More and more households own an Amazon echo device or a similar device that works with Amazon’s speech assistant Alexa. Accordingly, the number of orders placed by voice searches increases accordingly. The language-based search differs in some aspects from the text-based search and therefore also in its results. Since the number of Alexa devices sold is increasing, it can be assumed that voice search will also become more and more important in the future. If you want to sell successfully on Amazon, you should not ignore this trend and search engine optimization on Amazon also with regard to Alexa. For this reason, the following article is intended to answer all questions about language-based searches and orders with Amazon Alexa and to provide assistance with Amazon Alexa SEO.
What is Amazon Alexa and what makes it so popular?
Alexa is the name of Amazon’s now well-known language assistant, which is supported by various devices. The cheapest way to use Alexa is the small Bluetooth loudspeaker Echo Dot. There are, however, even more devices from Amazon that can use Alexa, such as the larger Bluetooth boxes Amazon Echo and Echo Plus, Echo Spot and Echo Show, which also have a display, or the Alexa voice remote control that comes with the Fire TV Stick.
The different devices maximize the likelihood that there is something for everyone. Amazon brings its language assistant to as many households as possible. Amazon has discovered the trend of smart home products in time and has (quite successfully) jumped on the bandwagon. What makes Alexa so popular is probably the fact that with the Echo Dot every household can become a „Smart Home“ for less than 60 Euro. Functions such as voice-controlled orders and voice-controlled device operation are basically made accessible to everyone.
Why should the Alexa language search be optimized?
According to a representative survey by PwC in Germany, 5% of respondents already use an Alexa device in their household. This corresponds to more than 4 million households across Germany. ComScore, an American market research institute, even predicts that by 2020 half of all search queries will be language searches. Finally, there are language assistants like Siri or Google Assistant in addition to Alexa. Amazon Echo, and thus Alexa, however, has by far the highest market share and thus the highest relevance with between 70 and 76 percent.
The biggest difference between orders via Alexa and the common text-based search is that a result page on the desktop presents 16 results (mobile 14), while Alexa only suggests one result to the user. If the user is satisfied with the proposal, he can confirm the purchase. In this case, the customer only perceives the one product suggested to him/her, without seeing any further search results as with the desktop or mobile search. From this it can be concluded that the seller whose product is suggested by Alexa will receive by far the most orders, while other results will receive little or no attention at all. Since the number of households with Alexa devices is increasing, the optimization of Alexa speech search is quite relevant.
How does Alexa decide which product to suggest?
Alexa offers some features to make everyday life easier for the user, but in this article we focus on the voice-controlled placement of Amazon orders. If you own an Alexa device, you can simply say out loud what you want to order. Alexa can be spoken to intuitively instead of working with keywords as in a text-based search.
Amazon began some time ago to label products with „Amazon’s Choice“ for certain product categories in order to point out products with a good price-performance ratio to customers. In the voice search Alexa uses these marked and Amazon selected products and suggests them to the user. However, there is not an Amazon’s Choice product available for every category. In such a case, Amazon will use the result that has the best ranking for the search query and will be sent with Amazon Prime. Prime-shipment is a basic requirement to be considered by Alexa, because she can only order prime-products for her users. If no prime product is available for the search query, the user must order the product manually.
How do I maximize my chances of being selected by Alexa?
As already mentioned, Alexa uses Amazon’s Choice to select products. The most obvious option is therefore: Optimize your products to receive the Amazon’s Choice award. Don’t be unsettled if there is already a correspondingly excellent product for your category, because the selected product can change at any time. Therefore, the optimization should not end with reaching the goal.
Tip: If you already have an Amazon’s Choice product in your category, take a closer look at it.
– What are the most striking differences to your own product?
– How many ratings does the product have and how high is the average rating?
– What is the price?
But what factors play a role if you want to receive the „Amazon’s Choice“ award? The exact algorithm by which the products are selected is unknown.
