5 Key Learnings About Amazon Shoppers

Blog Sept 28 2021

Amazon product marketing has come a long way. Thanks to the size of its audience, impressive ROI and customer loyalty, Amazon is holding strong in third place and quickly catching up to Facebook and Google as the favored advertising platform for sellers. Below are 5 lessons learned about Amazon shoppers that will help guide your product strategy.

Most shoppers use Amazon to find hot new products and sellers, and they’re willing to take risks with unknown brands in the process. A recent study by the independent market research company Survata showed that Amazon’s reputation holds strong. About 53% of shoppers surveyed reported they were more likely to take a chance on an unknown brand on Amazon than anywhere else. As a result, it’s been predicted that “market share for big brands will erode” making space for newer, smaller competitors. This is great news for emerging small-to-medium-sized eCommerce businesses that are new on the scene.

Not surprisingly, optimized content is the best thing (and probably the first thing) you can do for your Amazon shop. So, what does ‘optimizing content’ really entail?

• Copy and images should be optimized for mobile and tablet devices. For shoppers 35 and under, the Amazon mobile app is becoming increasingly important.
• Listings should include keyword-optimized copy to help turn visitors into buyers. This requires researching the correct keywords in relation to Amazon’s algorithm. Copy includes titles, descriptions and positive reviews.
• High quality images and videos are absolutely necessary for earning the customer’s trust and engagement with your product.

Most people are picky with their selection but want to make a decision very quickly. In fact, over 50% of Amazon shoppers aren’t willing to go beyond the second page, which means optimizing your content is all the more important. So how do you actually ‘optimize’ your content? If you’re not prepared to do it yourself, Amazon offers Enhanced Brand Content (EBC), otherwise known as the ‘A+ tool’ for free to professional sellers. Check out a killer Amazon A+ page we created for our friends at Trans-Ocean Products.

Let’s be honest—for most of us, ads are a nuisance that we tolerate when browsing our favorite shops online. In a striking plot twist, Survata researchers found that 90% of Amazon shoppers either don’t notice or don’t mind the ads on Amazon’s platform! Sixty-five percent said they didn’t notice the ads and another 25 % reported that they like the ads. With this knowledge, Amazon will likely hone in on making native ads even better—a major win for sellers.

If you’re wondering whether your product is suited to Amazon, you’re not alone. The truth is that winners and losers are constantly changing, so developing an Amazon product marketing strategy is really about experimentation. Jumpshot, a consumer data research company analyzed the performance of various categories of products sold on Amazon in a 2018 eCommerce study. They found that Amazon is dominating other sales platforms in a number of categories, including health (medicines), electronics, and the ‘sports, fitness, outdoors’ category. Meanwhile, the advertising giant is lagging behind in furniture and women’s clothing.

Despite the increasing need for engaging content, shoppers are still most concerned with price and convenience. They want the best bargain and they want it as fast as possible. 41.9% of shoppers who responded to the Survata study said that price was the main factor in their decision to purchase.

While not every brand is suited to Amazon’s platform, it does provide a major opportunity for emerging eCommerce businesses. Knowing that Amazon shoppers are so open to new brands means it may be the best time to test the waters. It’s a good idea to focus on what you can control — quality content and pricing. And don’t forget to continue building up your brand awareness outside of Amazon!