Amazon Sales Rank: What You Need to Know to Rank Higher in 2023

$469.82 is how much revenue Amazon generated in 2019 alone, according to Statista. Every Amazon seller wants their share of the pie, which explains why they are all gunning for a high Amazon sales rank or BSR. This article will explain everything you need to know about the Amazon Best Seller Rank, what it means to be part of it, and how to increase your chances of reaching high sales rankings on Amazon in 2023. 

What Is Amazon Best Sellers Rank?

Amazon Best Sellers Rank (BSR), also referred to as Amazon Sales Ranking is a ranking system that Amazon uses to determine how well a product is selling compared to other products on the site. The sales break down areas of focus by category and subcategory—this metric is a very competitive one.

The image pictured below shows that the number one on the best seller rank in electronics is the Echo Dot. This position makes sense, as Amazon will always have a strong preference for its products. But electronics is a heavily competitive category to target.

For example, if you created a product that falls under the category “generator,” If your generator is solar, it would be foolish to set your type to “generators & portable power.” Instead, you want solar & wind power:

How Is Amazon Best Sellers Rank Calculated?

The Best Sellers Rank is calculated based on several factors, including the sales volume and recent sales performance of a product. Products are ranked within their respective categories, and the BSR can be a useful tool for both customers and sellers to gauge the popularity of a product. However, it is important to note that the BSR is constantly updated and can frequently change, so it may not always accurately reflect a product’s current sales performance. Moreover, because of the density of products within a category, Amazon created additional category and subcategory best seller lists to emphasize a product’s rank in its respective group.

How Often Does Amazon Update the Best Seller Ranking?

According to Amazon, the Best Sellers list is “updated hourly to reflect recent and historical sales of every item sold on Amazon.” The updates occur hourly regardless of whether it is in a larger category or sub-category. The overall sales in each category are updated simultaneously.

How Do Shoppers Use the Amazon Best Sellers List?

Shoppers can use the Amazon Best Sellers List to find popular products in a category they are interested in and compare the popularity of different products. This can help them make informed decisions about what to buy. For example, suppose a shopper is interested in purchasing a new book.

In that case, they can look at the Amazon Best Sellers List for books to see which titles are currently the most popular and are being purchased by other shoppers. Shoppers also use the Amazon BSR for social proof. For instance, shoppers consider the products at the top of this list more popular. Popular products are good to these customers, as it applies social proof that others enjoy your product.

How Can Amazon Sellers Leverage Sales Rank Data?

Amazon sellers can leverage sales rank data in a number of ways to improve their performance on the Amazon platform. Here are a few examples of how sellers can use sales rank data to their advantage:

• Monitor the sales rank of their products regularly to track their performance and identify trends over time.
• Compare the sales rank of their products to those of similar products on Amazon to gain insights into how their products are performing in relation to their competition.
• Use sales rank data to inform their pricing and marketing strategies. For example, a seller may adjust the price of their product based on its sales rank and the prices of similar products on Amazon.
• Use sales rank data to identify products that are performing well and consider expanding their product line with similar products.
• Monitor the sales rank of their competitors’ products and use this information to make informed business decisions.
• Use sales rank data to identify products that are underperforming and make changes to improve their sales, such as adjusting the product listing or changing the product images.
• Use sales rank data to determine the best time to run promotions or sales on their products to maximize their impact.
• Use sales rank data to identify opportunities for cross-selling or upselling related products to customers who have purchased their products in the past.
• Use sales rank data to help improve their overall performance on Amazon and increase their visibility on the platform.

What Is the Difference Between Amazon Search Rank and Amazon Seller Ranking?

Amazon search rank is a measure of how high a product appears in Amazon’s search results when a customer searches for a specific keyword or phrase. Amazon seller ranking, on the other hand, is a measure of the overall performance of a seller’s account on Amazon. This ranking is determined by various factors, such as the number of sales made, the seller’s feedback score, and the overall customer satisfaction with the seller’s products and services.

Given that Amazon search rank is contingent on keyword efficacy exemplifies how search rank is affected by SEO strategies. For example, the images below adequately demonstrate the difference between Amazon search rank and seller ranking. The first image below shows that the number one ranked umbrella in its given category is Repel. This company is only able to be in that position due to a PPC campaign. This strategy does not detract from the quality of the product. Instead, it allows the company to take advantage of multiple strategies.

You can easily spot the Amazon seller ranking on any product’s page by scrolling down. Look for the Product Information section and scan to the right until you find “additional information.” This section is typically a few spaces down on a table. The image above highlights this section, which reveals some additional important information. Namely, you can rank in multiple sub-categories when creating a product.

What Is the Importance of Amazon Sales Rank Data?

Amazon sales rank data provides insight into the popularity and performance of a product on Amazon. The sales rank is calculated based on the sales history of a product, so a higher sales rank indicates that the product has been purchased by a large number of customers recently. This can be a useful metric for both shoppers and sellers on Amazon.

Amazon sales rank data can help shoppers to make informed purchasing decisions. By looking at the sales rank of a product, a shopper can get an idea of how popular and well-regarded the product is among other Amazon customers. This can help shoppers to find the best products on Amazon and avoid products that may not be as highly rated.

Amazon sales rank data can provide valuable information for sellers on Amazon. By tracking the sales rank of their products, sellers can gain insights into how well their products are performing and make adjustments to their pricing, marketing, and other strategies to improve their sales. A higher sales rank can also help to increase the visibility of a seller’s products on the Amazon platform.

