Why Your Amazon Product Isn’t Ranking: Amazon Product Ranking Algorithm

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Amazon Product Ranking Algorithm: Want your product to rank at the top of Amazon search results? Unfortunately, many sellers find their listings languishing on page two or three even after running sponsored product campaigns. Without that coveted first-page visibility, your Amazon product likely won’t get the sales and attention it deserves.

Figuring out why your product isn’t ranking can be frustrating. There are so many potential factors at play, from optimizing images to targeting the right keywords. You might pour money into PPC only to find you haven’t moved up at all in the search results.

In this post, we’ll walk through the 7 most common reasons an Amazon product fails to rank highly and how you can fix them. Whether it’s an issue with your product category, title, review count, or keyword targeting strategy, we’ve got you covered. With over a decade of combined experience launching and optimizing Amazon products, we want to share our insider tips to help you troubleshoot and boost your rankings.

By the end of this guide, you’ll understand:

– The 3 core ranking factors you need to optimize

– Common back-end errors that tank your product’s category relevance  

– How to structure keywords and campaigns to drive ranking revenue

– The key places to prominently feature keywords in your listing

Follow our step-by-step game plan to diagnose what’s holding your product back from page one. With focus and persistence, you can unlock the visibility and sales your product deserves. Let’s get started!

Amazon Product Ranking Algorithm: Optimize Your Amazon Category to Match Competitors

Selecting the right product category is crucial for ranking relevancy on Amazon. Even if your category seems accurate on the front-end, errors can lurk in the back-end data that tank your product’s ability to rank.

When researching competitors, pay attention to the specific browsing path that leads to their product pages. For example, a garlic press would be found under:

Kitchen & Dining > Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets > Garlic Presses

This is the category path that Amazon’s algorithm uses to determine relevancy and ranking factor weights.

To verify your category:

– Carefully browse to your product page and copy the full category path

– Download your Category Listing Report in Seller Central

– Under Product Information, check the Product Type column

This category should exactly match the browsing path to your page. If not, you likely have a back-end error hurting your rankings.

For example, your product page shows Kitchen Utensils, but the report lists Appliances. This mismatch means you aren’t ranking for the right keywords and searches.

To fix:

– Open a case with Amazon Seller Support

– Explain the mismatch between your page and report

– Request they update the category to match your competitors

Getting this fundamental ranking factor corrected can significantly boost your visibility. Just a small category tweak can make a big difference in how Amazon weighs your product’s relevance.

Craft a Compelling Title and Images to Boost CTR

Amazon shoppers make snap judgments on products. You only have seconds to grab their attention and persuade them to click for more details. That’s why optimizing conversion rate factors on your listing is critical.

Focus first on perfecting your title tag and main image. These are the first things a potential buyer sees in search results.  

Your title should:

– Be concise yet descriptive (under 200 characters)

– Include your main keyword naturally  

– Highlight your product’s key features/benefits

For example, a good title for a garlic press:

Stainless Steel Garlic Press – Easy Roller Design Crushes Garlic Cloves Quickly

For the main image:

– Show the product in use or highlighting the most important features

– Use professional photography and eye-catching design

– Ensure the image is 1500×1500 pixels

Having too few or only mediocre reviews also hurts conversion rates. Aim for at least 50+ positive 4+ star reviews. Promote your product through giveaways or discounts to build up your reviews.

Finally, check that the rest of your listing is optimized for conversion:

– Supplement your title with bullet points highlighting key features

– Use all available listing images to showcase your product  

– Add A+ content to convince shoppers on your product page

By perfecting these elements, you’ll see your click through rate and conversion rate rise. And that equates to better ranking potential on Amazon.

TargetMultiple Long-Tail Keywords, Not Just the Main One  

Many sellers make the mistake of focusing on just one main keyword. In reality, there are multiple related long-tail keywords that can help you rank for your primary term.  

For example, don’t just target “garlic press”. Also target:

– stainless steel garlic press

– garlic press for kitchen  

– wooden garlic press

– garlic press with container

Like this:

And other variations. Start ranking for these long-tail versions first. Long-tail keywords tend to have less competition and are easier to rank for as a new product.

Once you begin gaining ground on the related long-tail terms, it will be easier to rank for the main keyword. The extra revenue you are driving on the long-tail keywords gives you more authority when competing for the primary keyword.

A good rule of thumb is to identify at least 10-20 long-tail variations to target that include your primary term. Make sure to do thorough keyword research to discover all relevant long-tail opportunities.

The best tools for long-tail research are:

– Amazon Autocomplete

– Keyword Keg

– Jungle Scout

– Helium 10

Take the time to build comprehensive, targeted keyword lists. By ranking well for all keyword variations, you maximize revenue on searches for your product. This ultimately feeds into higher rankings on the competitive main keywords in your niche.

Use Separate Campaigns for Each Match Type

On Amazon PPC campaigns, you can target keywords in exact match, phrase match, or broad match. Many sellers make the mistake of combining all match types in one campaign. This causes poor conversion rates and hurts your product’s ability to rank.

Instead, separate out each match type into its own campaign. This allows you to optimize bids and targeting more effectively.

