The Ultimate Amazon Keyword Research Guide

We live in the era of search engines. This applies to those looking for content and products online and those who want to profit from selling goods online. Basically, it all revolves around optimizing and delivering the best possible user experience. As one of the world’s largest eCommerce platforms, Amazon uses a search engine to help customers find the most relevant products in just one click. If you have anything to do with selling on the platform, it is of the utmost importance to know Amazon’s search engine inside and out. It will help you rank your products higher, extend your reach and generate more profits.

What Is Amazon Keyword Research?

Amazon keyword research is an integral part of selling on Amazon. By conducting keyword research, sellers can understand what words and phrases customers use when searching for products on Amazon. They can use this information to improve the visibility of their products in Amazon’s search results and increase their chances of making a sale.

Amazon keywords are words or phrases relevant to a product or category. To understand how Amazon keywords work, it’s important to know how Amazon’s search engine works. For example, when a customer searches for a product on Amazon, the search engine uses algorithms to scan all available products and rank them based on their relevance to the search query. The ranking is based on many factors, including the product’s title, bullet points, description, and the customer’s browsing and purchase history.

To improve the visibility of their products in Amazon’s search results, sellers need to include relevant keywords in the product’s title, bullet points, and description. This can help the search engine understand what the product is and how it is related to the customer’s search query and can increase the chances of the product appearing in the search results.

When choosing keywords for a product, it’s important to consider what words and phrases customers might use when searching for the product on Amazon. This can include the product’s name, features and benefits, and any relevant keywords commonly used in the product’s category. Using specific and relevant keywords is also essential, as this can help the search engine understand the product more accurately and improve its ranking in the search results.

Amazon’s A9 Search Engine and What We Know About It

At the very center of Amazon’s search engine lies a robust algorithm. And often, you will see people referring to this search engine as Amazon A9. Under the strict supervision of Amazon’s A9 Division, this algorithm is constantly monitored, optimized, and improved. Today, it is as sophisticated and powerful as the one used by Google. Amazon’s A9 search engine is what powers the complex product ranking process. It is responsible for showing products on the Amazon search result pages for a specific keyword. 

Amazon has released a complete specification that explicitly shows all the factors A9 considers. This makes ranking on the Amazon platform straightforward if one follows the prescribed methodology. The ranking factors are divided into two groups: direct and indirect factors. Knowing them is more than enough to master the keyword research game.

Direct Factors

• Price
• Availability (entire history is taken into account)
• Text Match Relevancy
• Sales Performance History

Indirect Factors

• Advertising
• Promotions
• Images
• Number of Reviews
• Reviews Stars Rating
• Fulfillment Method
• Premium Content

Differences Between Google Keywords and Amazon Keywords

One of the main differences between Google keywords and Amazon keywords is the way that the platforms use keywords to rank and display products in their search results. Google uses a complex algorithm to rank and display products in its search results based on factors such as the relevance of the keywords to the search query, the quality and relevance of the product’s listing, and the user’s browsing and search history.

In contrast, Amazon uses a simpler algorithm to rank and display products in its search results. The ranking is primarily based on the relevance of the keywords to the search query and the presence of the keywords in the product’s title, bullet points, and description. This means that sellers can improve the visibility of their products in Amazon’s search results by including relevant keywords in the product’s listing, whereas on Google, they need to focus on a wider range of factors to improve their search engine optimization.

Another difference between Google keywords and Amazon keywords is the way that they are used by customers. Google keywords are typically broader and more general in nature, as customers often use Google to search for information on a wide range of topics. In contrast, Amazon keywords are often more specific and focused, as customers typically use Amazon to search for specific products or categories. This means that sellers need to use different keywords on the two platforms to reach the customers who are most likely interested in their products.

Benefits of Doing Amazon Keyword Research 

There are countless benefits to doing Amazon keyword research. However, the most significant benefits include improved product visibility, increased sales, better targeting of customers, and gaining a competitive advantage. 

Improved Product Visibility

By including relevant keywords in a product’s title, bullet points, and description, sellers can improve the visibility of their products in Amazon’s search results. This can increase the chances of the product appearing in the search results when customers search for related keywords and can help drive more traffic and sales.

Increased Sales

By conducting keyword research and using relevant keywords in a product’s listing, sellers can increase their chances of making a sale. This is because customers are more likely to find and purchase a product if it appears in the search results when searching for relevant keywords.

Better Targeting of Customers 

By conducting keyword research and using relevant keywords in a product’s listing, sellers can better target their marketing efforts and reach the customers who are most likely to be interested in their products. This can help sellers save money on advertising and marketing and improve their marketing efforts’ overall effectiveness.