However, the following aspects seem to play a role:
Amazon Prime: It is essential to offer your own products with Prime if you want Alexa to consider them. On the one hand Amazon’s Choice attaches importance to fast delivery and availability and on the other hand Alexa can only order prime products. That’s why Alexa will always prefer prime products.
Product reviews: Make sure that your customers leave positive feedback for your products. Of course, they must be satisfied with the product. Make sure you help them with problems and that the thumbnails match the actual product. If you pack your products yourself, do it carefully so that they reach the customer undamaged. Fast delivery and availability should be ensured by Amazon Prime.
Sales: Sales figures also play a major role. If you own an external online store, redirect customers to Amazon. However, it is best to do so only when the purchase is concluded, as customers are already very willing to buy the product and the conversion rate is thus positively influenced. How generally more sales can be generated on Amazon is explained in the section „Achieving the highest ranking“. In short, you should pay attention to appealing thumbnails, preferably no shipping costs, Amazon Prime as well as positive product reviews, product reviews and seller ratings.
Fair price: Amazon’s Choice wants to offer customers products with a good price-performance ratio. Your price doesn’t have to be the lowest, but should be attractive in view of the competition and the product.
Other aspects that have not been officially confirmed but can play a role are seller ratings and a low return rate. By focusing on these aspects, you can definitely increase the chance that your products will be awarded „Amazon’s Choice„.
Optimizing for better rankings
If no Amazon’s Choice product is available for the category, Alexa usually suggests the highest ranked, prime qualified result for the search query. If you are selling products in such a category, it is important to search engine optimization for Amazon to get your product to first place.
In the case of Alexa, it’s really important to get to the first place, because it’s possible that the customer will only get this one. Below are some tips on how to run SEO on Amazon to improve your product ranking:
Relevance for the search query: In a search, Amazon first filters out those products that are relevant for the search query. Your product description should therefore contain important keywords for potential customers to search for.
Appealing thumbnails: Choose advantageous images for your products that show them clearly and easily. They should motivate the customer to click on the result.
Appealing title: Amazon will help you choose the title for each category. These should be used. It is important that the title is legible and appealing and not only consists of a complex sequence of keywords.
Product descriptions: The key points and descriptions on the product page should also be clearly laid out and easy to read. They are intended to provide the customer with honest information about the product and thus encourage them to buy it.
Fair price: Make sure that you don’t overestimate the price and that there aren’t too many cheaper competitor products.
Shipping costs: Amazon customers naturally prefer to order free shipping.
Amazon Prime: Offer your products with Amazon Prime. Prime-shipment increases the conversion rate very much and is also a valuable ranking factor. Prime is also essential for Alexa.
Product reviews: It is important that your customers are satisfied with your products and leave positive feedback. It is obvious that products with good ratings are much more likely to be viewed and bought.
Vendor ratings: You should also pay attention to seller ratings. Provide your customers with satisfactory support and ensure the fastest possible delivery times.
If you consider these aspects, your conversion rate and click-through rate (CTR) will improve significantly, which will ultimately lead to more sales and significantly increase your ranking.
Because the main question Amazon asks itself with regard to the products is whether the listing of the product leads to sales for the particular search query. The more this is the case, the better your ranking will be.
To generate as many sales as possible is very important for Amazon Alexa. On the one hand it improves your ranking, on the other hand it increases the probability that customers will order again and again from you. If you offer products that are bought again and again, such as coffee pads, you increase the likelihood that Alexa users will order them back from you. Alexa knows which product the customer has already bought and will suggest first to reorder the same product. If the customer was satisfied with the product, he/she will agree to the re-purchase without considering further offers.
Amazon Alexa SEO conclusion
Whoever wants to sell successfully via Amazon Alexa should therefore try to receive the „Amazon’s Choice“ award for his products or to obtain the highest ranking for relevant search queries. In both cases, the product should be optimized and sales figures increased. The most important aspect to consider for Alexa is the shipping through Amazon Prime.
