How to Recognize Costly Keywords and ASINs That Will Not Generate Sales

Before you start a new online business or launch a new product on the Amazon platform, it’s of high importance to create the right strategy so your business can be profitable. Of course, the starting point of each plan includes detailed research, finding new keywords and ASINs that can bring profits, and negation of those that are giving you unnecessary spending without generating sales. 

In this article, we will explain which keywords and ASINs are expensive and unprofitable and how to recognize them.  

Irrelevant Keywords  

You can recognize these keywords if you know your product’s characteristics well. They are not relevant to your product, and it is unnecessary to advertise it with them because you will have a high spend without sales and with a high number of clicks. You can put them to the Negative exact or Negative phrase to avoid unnecessary costs, and your products won’t appear for those irrelevant keywords. 

For example, suppose a shopper types in the search box on the Amazon platform the phrase “red socks.” They know exactly what they are searching for, and your product doesn’t match this keyword. In that case, you will have an unnecessary spend since the chance they will buy your product is minimal. 

New, inexperienced sellers often get into a trap and target many irrelevant keywords that bring them a high number of impressions and clicks without sales because the targeted keywords are not relevant to the product’s characteristics.  

This is also important for the targeted ASINs because irrelevant products that you target or relevant products with a different price range won’t bring you profits. It’s crucial to target competitors’ ASINs relevant to your product with a similar price range so you can increase your chance to make sales. 

Relevant Keywords 

You will do a big part of your job once you eliminate all irrelevant keywords, and you’ll be on the right track to make your account profitable. But you can’t neglect those relevant keywords bringing you high spending with a low number of orders or 0 orders. These keywords are harder to recognize because many factors can be the reason behind this situation. 

For example, if a competitor is also bidding on the same keywords you are bidding for, they can make sales before you if they have some promotion or if their product is cheaper than yours. Here, you can look at all relevant keywords with high search volume. That way, you can know in advance which keywords can have high spend with a high number of clicks without sales.  

Also, the cost per click (CPC) is higher with the most relevant keywords with a high search volume. So you can assume that you will invest more money in those keywords because most of your competitors are also bidding on them. If your product is cheaper, sometimes a few clicks with higher CPC can cross the border for the profitability of your account.  

In this case, you should do new keyword research and find relevant keywords that are synonyms or have lower search volume to rank for those keywords and increase your sales. 

Also, the CPC is lower with those keywords with lower search volume, so you will make your account more profitable. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you will generate sales with those most relevant keywords. In the sea of keywords, you will find some of them that competitors are bidding less for, and you will increase your chance to rank your product at the top of the search and increase sales.  

Specific Search Terms  

In the end, some specific search terms apply to your product, but they are not generating sales. They have a lot of competitors, but still cost a lot and are not profitable. You can find these keywords with a detailed analysis of search term reports and existing campaigns and see concrete search terms with high spending and no sales.  

You can download the search term report for a longer period (30 days and more) and sort your data according to high spending without sales. Also, you can filter all search terms with a higher number of impressions and a high CTR (above 2%) without sales because there you have to eliminate these search terms. 

Conclusion 

The competition on Amazon is fierce for almost every keyword, and many sellers are struggling to keep the profitability of their accounts. Therefore, it is really important to recognize the keywords and ASINs which aren’t generating sales but bringing unnecessary spending instead. 

Finding them on time can differentiate between a successful and unsuccessful account. Every brand is unique, and so are the products. The goal is to find the right keyword and ASINs to improve your sales and get a higher rank for your advertised products.  

About the author

Nikola Andjelković is a PPC Specialist at Sellers Alley with over two years of experience in Amazon PPC. He has a curious and patient nature, and he is a true research enthusiast who uses those virtues to analyze clients’ accounts and help them reach their goals successfully. Nikola is team-oriented and always there for his co-workers to help them with any questions and tasks.