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Your questions and answers | No detours, this article focuses on ad keyword settings that are not ideal for conversion
When preparing to open a store, many sellers spent a lot of money to sign up for various advertising training courses, crash courses, compulsory courses, etc., and wanted to take fewer detours and quickly master the “panacea” of advertising orders.
However, “there are a thousand Hamlets in the eyes of a thousand people,” and the so-called shortcuts and tricks that many sellers have learned are one-sided or even wrong. If you want to use one style of play, it's not only unrealistic, but you may also fall into a misunderstanding and spend advertising expenses without achieving the desired results.
To help sellers learn the right way to get started and optimize, Amazon Ads has prepared a Q&A article for sellers on ad keyword settings and match types.
Let's get straight to the topic.
However, “there are a thousand Hamlets in the eyes of a thousand people,” and the so-called shortcuts and tricks that many sellers have learned are one-sided or even wrong. If you want to use one style of play, it's not only unrealistic, but you may also fall into a misunderstanding and spend advertising expenses without achieving the desired results.
To help sellers learn the right way to get started and optimize, Amazon Ads has prepared a Q&A article for sellers on ad keyword settings and match types.
Let's get straight to the topic.
Seller questions
Q1: High-performing keywords selected in automated ads have been added to manual targeting. Do they need to be rejected in automated ads?
A1: We recommend that you don't dismiss high-performing keywords in automated ads. Doing so will result in your ad not being displayed, let alone clicking or converting, when customers search for that keyword.
We recommend running automated ads for a long time, precisely because automated ads are the best source for harvesting keywords, while also bringing the most relevant traffic to your products and stable customers who are willing to buy them.
You only need to negate completely irrelevant keywords to exclude underperforming searches, thereby reducing advertising costs and increasing return on investment (ROI). You can also use negative keywords to show ads to your primary target buyers.
Q2: From automatic ad screening keywords to manual ads, is accurate matching better or broad matching better?
A2: When choosing a match type, it is recommended that you first select broad matches to try to understand where your ad works best. Then, review campaign performance reports or Sponsored Products bulk files to evaluate the effectiveness of keywords and match types.
Once you know which keywords and customer search terms work best, you can change your bid or create a more concise set of keywords to optimize your campaigns and achieve your goals. We recommend starting with broad matches to match multiple brand, competition, and category search terms to get you the most exposure.
Next, optimize advertising campaigns to find the most effective keywords, gradually transition from “broad matching” to “phrase matching”, and then from “phrase matching” to “accurate matching”. This will reduce the scope of exposure, but it can target consumers more accurately.
Q3: Do I need to set up different ad groups for broad keywords and precise keywords?
A3: You can use ad groups to group similar SKUs together. In a manual targeting campaign, you can select a common set of keywords for all SKUs in an ad group, starting with a broad match.
After running for a period of time, the keywords are sorted according to their effectiveness to determine the type of match for the keyword. For different keyword match types, you can try setting up separate campaigns so you can compare the ad performance of the different match types by campaign. Also, ad campaigns under the same account won't compete with each other.
Q4: How to deal with ad phrase matching and words that account for a high proportion of the cost?
A4: If this keyword can bring in clicks and also generate purchases, it is recommended to keep it and compare it with other keywords after accumulating 50-100 clicks to determine the bidding strategy for this keyword.
If the results are still not ideal after a period of operation, it is recommended to lower the bid appropriately for this keyword. If you don't place an order at all, consider adding a broad match or adding a negative phrase, depending on how relevant the keyword itself is to the product.
Q5: Broad keywords in manual ads have high hits and no conversions. The words are related to the product. Can they be set as negative keywords in a wide range?
A5: First, determine the nature of the keyword, whether it is a big word or brand term. If so, when there are high hits but no conversions, it proves that the main image and title of the product are quite appealing. At this point, customers are not making a purchase, which is probably the reason for the product itself.
We recommend that you carefully check the product detail page to see if product reviews, star ratings, descriptions, etc. are ready. Optimizing product detail pages can increase conversion rates. If the keyword is less relevant to the product, and all it brings in is an invalid click.
Referring to the answers to the previous question, it is recommended that you accumulate 50-100 clicks and set the keyword as a negative keyword after being convinced that it is not helpful to the conversion. In short, don't be too hasty in setting negative keywords. Please set aside enough time to analyze the real reasons for not converting, and mistakenly negating words that may lead to conversion or increase product exposure, thus missing out on the opportunity.
Q6: How do you handle words like big words, high exposure, high hits, and low conversion?
A6: This depends on your store and the life cycle of your products. New store products need more exposure. If the big words are highly related to the product and can bring opportunities for new products to be displayed, then they can run for a period of time first;
After the operation stabilizes, big words can be selected manually, and this keyword can be set as phrase matching or accurate matching according to the conversion situation and relevance situation, and at the same time refer to the back-office report to average single-click bidding within a controllable range to appropriately reduce the bid for keywords with low correlation and reduce advertising costs.
