Your No-Fuss Guide to Amazon Marketing 2024

Starting a store on Amazon can be an exciting experience.

Running and growing it? Also exhilarating and exciting -- just that it comes with challenges.

The good news?

You can overcome them. Here's what you need to know about building a solid marketing strategy for your store, from the best Amazon experts:

Why do you need a marketing and advertising strategy for Amazon? 

First things first: why should you even bother with creating a marketing and advertising strategy for your Amazon store? Can't you just, like, try out a couple of hacks and move on with your life, eating caviar for breakfast and drinking champagne for dinner?

Amazon has over 300 million active customers worldwide. That's a lot of potential buyers right there.

...But also, there are over 12 million products on Amazon. Yes, you read that right. Your product is competing with millions of others for customer attention and sales.

Without an actual strategy, and unless you are selling a product so unique and life-changing sales for it will grow organically, you'll find it hard to rank for searches and capture attention.

The right marketing strategy can help you get your product in front of the right audience, build brand awareness, and increase sales.

The difference between a marketing strategy and a marketing plan

"Strategy", "plan", and "tactics" frequently get used interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. Having a clear understanding of the difference between them is crucial for creating an effective marketing strategy.

A marketing strategy is a broad, long-term plan that outlines your overall approach to reaching your target audience and achieving your business goals.

On the other hand, a marketing plan is a more detailed document that outlines specific tactics and actions to execute your strategy. It includes the marketing channels, budget, and timeline for implementing your strategy.

To put it simply:

• A marketing strategy is the "why" behind your actions.
• A marketing plan is the "how" you will achieve your goals.

The 4 Ps of a marketing strategy 

Every marketing strategy (including the marketing strategy you build for your Amazon store) should incorporate the 4Ps:

• Product: What product are you selling? What makes it unique and appealing to your target audience?
• Price: How much will you charge for your product? How does it compare to competitors' prices?
• Place: Where will you sell your product? On Amazon, through retail stores, or both?
• Promotion: What channels and tactics will you use to promote your product and reach your target audience?

Types of marketing strategies you can adopt

There are a lot of ways to build a marketing strategy -- and it can look different from one business to another, even among Amazon stores. However, generally, every Amazon marketing strategies can fit into one of the following categories:

Adaptation 

Adaptation strategies involve modifying your product or marketing approach to better fit the needs and preferences of your target audience. This could mean tweaking product features, adjusting pricing, or changing your promotional tactics based on customer feedback and market trends.

Go-to-market

A go-to-market strategy focuses on how you will bring your product to market and achieve a competitive advantage. It includes defining your target audience, crafting your value proposition, and choosing the best channels for reaching your customers.

Market penetration

Market penetration strategies aim to increase your market share by encouraging existing customers to buy more and attracting new customers. This can involve competitive pricing, increasing promotional efforts, and enhancing product features to stand out from competitors.

Marketing channels you can choose from

As an Amazon store owner, you can leverage a variety of marketing channels to reach your target audience and promote your products. Here are some options to consider:

• Amazon PPC (Pay-per-click) ads: This is the most direct way to advertise on Amazon, where you pay for specific keywords to boost the visibility of your product listings.
• Social media: You can use social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to showcase your products, connect with potential customers, and drive traffic to your Amazon store.
• Influencer marketing: Partnering with influencers can help you reach a wider audience and build trust in your brand. You can collaborate with influencers on social media or YouTube to promote your products and increase sales.
• Email marketing: Building an email list of interested customers allows you to stay in touch with them and promote your products through email newsletters, discounts, and special offers.
• Content marketing: Creating valuable content such as blog posts, videos, or podcasts can establish your brand authority and lead potential customers to your Amazon store.

Types of ads on Amazon 

Amazon advertising poses a very attractive opportunity for Amazon sellers to reach potential customers and increase sales. Here are the types of ads you can run on Amazon:

Sponsored product ads

Sponsored Products are ads for individual product listings on Amazon, allowing you to promote your products with high visibility in search results and product detail pages. This type of ad helps you drive sales by placing your product in front of customers who are actively searching for related items.

