When it comes to success on Amazon, there are thousands of “gurus” with millions of tactics that claim to guarantee top page ranks, thousands or reviews, and millions in sales. The problem is, that many of these so-called “gurus” have very limited experience on Amazon and are only interested in one thing… You’re money.
When it comes to successfully launching and growing a brand on Amazon, it is easy to get lost in the weeds with gimmicky tactics, and harder to stick to basic, proven marketing strategies that have worked for years.
Ironically, the gimmicky strategies that bring short term gains, can dramatically hinder your long-term success. Selling product is not rocket-science, but it does take discipline, a solid long-term strategy, and a fierce trust in the process.
With that being said, let’s take a quick look at 3 basic marketing strategies that often go overlooked.
3 Most-Overlooked Amazon Strategies
STRATEGY 1: PROPER PRODUCT VETTING – One of the biggest mistakes made among product launches on Amazon is a failure to properly vet your product, particularly as it pertains to Amazon. I have seen many product launches fall flat on their face, because at the end of the day, nobody wanted to buy the product, or the product was not unique enough to stand out.
Questions you should ask include:
- How big is the market?
- How does your product stand out from the competition?
- What advertising strategies are your competitors employing, and can you exploit that?
- And finally, do people really want to buy your product?
If your product has already experienced success off of Amazon, then some of these questions are a lot easier to answer, but if you are launching on Amazon first, these are questions that should be thoroughly explored in order to vet your product for success on Amazon
STRATEGY 2: LISTEN TO THE CUSTOMER – A few years ago, listing optimization would have been at the top of this list of overlooked strategies. In recent years, however, most sellers have done a very nice job of recognizing the importance of a polished listing.
That being said, too many listings focus way too much on shouting about product features, while ignoring how those features can actually benefit the buyer. So how do you know what benefits to highlight? Read product reviews.
Read reviews of competitor listings to find out what where they might be missing the boat. Read reviews for your own product to understand how buyers are using your product and what they like and don’t like about it.
Reviews are an invaluable insight into your buyers’ minds, because this is where they tell what is most important to them about the product, why they like or dislike the product, and unique ways in which they use the product.
By implementing the most common insights gleaned from reviews, your listings will not only be optimized for search, but they will literally speak to the hearts and minds of the buyer. It will be like you are reading their minds as you highlight the benefits that uniquely meet their needs.
STRATEGY 3: DON’T FORGET THE ENTIRE SALES PROCESS – Buying a product is a process. Most buyers don’t just wake up one day and say “hey, I want to buy your product!” No, It is usually a journey that starts with a need, that leads to exploration into products that need, and ends in the purchase of a product.
Some call it a customer journey, others call it a sales funnel, but It starts with Awareness of your product, which leads to Interest in learning more about your product, followed by a Desire to purchase, and culminating in Action, or purchase.
Unfortunately, most Amazon sellers focus predominantly on the Desire stage of the journey, where buyers are already aware of their need, and have already expressed interest in a particular product to solve that need.
By limiting your advertising strategy to Sponsored Product Ads, you are competing only in the Desire phase. Sponsored Product Ads are where most of the competition is, and where the highest Cost-Per-Clicks (CPC) and Lowest Return-On-Ad-Spend (ROAS) can be found.
By expanding your ad strategy to Brand Headline Ads, Brand Video ads, Brand Store Ads, Sponsored Display ads, and even Facebook and Google ads, you can become part of the entire customer journey, or sales funnel. These ad types also have lower competition, which means lower CPC, higher ROAS.
A Partner to Help You Succeed
Here at KCS Marketing, we have over 10 years’ experience with successful product launches and brand management on Amazon. We don’t like gimmicks. We play the long game, and know how to build a solid foundation for a successful and sustainable brand presence on Amazon. If you would like to discuss these 3 overlooked strategies in more detail, feel free to reach out.