Competitive Advantage

By conducting keyword research and using relevant keywords in a product’s listing, sellers can gain a competitive advantage over other sellers on Amazon. This is because customers are more likely to find and purchase a product that appears in the search results when searching for relevant keywords. Using relevant keywords can help sellers outrank their competitors in the search results.

How to Conduct Keyword Research for Amazon Products

Keyword research for Amazon products may appear as an overly complex thing to do. To help you master it, we had to break up the entire process into several easy-to-follow steps. Let’s start with the most basic one – finding the right seed keyword.

Identifying the “Seed Keyword”

Identifying the seed keyword is the bread and butter of every successful Amazon keyword research strategy. What is the seed keyword? It is a broad term relevant to the product(s) you will list on Amazon. Where do you start? Identifying the seed keyword is very easy, and you should start on, well, Amazon. Just type in the product name you want to sell without anything attached to it. We are going to use the broad term “office pencil holder.”

The Amazon search result page contains listings relevant to the keyword we have just typed in. Let’s not look at them for now. What interests us is located on the left side of the screen. Especially the “Search results for” section in the upper left portion of the screen. This section can help you identify more options for your seed keywords. As you can see in our example, some of the seed keywords may be:

• Desk Supplies Holders
• Desk Supplies Dispensers
• Supply Organizers
• Pencil Holders
• Pen Holders

Amazon is a very good keyword research tool that you should always use when you start doing keyword research for your products. From this point on, the most effective way to move forward with keyword research is to leverage third-party Amazon optimization software. 

Conduct Competitive Research

Analyze your competitors’ listings, and check which keywords they have been using. Make sure to cross-match the ones that frequently appear among top competitor listings. This will help you pinpoint seed keywords and long tail keywords that will benefit your rankings the most.

Add Keywords Accordingly

Once you have identified the keywords you want to use to get your Amazon product to the top of search results, you will have to use them properly. Putting them in the right places will get your products right where they belong.

Product Title

Learning how to incorporate your keywords in the product title is very important. Especially now when Amazon is advising sellers to use shorter product titles. Amazon help files specify that the most optimal product title length should be anywhere between 180 and 200.

The most important thing here is to give your best to keep the product title as natural as possible. It has to be able to generate those clicks that you need so much. To do this, you can divide the product title into two sections. The first section should contain your seed keyword, and the second section should contain a long-tail keyword and a few details about the product.

Description

The description is seen and long-tail keywords friendly. Make sure to incorporate one keyword here to see the best results. Make sure not to over-stack your keywords. Remember, this is not Google SEO. Amazon help files specify that you are allowed to use up to 2,000 characters to describe your product. Your product description should be working towards improving conversions. This is why you should make it informative so that it truly showcases your product.

Bullet Points

Keep in mind that some product categories also allow sellers to describe a product with five product features, each able to contain 100 characters. Make sure to point out the features of your product via bullet points. You can also use a keyword here. Bullet points are suitable for seed keywords. The description won’t appear as clunky, and you will be able to stay within the character limit.

Backend Search Terms

Don’t forget to place your keywords into your Seller Central Backend Search terms. There are certain rules here that you have to abide by to get the results. The order of keywords has no influence whatsoever – you can type in the keywords with no regard to a specific order in seed and long-tail keywords. Don’t use any quote signs, commas, or any other special characters – all you have to do is enter your keywords one by one and separate them with spaces.

There is no need to repeat yourself. To achieve the results, you only need to enter keywords just once. If you stack them or repeat them, it won’t help nor hurt your rankings whatsoever. This also applies to the keywords you used in your product title and bullet points. If you used them there, there is no point in repeating them here. Instead, use backend search terms to add unique, relevant keywords.

Capitalizing the first letter in the word has no effect. But if you want to increase readability and make things easier for yourself, stick to one writing style and keep it consistent. Make sure to use singular and plural versions of keywords. You can also use filler words to make sure to appear in searches where natural keywords are used. In our example, enter holder and holders, pencil and pencils, pen and pens – you get the picture.

Backend search terms help you increase your chances of ranking better. This is why you should seize it and enter as many keywords as possible. Just make sure to keep them relevant. This is why keyword research matters. Here, you can use all the keywords that you didn’t use in your listings. There is a limit here, though. A9 will index only the first 249 characters (including spaces).

Amazon Keyword Research Tools

DataHawk’s keyword research tools are designed to help Amazon sellers conduct keyword research efficiently and identify the most popular and relevant keywords for their products or categories. Its tools provide data on the search volume and competition for different keywords and allow sellers to filter and sort the data to identify the keywords that are most likely to drive traffic and sales to their products. Some of the key features of DataHawk’s keyword research tool include:

Real-time data: The tools provide real-time data on the search volume and competition for different keywords, so sellers can be confident that they are using the most up-to-date and accurate information when conducting their keyword research.