Sponsored brand ads

Sponsored Brands are ads that feature your brand logo, a custom headline, and multiple products. These ads are designed to boost brand awareness and drive sales by showcasing your brand and product portfolio in prominent positions on Amazon.

Sponsored display

Sponsored Display ads are automatically generated ads targeting relevant audiences on and off Amazon to boost product visibility and re-engage potential customers. They help increase brand exposure by displaying your products on product detail pages, customer reviews, and other relevant pages within the Amazon ecosystem.

Stores

Amazon Stores are custom multi-page shopping destinations that allow you to showcase your brand and products in a curated, immersive environment. This feature helps to elevate brand presence and engage customers more effectively by offering a streamlined and visually appealing shopping experience.

How to build your Amazon marketing strategy

Now that you have the basics covered, it's time to start building your Amazon marketing strategy for your Amazon store. Here are the steps you can follow:

Analyze your opportunities 

First, conduct a thorough market analysis to identify potential opportunities and understand your target audience's needs and preferences. Seeing how the market "behaves" will help you correctly position your own store and products.

Next, set clear goals and outline actionable steps to achieve them, including choosing the most effective Amazon marketing channels and tactics.

Finally, consistently monitor and adjust your strategy based on performance metrics and customer feedback to ensure continuous improvement and success.

Remember that an "opportunity" is not just what you can gain -- it's also what your competitors are likely to do. Monitor the competition regularly and use their successful tactics as a benchmark for your own strategy.

Outline your business goals 

Your Amazon store's business goals and your marketing goals should be perfectly aligned.

Start by identifying specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals that align with your overall business objectives. Once your goals are set, use them to guide your marketing strategy, ensuring each marketing activity contributes to achieving these targets.

Launch your products 

When launching your products, ensure you have optimized your product listings with high-quality images, compelling descriptions, and relevant keywords to attract potential customers. One way to give your store a good jumpstart is by using promotional tactics such as introductory offers or discounts to generate initial sales and reviews. Monitor the performance closely and adjust your strategy based on data and feedback to continually improve your product's market presence.

Analyze your metrics & adjust

Regularly reviewing your marketing metrics is crucial for understanding the effectiveness of your strategies and identifying areas for improvement. When you analyze key performance indicators, you can gauge the success of your Amazon marketing efforts. Use these insights to make data-driven adjustments to your strategy, ensuring continuous growth and alignment with your business goals.

Some of the metrics you can monitor for your Amazon store include:

• Conversion rates: This measures the percentage of visitors who purchase your product. A high conversion rate indicates that your product listings are effective in convincing customers to buy.
• Click-through rates (CTR): This measures the percentage of people who clicked on your ad compared to how many times it was shown. A higher CTR indicates that your ad is relevant and attractive to potential customers.
• Return on investment (ROI): This measures the profitability of your marketing efforts. A positive ROI means that you are generating more revenue than what you are spending on advertising. In other words, your advertising cost is lower than your number of sales for the advertised product, your ROI is positive.
• Customer satisfaction: Monitor customer reviews and feedback to gain insights into how satisfied customers are with your products and overall shopping experience. Use this information to improve your products and services and build a loyal customer base.
• Number of returns: Keep track of the number of returns you receive, as high returns can indicate issues with your products or customer dissatisfaction.
• Net promoted score: This measures the overall sentiment towards your brand and products by subtracting the percentage of negative reviews from the percentage of positive reviews.

Amazon marketing strategy tactics

As mentioned in the beginning, there's a difference between an Amazon store marketing strategy and tactics. However, tactics are a component for your Amazon marketing strategy -- and there are some specific tactics you can use to effectively promote your Amazon store:

Incorporate video content 

One of the main reasons people don't buy online is because they want to see the product in action. By incorporating video content into your product listings, you can give potential customers a better understanding of your products and increase their confidence in making a purchase.