Q1: High-performing keywords selected in automated ads have been added to manual targeting. Do they need to be rejected in automated ads?
A1: We recommend that you don't dismiss high-performing keywords in automated ads. Doing so will result in your ad not being displayed, let alone clicking or converting, when customers search for that keyword.
We recommend running automated ads for a long time, precisely because automated ads are the best source for harvesting keywords, while also bringing the most relevant traffic to your products and stable customers who are willing to buy them.
You only need to negate completely irrelevant keywords to exclude underperforming searches, thereby reducing advertising costs and increasing return on investment (ROI). You can also use negative keywords to show ads to your primary target buyers.
Q2: From automatic ad screening keywords to manual ads, is accurate matching better or broad matching better?
A2: When choosing a match type, it is recommended that you first select broad matches to try to understand where your ad works best. Then, review campaign performance reports or Sponsored Products bulk files to evaluate the effectiveness of keywords and match types.
Once you know which keywords and customer search terms work best, you can change your bid or create a more concise set of keywords to optimize your campaigns and achieve your goals. We recommend starting with broad matches to match multiple brand, competition, and category search terms to get you the most exposure.
Next, optimize advertising campaigns to find the most effective keywords, gradually transition from “broad matching” to “phrase matching”, and then from “phrase matching” to “accurate matching”. This will reduce the scope of exposure, but it can target consumers more accurately.
Q3: Do I need to set up different ad groups for broad keywords and precise keywords?
A3: You can use ad groups to group similar SKUs together. In a manual targeting campaign, you can select a common set of keywords for all SKUs in an ad group, starting with a broad match.
After running for a period of time, the keywords are sorted according to their effectiveness to determine the type of match for the keyword. For different keyword match types, you can try setting up separate campaigns so you can compare the ad performance of the different match types by campaign. Also, ad campaigns under the same account won't compete with each other.
Q4: How to deal with ad phrase matching and words that account for a high proportion of the cost?
A4: If this keyword can bring in clicks and also generate purchases, it is recommended to keep it and compare it with other keywords after accumulating 50-100 clicks to determine the bidding strategy for this keyword.
If the results are still not ideal after a period of operation, it is recommended to lower the bid appropriately for this keyword. If you don't place an order at all, consider adding a broad match or adding a negative phrase, depending on how relevant the keyword itself is to the product.
Q5: Broad keywords in manual ads have high hits and no conversions. The words are related to the product. Can they be set as negative keywords in a wide range?
A5: First, determine the nature of the keyword, whether it is a big word or brand term. If so, when there are high hits but no conversions, it proves that the main image and title of the product are quite appealing. At this point, customers are not making a purchase, which is probably the reason for the product itself.
We recommend that you carefully check the product detail page to see if product reviews, star ratings, descriptions, etc. are ready. Optimizing product detail pages can increase conversion rates. If the keyword is less relevant to the product, and all it brings in is an invalid click.
Referring to the answers to the previous question, it is recommended that you accumulate 50-100 clicks and set the keyword as a negative keyword after being convinced that it is not helpful to the conversion. In short, don't be too hasty in setting negative keywords. Please set aside enough time to analyze the real reasons for not converting, and mistakenly negating words that may lead to conversion or increase product exposure, thus missing out on the opportunity.
Q6: How do you handle words like big words, high exposure, high hits, and low conversion?
A6: This depends on your store and the life cycle of your products. New store products need more exposure. If the big words are highly related to the product and can bring opportunities for new products to be displayed, then they can run for a period of time first;
After the operation stabilizes, big words can be selected manually, and this keyword can be set as phrase matching or accurate matching according to the conversion situation and relevance situation, and at the same time refer to the back-office report to average single-click bidding within a controllable range to appropriately reduce the bid for keywords with low correlation and reduce advertising costs.
In response to the keyword match type questions raised by the seller above, let's take a closer look at the knowledge points.
Detailed explanation of keyword match types
Being good at using a combination of the three match types of keywords can make ads more effective. So what are the fundamental differences between the three types of keyword matches?For example, for the same keyword: baseball cap
Wide range of matches
This match type provides your ad with broad traffic exposure. A customer's search term can be matched if it contains all keywords or close variants (plural forms, abbreviations, stem words, abbreviations, and accents). Disordered search terms can also be matched to keywords.
Detailed explanation of keyword match types
Being good at using a combination of the three match types of keywords can make ads more effective. So what are the fundamental differences between the three types of keyword matches?For example, for the same keyword: baseball cap
Wide range of matches
This match type provides your ad with broad traffic exposure. A customer's search term can be matched if it contains all keywords or close variants (plural forms, abbreviations, stem words, abbreviations, and accents). Disordered search terms can also be matched to keywords.
