#089: The Goldilocks Zone of Amazon Ads

Jan 18, 2025

Read Time: 3 Minutes

 

If you've ever set up a brand new Amazon Ads Campaign for your books, excited about the prospects of the keywords you've chosen, only to be severely disappointed a few days in...

You're not alone.

But let's take a step back and figure out why this Campaign flopped.

It all comes down to which keywords you choose, and more specifically, should you target broad keywords with high search volume, or focus in on super-specific keywords that perfectly match your book?

This week, we're diving into the art of finding your keyword sweet spot—what I like to call "The Goldilocks Zone" of Amazon Ads.


The Broad Keyword Trap


Many authors, ourselves included, start by targeting broad keywords such as:
 

→ Romance Novels

→ Fantasy Books

→ Crime Fiction

→ Thriller Novels

Look, I get it... the logic behind these keyword choices seems sound; keywords like this will have a LOT of searches every month. And more searches mean more visibility, right?

Unfortunately, it's not quite that simple (especially when money is involved, which it most definitely is with Amazon Ads).

These broad keywords will often lead to:

→ Sky-high cost per clicks (I've seen authors paying $1.50 or more per click)

→ Poor conversion rates (typically 1%-5%, which is low for Amazon Ads)

→ Rapidly depleted budgets with very few sales to show for it

→ Competing against bestsellers who can easily afford $1-5+ per clicks

On the flip side, I've experienced first-hand, swinging too far in the opposite direction.


The Ultra-Narrow Keyword Problem


Perhaps you've tried extremely specific keywords such as:

→ Second Chance Small Town Veterinarian Romance With Dogs

→ Historical Fantasy Series With Female Protagonist

→ Crime Thriller Set In London In The Style of Jack Reacher

While these sorts of keywords might perfectly describe your book, using such narrow targeting like this can:

→ Result in such low search volume that your Ads rarely get shown

→ Miss potential readers who use slightly different search terms

→ Make it difficult to gather meaningful data for optimization and to make decisions from.

So what's the solution?


Finding Your Goldilocks Zone


The sweet spot of keyword specificity typically lies in what are sometimes referred to as "mid-tail keywords."

These are specific enough to attract the right readers but broad enough to generate meaningful traffic.

Let's look at an example:

Instead of romance books (too broad), or second chance small town veterinarian romance with dogs (too narrow), keywords such as

second chance romance novels, small town romance books and veterinarian romance stand a much better chance of being solid keyword candidates.

Mid-tail Keywords typically offer:

→ Less competition

→ Clear reader intent

→ More affordable cost per clicks (often $0.50-$0.80)

→ Better conversion rates (I've seen 15-25% with well-matched keywords)


The Best of Both


Rather than choosing between broad and narrow keywords, consider using both, but do it strategically:

10% of keyword research budget: Broad keywords such as romance novels or fantasy books

→ Use these sparingly

→ Set lower budgets so you don't overspend

→ Bids will need to be $0.70 - $0.80+ in most genres and sub-genres

→ Monitor closely for performance

→ Use Negative Keywords heavily to reduce wasted Ad Spend

60% of keyword research budget: Mid-tail keywords such as second chance romance

→ Make these your campaign foundation

→ Test different variations

→ Optimize bids based on performance

→ Bid aggressively as these keywords will have a good chance of converting

30% of keyword research budget: Narrow, specific keywords such as small town vet romance

→ Use higher bids for these ultra-relevant terms

→ Monitor impressions and clicks closely

→ Adjust bids based on conversion data and impressions

→ Bid aggressively as these keywords will have the highest chance of converting


Best Practices


Let's wrap things up by covering off some best practices for testing keywords:

→ Start by identifying 5-10 solid mid-tail keywords

→ Set initial bids between $0.50-$0.75

→ Test these keywords for at least two weeks before making major adjustments

→After 2 weeks, spend some time going through the data to look for new keyword ideas

→ Monitor daily and use Negative Keywords to eliminate irrelevant clicks (and wasted Ad Spend)

Keywords and Bids are the 2 most important parts of running Amazon Ads. And it's going to take time, testing and money to find keywords that convert well for your books.

And to be perfectly honest, your keyword research may well end up serving you a few surprises and you'll find keywords that you didn't think would ever convert for your books, but the data is telling you otherwise.

Don't resist it or question it. Lean into it.

Thank you so much for reading and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

To Your Success
– Matt

7 Days To Book Advertising Success As A Fiction Author

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