For example, create campaigns like:

– Garlic Press – Exact Match

– Garlic Press – Phrase Match

– Garlic Press – Broad Match

Be sure to only include your primary keyword in the exact match campaign. For phrase and broad match campaigns, add your target keyword as a negative exact match keyword.

This prevents irrelevant searches from triggering your ads and diluting your campaign’s relevancy. For example:

– Garlic Press – Phrase Match

  – Negative Keywords: garlic press

– Garlic Press – Broad Match

 – Negative Keywords: “garlic press”

By isolating match types, you can maximize conversion rates on your most important keywords. This helps generate more revenue and reinforce rankings on the terms that matter most.

Pay close attention to the search query reports in each campaign. Add any irrelevant terms popping up as additional negatives. Tight match type alignment leads to greater success.

Monitor Impression Share and Budget to Ensure Visibility  

Two key indicators of revenue opportunity for a keyword are impression share and daily budget burn rate. Keep an eye on these to ensure your product has sufficient visibility to gain rankings.

Impression share is the percentage of times your ad is shown when your keyword is searched. A higher impression share means your product is getting seen more often by potential buyers.

Aim for an impression share of at least 20-30%. If your impression share is low, increase your keyword bid to improve visibility.

You can also check your impression share ranking. This shows your ad position relative to competitors. Try to maintain an impression share rank of 1-3 to get your ad consistently seen.

Budget burn rate is also telling. If your campaign budget is getting used up too quickly, you may not have sufficient visibility throughout the day.

Analyze your hourly trends to see if you are hitting your daily cap early on and then missing out on potential impressions later.

Consider increasing your daily budget if:

– Your campaign ends by mid-day or earlier

– Your impression share is low but you are hitting caps often

The goal is to show your ads consistently throughout the day without capping out. Always being present when shoppers search will maximize revenue and increase your chances of ranking well.

Check these metrics frequently and make adjustments. Gaining consistent visibility is essential both for sales and for ranking over the long-term.

Use Separate Campaigns for Each Keyword You Want to Rank For

Amazon’s advertising algorithm seeks to maximize revenue across your entire account. This can work against you if you have too many keywords stuffed into one campaign.  

The algorithm may shift budget away from your priority keyword that you are trying to rank for. Instead that budget gets spent on other keywords with higher converting searches.

Avoid this issue by creating tightly focused, separate campaigns for each keyword you want to rank highly for.

For example, instead of:

Garlic Presses

– garlic press

– garlic crusher

– garlic tool

– garlic gadget

Do:

Garlic Press (priority keyword)

Garlic Crusher

Garlic Tool

Garlic Gadget

This prevents the high-priority keywords you are targeting for organic ranking from getting cannibalized. All the budget you allocate gets directed exactly where you want it to go.

Limit campaigns to 1-2 keywords each if they are important for ranking. Going broader is fine for supplementary keywords that you just want to generate revenue on.

But for ranking objectives, isolation and focus is key. Let the algorithm work for you, not against you, by being intentional with campaign structures.

Optimize Keyword Placement in Title and Listing Content

Strategically Place Keywords in Your Title and Listing

Proper keyword placement is vital for Amazon’s SEO success. You want to work your target keywords into prominent positions throughout your listing. This signals relevancy to Amazon’s algorithm. Follow these best practices:

In Your Title

• Include your primary keyword if possible
• Keep the title under 200 characters in total
• Avoid awkward/overstuffed phrasing

For example:

Stainless Steel Garlic Press – Easy to Use and Dishwasher Safe

In Your Bullet Points

• Focus on getting keyword in the first 1,000 characters
• If buried farther down, rearrange bullets to move up
• Bold/italicize keyword to make it stand out

Other Listing Areas

• Add keyword in A+ content section if applicable
• Work into any alternate product images naturally
• Include keyword 1-2 times in the back half of the description

Things to Avoid

• Don’t obsess over exactly # of keyword mentions
• Don’t over-optimize with awkward repetition
• Keep focus on prominence and visibility

Proper keyword placement signals relevance to Amazon algorithms. Combined with compelling listing copy, this can directly improve your organic rankings over time.

Conclusion

Boost Your Amazon Rankings with Focus and Persistence

Ranking a product successfully on Amazon takes effort, but the payoff in visibility and sales is immense. By now, you should have a thorough understanding of the most common issues that can tank your product’s rankings.

The key steps we covered were:

• Verifying your product category matches competitors
• Optimizing conversion rates with compelling listings
• Targeting multiple long-tail keyword variations
• Separating campaigns by match type
• Monitoring impression share and budget caps
• Limiting keywords per campaign
• Placing keywords prominently in titles and content

Be systematic in working through each area above. Many times multiple small tweaks are required to start seeing movement. Don’t get discouraged if ranking gains are incremental at first.

With focus and persistence, you can absolutely achieve top search placement, even in competitive categories. The pride of seeing your product on page one, driving tons of traffic, makes all the optimization worth it.

If you found this guide helpful, please subscribe to our email list below for more pro tips. Feel free to reach out with any Amazon ranking questions!