- Example: keyword baseball cap
- Eligible search terms are: baseball caps, baceball caps, baseball hats, red baseball caps, baseball professional caps
- Ineligible search terms are: sport hat, Nike baseball bar, Adidas hat
phrase matching
In phrase matching, the customer's search terms must include the exact phrase, phrase, or variation thereof. It's more restrictive than broad matching, and usually creates more relevant ad placements for more specific audiences.
In phrase matching, the customer's search terms must include the exact phrase, phrase, or variation thereof. It's more restrictive than broad matching, and usually creates more relevant ad placements for more specific audiences.
- Example: keyword baseball cap
- Eligible search terms are: light baseball cap, women baseball cap, red baseball cap
- Ineligible search terms are: baseball men's cap, baseball red cap
Precise matching
The customer's search terms must match the keyword exactly in order to show ads or narrow down changes in exact terms. Exact matches are the most limited type of match, but they are more relevant to the customer's search.
The customer's search terms must match the keyword exactly in order to show ads or narrow down changes in exact terms. Exact matches are the most limited type of match, but they are more relevant to the customer's search.
- Example: keyword baseball cap
- Eligible search terms are: baseball cap
- The unqualified search criteria are: red baseball cap, baseball hat, women's baseball cap
Note: Keywords cannot include special characters: #, @*$
Tips for using matching methods:
Tips for using matching methods:
- The keyword match type starts with broad matching, gradually transitions to phrase matching, and then accurate matching.
- Broad matching brings the most exposure and requires relative caution in bidding. For accurately matched keywords, bidding can be increased accordingly to ensure efficient traffic conversion.
- It is recommended to set up different ad groups for different match types to compare ad performance separately.
- Ad campaigns under the same account will not compete
- The three keyword matching types need to be used flexibly according to product and keyword, as well as operational requirements.
Keyword selection optimization steps
Moving high-performing keywords from automated ads to manually targeted campaigns will give you more control over your ad delivery and ad spend. So, how do you identify high-performing keywords?It must meet the requirements of the following three dimensions: impressions, clicks, and sales.
Before you begin, you'll need an activity that uses automated targeting and an activity that uses manual targeting. We recommend running an automated targeting campaign for 2 to 4 weeks to gather sufficient data information.
Specific optimization steps:
Moving high-performing keywords from automated ads to manually targeted campaigns will give you more control over your ad delivery and ad spend. So, how do you identify high-performing keywords?It must meet the requirements of the following three dimensions: impressions, clicks, and sales.
Before you begin, you'll need an activity that uses automated targeting and an activity that uses manual targeting. We recommend running an automated targeting campaign for 2 to 4 weeks to gather sufficient data information.
Specific optimization steps:
- Download the Automated Targeting Report
- Identify high-performing keywords — you need to determine whether your primary performance criteria are ad cost to sales ratio (ACoS), exposure, or conversion
- Add keywords to manual ad campaigns to determine matches based on your performance criteria and goals
- Adjust bids according to your business goals and keyword strategy
- For each excellent performance keyword, you can adjust the bid in the “keyword bid” by referring to the “suggested bid”.
Keyword performance optimization steps
Once you have high-performing keywords, it's not a one-size-fits-all experience; you need to check automated delivery reports regularly to keep up to date with the latest search term trends and discover and filter for new, high-quality keywords.
Furthermore, your business goals and keyword strategies may also be constantly changing, and your primary performance criteria may gradually shift from increasing exposure in the early stages of opening a store to pursuing conversion and reducing ACoS. Using ACoS as the primary performance standard as an example, you can easily learn the same 4 steps to optimize keywords.
Once you have high-performing keywords, it's not a one-size-fits-all experience; you need to check automated delivery reports regularly to keep up to date with the latest search term trends and discover and filter for new, high-quality keywords.
Furthermore, your business goals and keyword strategies may also be constantly changing, and your primary performance criteria may gradually shift from increasing exposure in the early stages of opening a store to pursuing conversion and reducing ACoS. Using ACoS as the primary performance standard as an example, you can easily learn the same 4 steps to optimize keywords.
- Choose to run an ad campaign manually
- Select an ad group
- Ranked from lowest to highest by ad cost to sales ratio. The keyword with the lowest percentage is the keyword with which you performed well
- Adjust your bid
For each excellent performance keyword, set a bid higher than the “recommended bid” based on actual performance. For precise keywords with a very high conversion rate, you can consider increasing your bid even more to ensure more competitiveness.
Keyword optimization quantity suggestions
The more keywords you add, the more customers you can attract and therefore get more clicks, which can help increase sales. In the first few weeks of campaign creation, it's recommended that you set at least 30 target keywords for each campaign.
As clever as you, you must have mastered keyword settings and optimization methods. If you still have questions, please leave your questions on the official website FAQ page.
The more keywords you add, the more customers you can attract and therefore get more clicks, which can help increase sales. In the first few weeks of campaign creation, it's recommended that you set at least 30 target keywords for each campaign.
As clever as you, you must have mastered keyword settings and optimization methods. If you still have questions, please leave your questions on the official website FAQ page.
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