Optimizing PPC Campaigns: Lower ACoS, Higher Revenue

Amazon PPC can be a revenue driver or a margin killer. In this guide, we show advanced strategies to lower your ACoS while increasing revenue at the same time.

Understanding PPC Basics

The Most Important Metrics

• ACoS (Advertising Cost of Sale): Ad spend / ad revenue × 100
• TACoS (Total ACoS): Ad spend / total revenue × 100
• ROAS: Ad revenue / ad spend
• CTR (Click-Through-Rate): Clicks / impressions
• CPC (Cost per Click): Average cost per click

The Optimal Campaign Structure

A clean structure is the basis for optimisation:

Recommended Structure

📁 Product Group A
  ├── 🎯 Auto Campaign (Research)
  ├── 🔍 Manual Broad (Test keywords)
  ├── 🎯 Manual Phrase (Medium precision)
  ├── ⭐ Manual Exact (Performers)
  └── 🛡️ ASIN Targeting (Competitor)
            

The Research-to-Performance Model

1. Auto campaigns: Find new keywords
2. Broad/Phrase: Test promising keywords
3. Exact: Scale proven performers

Keyword Research

Sources for Keywords

• Auto campaign reports: Analyse the Search Term Report
• Amazon Brand Analytics: Popular search terms
• Competitor analysis: What are others ranking for?
• Amazon search bar: Autocomplete suggestions

Keyword Qualification

Not every keyword is equally valuable. Qualify by:

• Relevance: Does the keyword fit your product?
• Search volume: Enough traffic?
• Purchase intent: Buying or just researching?
• Competition: How expensive are the clicks?

Bidding Strategies

Strategy 1: Tiered Bidding

Different bids for different placements:

• Top of Search: +50% (highest conversion)
• Product Pages: Standard bid
• Rest of Search: -20% (lower conversion)

Strategy 2: Dayparting

Adjust bids by time of day:

• Prime time (6-10pm): Higher bids
• At night (0-6am): Lower bids
• Weekend: Adjust depending on category

Strategy 3: Performance-Based Bidding

Ongoing Optimisation

Weekly Tasks

• Search Term Report: Find new keywords, add negatives
• Adjust bids: Increase performers, lower underperformers
• Budget allocation: Shift budget to successful campaigns

Negative Keywords

Just as important as positive keywords! Add as negatives:

• Irrelevant search terms (e.g. "free", "used")
• Keywords with high costs but no conversions
• Brand keywords of other manufacturers (sometimes)

Advanced Tactics

ASIN Targeting

Show your ads on competitors' product pages:

• Choose products with worse reviews than yours
• Choose products with a higher price
• Test both category and product targeting

Sponsored Brands

For brand-registered sellers - use them to:

• Build brand awareness
• Promote several products at once
• Video ads for higher engagement rates

Conclusion

Profitable PPC requires continuous optimisation:

1. Structure: Build a clean campaign architecture
2. Keywords: Research and qualify continuously
3. Bidding: Data-based bidding strategy
4. Optimisation: Weekly reviews and adjustments
5. Experiments: Test new tactics