Amazon’s recent announcement of their new integrated AI tool COSMO, described as a scalable system for mining user-centric common sense knowledge, is predicted to revolutionize Amazon search navigation, moving away from traditional product-centric taxonomies towards a customer focused approach.
The introduction of COSMO makes building out backend attributes even more important to make products even easier for shoppers to find. Keeping all your ASINs Retail Ready and complete at all times can help increase catalog discoverability, conversion and many other important metrics. Additionally, catalog completeness offers shoppers a more enhanced experience, leading to less consumers bouncing from the PDP to get questions answered.
However, an important part of catalog completeness that isn’t always prioritized are backend product attributes. With these attributes becoming more consumer-facing in recent years, they are proving to be just as critical as having a great title. Product attributes can range from the color and size of the product to the closure type and intended use of the product. Available product attributes differ depending on the product category. It’s important to know what attributes are available and relevant in the categories you are selling in for a few reasons:
Search Relevance
Amazon's search algorithm relies heavily on backend keywords to match products with user queries. By including relevant backend attributes, sellers increase the chances of their products appearing in relevant search results, leading to higher visibility and potentially more sales. Pairing relevant keywords in your content and accurate product attributes is a great way to ensure strong search relevancy.
Competitive Advantage
Including backend attributes that accurately describe the product allows sellers to differentiate their listings from competitors'. This can help attract potential customers who are looking for specific features or qualities that your product offers.
Enhanced Product Discovery
Detailed backend attributes help customers find products more easily through various filters and browsing options on Amazon's platform. This improves the overall user experience and increases the likelihood of conversions. Some shoppers are searching for specific product features or are using the available filters on the left hand side of the SERP. The filters pull directly from product attributes, helping to ensure your ASINs are easy to find and not being filtered out easily. For example, if a shopper is looking for a “coffee tumbler,” and utilizes the left hand side filters to ensure their choice is lead free, any ASIN that does not have lead free filled out in the ‘material type free’ field in the backend will be filtered out from the search and lose discoverability.
Optimized Product Listings
Backend attributes contribute to the overall optimization of product listings. They enable sellers to provide additional information about their products, which can improve the clarity and completeness of listings, leading to higher conversion rates. Additionally, with COSMO on the horizon, having fully optimized product listings on both the front and back end will allow the tool to have more accurate product-centric taxonomies. For shoppers, having ample information also translates to less returns and negative reviews.
Targeted Advertising
Backend attributes can also be used for targeted advertising campaigns on Amazon. By including relevant keywords and descriptors, sellers can ensure that their ads are displayed to the right audience, further increasing the chances of conversion.
While often overlooked because they are not consumer-facing, backend product attributes play a crucial role in improving product visibility, competitiveness, and overall sales performance on Amazon's platform. They are essential for optimizing product listings completely and maximizing the chances of success in the highly competitive marketplace. Code3 SEO Strategists recommend checking the backend product attributes of your listings once every few months to ensure they remain accurate, completed, and no additional fields have been added (as Amazon is known to do without any notice!).