Amazon sales rank data can help to provide a more accurate picture of a product’s popularity and performance on Amazon. Unlike customer reviews, which can be subjective and potentially biased, the sales rank is based on hard data about a product’s sales history. This can make it a more reliable and objective measure of a product’s popularity.

Amazon sales rank data can help to ensure the fairness and competitiveness of the marketplace on Amazon. The sales rank is calculated based on a product’s sales history, so it rewards products that are popular and well-regarded by customers. This can help to level the playing field for sellers on Amazon and ensure that the most popular and high-quality products are more visible to shoppers.

How to Increase Your Chances of Reaching High Sales Rankings on Amazon 

There are several ways to increase your best seller rank on Amazon. However, given that Amazon BSR comes from increased sales on a specific product, one inevitably has to improve Amazon SEO to subsequently increase rankings. Below are five effective strategies Amazon sellers can implement to increase their chances of reaching higher sales rankings on the platform. 

1. Reassess Your Product Detail Pages 

Make sure your product listings are complete and accurate. This includes providing detailed product descriptions and strong keywords. For example, assume you wanted to sell Bluetooth speakers. You might optimize your page by including the keywords “solar-powered speakers” in the title.

The target is unique and appeals to people who might search for “solar-powered Bluetooth speakers.” You can also try and qualify for secondary keyword options, some of which might include “solar speakers,” “long-lasting Bluetooth speaker,” or even “long-lasting solar-powered Bluetooth speakers.” Mastering Amazon SEO is perhaps the most important first step to doing anything. 

2. Leverage Advertising Campaigns

Leveraging ad campaigns and additional Amazon advertising tools can prove very effective when it comes to increasing your Amazon sales rank. For example, searching any keyword will typically yield a couple of “sponsored” options. Those options are paid-for slots that draw the attention of prospective buyers. If you know anything about grabbing someone’s attention, you have three seconds to do so. By being the top-most product, you are within that three seconds. Just be prepared to try and outbid other companies with the same idea.

3. Use Amazon Posts 

Amazon Posts is a feature that allows brands and sellers to create engaging content and showcase their products on Amazon’s website. Using this feature can not only increase your chances of reaching high sales rankings on Amazon but can also help increase product visibility and enhance customer engagement. Amazon Posts allow sellers to create visually appealing content that will appear in search results and on product pages and showcase your products in a more interactive way. 

4. Check Your Pricing 

Cost leaders are constantly undercutting your profits by providing a cheaper product. You may think that it might be time for you to do the same, but that may not be the case. When people purchase your product, they work from two different angles. They either want to save money or want to spend a little more to purchase a quality product. 

There are a couple of “between” factors here, but the two extremes hold constant in any purchasing transaction. Decreasing your pricing typically leads to a price war, which may not be entirely beneficial for you or the other party. In a weird twist of events, buyer psychology tells us that they may be more likely to buy your product if you tweak the price up. Higher-cost goods are typically in a higher quality bracket. The result is that you will appeal more to people who seek out “luxury items.” While this situation isn’t always the case, pricing issues aren’t always related to your cost being too high.

5. Optimize Product Visual and Images 

Having high-quality images on your Amazon listing can help customers better visualize your product and understand its features and benefits. This can be particularly important for products that are difficult to describe in words or for products that have many different features or variations. They can also help build trust and credibility with potential customers.

Customers are more likely to trust a seller who provides clear, detailed, and professional-looking images of their products. More importantly, high-quality images can help your product stand out from the competition. On Amazon, customers often have to make decisions quickly based on the information and images provided on a product listing. 

Amazon’s sales rank can be beneficial for both shoppers and sellers on the Amazon platform. For shoppers, the sales rank can be a useful tool for finding popular and well-regarded products. Products with a higher sales rank are typically those that have been purchased by a large number of customers recently, which can be a sign of their popularity and quality. This can help shoppers to make informed purchasing decisions and find the best products on Amazon.

For sellers, the sales rank can be a useful metric for tracking the performance of their products and comparing them to similar products on the platform. By monitoring the sales rank of their products, sellers can gain insights into how well their products are performing and make adjustments to their pricing, marketing, and other strategies to improve their sales. Additionally, a higher sales rank can help to increase the visibility of a seller’s products on the Amazon platform, making them more likely to be seen and purchased by shoppers.

Conclusion

When it comes to sales rankings on Amazon, many sellers underplay this metric. They tell you the importance of click-through-rates, conversion rates, and keyword rankings. These are incredibly important, but one needs to remember that an essential shopping method is by category. The popularity of this is apparent, as grocery stores haven’t gone out of business by having aisles devoted to these categories. The halls of Amazon are their categories, and these categories will be necessary as long as people want to look at the products that make the most sales.

Everything in your efforts leads back to sales, and this BSR ranking provides valuable competitive and product information to help you make actionable decisions. However you plan to use it, BSR is most useful in combination with third-party Amazon optimization software.

In 2023, the key to increasing your sales ranking on Amazon is providing a high-quality shopping experience for your customers, including optimizing product details pages and images, leveraging advertising campaigns and Amazon Posts, and assessing whether your pricing is right. You can improve your sales ranking and grow your business on Amazon by focusing on providing value, building trust, and making it easy for customers to find and buy your products.