Leverage ads 

Amazon ads can be a powerful tool for promoting your store and products. Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and Sponsored Display all have different targeting options and can help drive traffic to your store. However, it's important to monitor the performance of your ads closely and adjust them based on data to ensure a positive return on investment.

Opt for omnichannel 

Omnichannel marketing refers to using multiple channels to reach customers and promote your products. This can include social media, email marketing, influencer partnerships, and more. By diversifying your marketing efforts, you can reach a broader audience and increase brand awareness.

Use data wisely 

Leveraging data insights allows you to make informed decisions and refine your marketing strategies for optimal results. Utilize analytics tools to track customer behaviour, preferences, and market trends to stay ahead of the competition.

Include user-generated content 

Encouraging customers to share their experiences and reviews can significantly enhance your store's credibility and attract new buyers. User-generated content (UGC) serves as authentic testimonials that can build trust and drive sales -- so much so that in a recent study, 79% of people admitted UGC majorly impacts their buying decisions.

Invest in Amazon SEO (SEARCH ENGINE OPTIU

While advertising costs can quickly skyrocket even for a solid business, Amazon SEO is one of the least cost-intensive and most effective ways to promote your store. By optimizing your product listings with relevant keywords, you can improve your search ranking and visibility on the platform. This can lead to increased organic traffic and sales.

Focus on excellent products & good support 

You can have the best ads and the most brilliant marketing in the world -- if your products fail to deliver on their promise and if your customer support is rude or lacking, you will lose customers and damage your reputation. Invest time and resources into creating quality products and providing excellent customer support to ensure long-term success.

Learn to adapt

No marketing strategy works forever -- the whole point of "marketing" is to know how to adapt to the market. As such, learn to adapt to shifting opinions, trending tactics (if they make sense for your business), and general market changes. Listen to the signals, and never be afraid to try something new. Keep testing, learning, and evolving your strategy to stay relevant and competitive in the ever-changing world of e-commerce.

Amazon marketing tools 

You don't have to go through the Amazon marketing journey alone. There are plenty of tools and resources available to help you optimize your Amazon store and promote it effectively. Here are a few to consider:

• Amazon Advertising Console: This tool allows you to manage, track, and analyze your Amazon ads in one place.
• Amazon DSP Console: This tool is specifically for managing display ads and reaching customers through Amazon-owned websites.
• Google Analytics: By integrating Google Analytics with your Amazon store, you can gain deeper insights into customer behavior and measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.
• Sellics: This all-in-one software offers a range of features to help you optimize your Amazon store, including keyword research, performance tracking, competitor analysis, and more.
• Helium 10: Another all-in-one software that offers a variety of tools for Amazon sellers, including keyword research, listing optimization, inventory management, and more.
• Junglescout: This tool helps you find profitable products to sell on Amazon through product research and market analysis.
• Feedback Genius: This tool helps you manage and respond to customer reviews, gather feedback, and improve your store's reputation.
• Influencer partnerships: Collaborating with influencers in your niche can be a great way to reach a larger audience and promote your products.

In case you want to dive deeper, here's more about Amazon PPC software to help you skyrocket your business.

...And if you need help hiring an Amazon specialist, don't hesitate to contact Mayple. We vet very marketer we work with to ensure they have the skills and experience needed to help you succeed on Amazon. More even, we manage the entire process, from the first to the last day of the project, so you can sit back and watch your store grow.

It's not passive income

A lot of people get into Amazon selling because they think it could make for a good "passive income" stream. While it's true that you can make money while you sleep, building a successful Amazon store is anything but passive. It requires ongoing effort, attention, and adaptation to stay competitive in the market. Don't underestimate the amount of work and dedication needed to succeed on Amazon -- but never think it's impossible either. Your Amazon store can become a thriving and profitable business with the right growth strategy, tools, and partners.