields such as title, author, brand, and so on. It will not improve your product placement in shopping results.
When entering several words as a search term, put them in the most logical order. A customer is more likely to search for “big stuffed teddy bears” than for “teddy stuffed bears.”
Use a single space to separate keywords. Commas, semicolons, or carets are not required.
Do not include statements that are only temporarily true, such as, “new,” “on sale,” or “available now.”
Do not include subjective claims such as “amazing,” “good quality,” and so on, since most customers don’t use subjective terms in their queries.
Do not include common misspellings of the product name. Amazon compensates for common customer misspellings and offers corrective suggestions.
Do not provide variants of spacing, punctuation, capitalization, and pluralization (“80GB” and “80 GB,” “computer” and “computers,” and so on). Amazon automatically includes different case forms, word forms, and spelling variants for searching.
Do not include terms that are abusive or offensive in nature.

Amazon Content Optimization & Management is an Ongoing Task

One of the biggest mistakes Amazon sellers make is not continuing to optimize and manage product listings. Many brands build their product pages and forget about them. Content optimization and management is an ongoing task on Amazon. It takes time and effort to ensure your products are always visible and converting customers. Here are few reasons why you should continue to manage and optimize your product pages:

Sometimes your product pages will revert to old drafts. This happens more often with Hybrid accounts. If your product page reverts to a previous draft, you will miss out on the most recent optimizations you made until you update the product page.
Keyword research is ongoing. As you discover new keywords that your customers are using to find your products, add them to your product pages.
Make sure your listings are always up to date. If your brand modifies a product, don’t forget to reflect these changes in your content.
As your brand releases new products, you will need to create new product listings. This includes optimized product titles, bullet points, graphics, and keywords.
Amazon updates its policies often. Always check your product listings to make sure Amazon has not flagged any for a violation. If your product is down, you will miss out on sales.
Competition increases during shopping events like Prime Day and Black Friday. Customers expect big savings. Optimizing your product pages for shoppers searching for the best deals can increase traffic and sales.

CHANNEL KEY TAKEAWAY

Content optimization and management increases visibility and sales on Amazon. Check your product detail pages often to ensure they are optimized. The more products you have, the more effort this will take. It will also help to see how your competitors optimize detail pages for similar products. Are they targeting different keywords? If so, incorporate them into your listings. Content optimization and management never ends. Amazon grows more competitive each day. Use this as motivation to find new ways to optimize your listings for traffic and conversion.

ABOUT CHANNEL KEY

Channel Key is a full-service channel management marketplace consulting agency that has helped generate nearly $500M in Amazon sales for brands worldwide. Complete 360-degree services include marketplace strategies, content development, marketing and advertising, catalog management, marketplace and fulfillment setup, ongoing consulting, and much more.