Amazon listing optimization

Start from buyers' questions

Before rewriting anything, collect what buyers actually ask and say: questions in buyer messages, reasons given for returns, points raised in reviews of your product and similar ones, and the words they use to describe what they want. These show which information is missing, which details cause confusion and which benefits matter. A listing that answers those questions in its first lines helps buyers decide faster and reduces returns from mismatched expectations.

Keep the list; it guides every later revision.

What each part of the listing does

What Amazon's US guidance says

Amazon's US seller guidance on search says the product title character limit is 200 and recommends no more than 60, and suggests the title can highlight product type, brand name and descriptive information such as colour or size. It describes the product description as an opportunity to use secondary keywords to expand on features and benefits, warns that keyword stuffing can create a poor customer experience and hurt rankings, and says listing quality and account health can contribute to search rankings. Amazon's US listing guide mentions up to five bullets and up to nine photos.

These come from Amazon's US pages; check the current guidance for the marketplace you sell on.

Content that stays honest

A review cycle

1. 01

   Baseline

   Note current sessions, conversion, returns and questions.

   Output: Starting figures

2. 02

   Rewrite

   Change content based on buyer questions.

   Output: Improved listing

3. 03

   Wait

   Allow enough time and sales for a fair comparison.

   Output: New figures

4. 04

   Compare

   Check what changed, allowing for season and price.

   Output: Evidence

5. 05

   Keep or revise

   Keep what helped; revise what did not.

   Output: Next step

Example: a best seller's returns

Attributes buyers filter on

Buyers narrow results by size, colour, material and other details, and compare products side by side. A product with missing or wrong attribute values may not appear when buyers filter, even if the title and bullets are excellent. Fill attributes from your product master with accurate, consistent values and units, and check them alongside the written content in every review. Attribute work is covered in more detail on the attribute optimisation pages.

Check attributes again after any category change.

Making comparisons fair

Sales change for many reasons: season, price, stock, promotions and competitors. When judging a listing change, compare similar periods, note anything else that changed and give the listing enough time and sales to show a pattern. Change one main thing at a time where possible, so you know what made the difference.

What sits elsewhere

Images and A+ content, advertising and account health are separate pieces of work. A listing review should note where they may be holding a product back, but this page focuses on the written content and attributes.