How To Choose the Right Amazon Product Category and Browsing Tree Guides

Similarly to Google search results, customers on Amazon are more likely to view products listed on page one of their search results. For this reason, ensuring a high level of discoverability and product ranking is key to remaining competitive on Amazon – especially at a time when there are more sellers on Amazon than ever before.

 

What Are Product Categories on Amazon?

Amazon’s overarching goal is to provide customers with a positive, comprehensive experience that bolsters their purchasing confidence. To achieve this goal, each product listed on Amazon is defined by their attributes (product name, manufacturer, product traits, etc.) and is placed into an appropriate category and subcategory.

Choosing the right product category and browsing tree is imperative to enhancing discoverability and product ranking because it directly affects keyword optimization used within the title, bullets, and description of the product listing.

Amazon refers to product categories, and subsequent levels of subcategories, as the “Browsing Tree Guide (BTG)”. Categories and subcategories allow sellers to list their products in the product areas that are most relevant to their offering, while also allowing customers to optimize their search results for the products they are looking to purchase.

 

How the Browsing Tree Guide (BTG) Helps Optimize Product Listings

Amazon’s BTG enables customers to find products through search and browse and allows them to further refine their searches by choosing specific product categories and subcategories. As a seller, choosing the right BTG is key for optimizing discoverability and maximizing sales.

 

How the Number of Competitors Per Category Can Affect Sales and Revenue

Short answer: The more competitors in a product category, the more difficult product differentiation becomes, which may result in lower sales and revenue. For this reason, and this reason alone, searching and understanding the competition in each product category is critical to developing a winning sales strategy.

 

Capitalizing on Best Seller Rank

Profitability is the obvious consideration when choosing which products and product categories to sell on Amazon. Choosing an oversaturated product and/or category could create a recipe for disaster if unable to achieve product and marketing differentiation. As you may know, certain product categories possess a higher profit margin compared to others. For example, entering a product category that contains 1,000 competitors, versus a space that contains 100,000 competitors, provides a greater opportunity to maximize marketing efforts and increase sales.

 

Maximizing Keywords Within an Amazon Listing

Amazon search results are largely based on product keywords. Identifying and incorporating product-specific keywords into key areas of a product’s listing – title, bullet points, description, and back-end keywords – is absolutely essential to enhancing discoverability. Using the wrong keywords within the right (or wrong) product category will almost guarantee lower consumer viewership and sales.

 

Category Terms of Service (TOS)

Amazon provides sellers with an opportunity to classify their products based on search terms and product categories to enhance discoverability. Adhering to Amazon’s goal of using the product catalog to differentiate products based on attributes can lead to enhanced product views and sales. In the past, to stand out amongst the crowd of competitors, sellers would knowingly misclassify their products to maximize viewership and sales. Amazon has since cracked down on this deceptive practice and has advised sellers of the ramifications of such actions, which could result in account suspension or deactivation.

Remember, as a seller, properly describing and distributing your products is essential for building consumer and brand confidence. First impressions are key—for people and brands alike—so be mindful of the experience your customers are receiving.

 

Choosing the Right Product Category

Product classification is the most crucial, yet arguably the hardest, part of the sales process for many sellers. In addition to competing with similar products, they are also competing with Amazon-branded products in their category. Identifying underserved products and product categories may help increase product revenue, reduce the cost of advertising, and—ideally—help sellers stay ahead of sales trends, if properly researched and identified.

 

The ZQUARED Advantage

At ZQUARED, we assist our Brand Partners in establishing fully optimized Amazon product listings, including proper categorization. Our teams of industry-leading experts understand the complexities of establishing, maintaining, refreshing, and staying compliant with Amazon product listings, and we take the guesswork out of the equation by helping to establish and maintain control of a brand’s presence.

We provide end-to-end solutions that focus on growing our clients’ businesses through advanced strategies and execution, proprietary technology, forecasting tools, logistical support, product distribution, and more.

For more information about how ZQUARED can enhance your Amazon selling capabilities, contact our team at 234-978-2733.

 

About ZQUARED

ZQUARED invests in brands who sell on Amazon and are poised and ready for growth. Born from a service mindset, our passion is helping you navigate the online retail space in a way never imagined. With more than a decade of industry-leading experience selling on Amazon, we form partnerships rooted in collaboration to maximize value and achieve results.

Managing all aspects of the Amazon platform for your brand is a top priority. We offer full-suite services, including design, fulfillment, product listings, enhanced brand content, headline and sponsored ads and MAP violation support. Understanding all aspects of this sales channel can be overwhelming. We break down every aspect of your brand and what you will need to increase sales on Amazon.

To learn more about how ZQUARED can help you stay ahead of Amazon’s ever-changing rules, fill out our Contact Us form, or email us at partners@zquared.com.