Easy-to-use interface: The software has a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate, so sellers can quickly and effortlessly find the keywords that are most relevant to their product or category.

Comprehensive data: The tool provides comprehensive data on the search volume and competition for different keywords, so sellers can make informed decisions about which keywords to use in their product listings.

Amazon Keyword Generator Tool 

To use DataHawk’s keyword generator, simply select a keyword to analyze from your list of tracked keywords and click “analyze.” Then, suddenly, a list of AI-generated keyword recommendations will appear along with relevant insights and metrics, such as the product category the keyword is related to, the department, and the estimated search volume of the keyword. 

Amazon Keyword Lookup Tool 

The Amazon keyword lookup tool crunches millions of data points to pull a  list of keywords that a product has ranked for organically at one point in time. It also shows the last three months average rank, the keywords’ best and worst ranks, and the keyword’s estimated search volume. To use this tool, select a product from your tracked products list to analyze which keywords have been used to look up that particular product. 

Amazon Keyword Rank Tracking Tool 

The Amazon keywords ranks tool is perhaps one of DataHawk’s most popular tools. It provides a comprehensive view of how a particular product has been ranking for the keywords being tracked within the selected project over the selected period by looking up to 5 pages of Amazon’s search results. It also provides an estimate of how many times a specific keyword is searched for on Amazon each month as well as charts and graphs on the current and last 14-day keywords rankings distribution. 

Google Keyword Planner 

Google offers an excellent tool to help you deepen your keyword game and identify trends in your target market. To do keyword research on Google, you must use the Google Keyword Planner. This tool will help you get an insight into keyword click and performance forecasts for the upcoming period, trends for all chosen keywords, and Amazon search volume data. All you have to do is create a Google AdWords account and access the Keyword Planner Tool. It is located on the left section in the drop-down menu, under the Planning column. You can access it by clicking on the wrench icon in the top right corner of the AdWords Dashboard.

Once the Google Keyword Planner opens, you can access the features you need under the “Find new keywords and get Amazon search volume data” label. The keywords you identify here can help you improve your Amazon SEO game and rank your products even higher. Finding new keyword ideas with this tool is very easy. All you have to do is type in the keyword you want to start with and get the suggestions. Use the metrics in the table to decide whether the keyword idea is worth pursuing.

Amazon Keyword Research Best Practices

There are three additional best practice steps sellers can do after conducting their preliminary  Amazon keyword research.

Use Keyword Analytics to Improve Decision-Making 

As the search landscape on Amazon changes over time, it’s important to regularly analyze keyword analytics and update your keywords accordingly to ensure that they are still relevant and effective. The most effective keyword analytics to monitor are keyword ranks. Insights generated from this kind of data is telling of whether or not your Amazon SEO strategy yields positive results. Improved keyword position equals more sales. And you will be able to see whether you placed it in the product title, description, or bullet points. With analytics, you can identify the best strategy for each product and reach results faster on your next product launch.

Group Keywords Based on Priority 

Given that not all keywords are created equal, Amazon sellers should group their keywords based on their ranking hierarchy. For example, it can be helpful to break keywords into three tiers: highly profitable keywords, keywords with promising potential, and long-shot keywords. They should keep those keywords in mind and regularly track the evolution of their performance to determine efficacy. 

Track Keyword Success 

Tracking the evolution of keyword success is an integral part of maintaining a successful SEO strategy because it allows businesses to understand how their keywords perform over time and make adjustments to their SEO strategy based on this information. By tracking their keyword success, businesses can improve their search engine rankings, better target their customers, increase efficiency, and gain a competitive advantage in the market.

When Amazon sellers optimize their content for specific keywords, they aim to improve their search engine rankings and drive more traffic and sales. However, the search landscape is constantly changing, with new competitors entering the market and new keywords becoming popular. This means businesses need to track the evolution of their keyword success to understand how their keywords perform.

Conclusion

Overall, conducting Amazon keyword research can provide a number of benefits for sellers on Amazon.com, including improved product visibility, increased sales, better targeting of customers, and a competitive advantage.

By conducting keyword research and using relevant keywords in a product’s listing, sellers can improve their chances of success on Amazon and grow their business on the platform. This article discussed the importance of conducting Amazon keyword research. It highlighted the most effective ways Amazon sellers can execute keyword research, listed the benefits of devising a keyword research strategy, and identified some valuable tools sellers could leverage to optimize their keyword performance.