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How to Run Amazon Ads for Books: A Deep Dive for Authors

Running Amazon ads for your books can feel like navigating a complex maze, but it doesn’t have to be. The key is understanding the system, targeting effectively, and continuously optimizing your campaigns. Let’s break down the process, from initial setup to achieving profitable returns.

Understanding Amazon Advertising for Books

Amazon Advertising, specifically through Amazon Ads, is a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising program. For authors, it’s a powerful tool to increase visibility and drive sales of their books on the platform. Unlike traditional marketing, you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. This allows for precise budget control and performance tracking. The system primarily revolves around keywords, targeting options, and ad creative (your book’s cover and description). Getting these right is critical.

Step-by-Step Guide to Launching Your Amazon Ads Campaign

Here’s a detailed walkthrough of setting up your first Amazon Ads campaign:

1. Accessing Amazon Advertising

Amazon KDP Account: Ensure you have an active Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) account. You’ll manage your ad campaigns through this platform.
Amazon Advertising Console: Navigate to the “Advertising” tab within your KDP dashboard. This is your central hub for creating and managing campaigns.

2. Choosing Your Campaign Type

Amazon offers several ad types, but for books, Sponsored Products ads are generally the most effective and easiest to manage, especially when starting out. These ads appear in search results and on product detail pages, blending seamlessly with organic listings.

3. Setting Up Your Campaign

Campaign Name: Choose a descriptive name to easily identify your campaign (e.g., “Thriller_KeywordTargeting”).
Start and End Dates: You can set specific start and end dates or run your campaign continuously. Continuous running is recommended, but always monitor performance.
Daily Budget: Set a daily budget that you’re comfortable spending. Start small (e.g., $5-$10) and scale up as you see positive results.
Targeting: This is arguably the most important step. You have two primary options:
- Automatic Targeting: Amazon automatically targets ads to relevant keywords and products based on your book’s information. This is a good starting point for gathering data.
- Manual Targeting: You choose the keywords and/or product categories you want to target. This offers greater control and potential for higher ROI.
Bidding Strategy: Select a bidding strategy. Options include:
- Dynamic Bids – Down Only: Amazon will lower your bid in real-time if they believe a click is less likely to result in a sale. This is a conservative approach.
- Dynamic Bids – Up and Down: Amazon will adjust your bid up or down based on the likelihood of a sale. This is a more aggressive strategy, but requires careful monitoring.
- Fixed Bids: Your bid remains constant regardless of the likelihood of a sale.
Create an Ad Group: Group similar books under one ad group.

4. Keyword Research and Selection (Manual Targeting)

Brainstorming: Start by listing keywords related to your book’s genre, themes, characters, and target audience.
Amazon Search: Use Amazon’s search bar to see what keywords people are using to find books like yours. Pay attention to suggested searches.
Keyword Research Tools: Consider using tools like Publisher Rocket, Sonar, or Keyword Tool to discover high-volume, relevant keywords.
Keyword Types: Understand the different keyword match types:
- Broad Match: Your ad may appear for related searches, even if they don’t contain your exact keyword. (e.g., “thriller novel”)
- Phrase Match: Your ad will appear for searches that contain your keyword phrase in the exact order, or with additional words before or after. (e.g., “best thriller novel”)
- Exact Match: Your ad will only appear for searches that exactly match your keyword. (e.g., “[thriller novel]”)
- Pro Tip: It’s often recommended to bid higher on exact match, as this is the most relevant traffic. Start with broad match to find potential keyword opportunities.
Negative Keywords: Add negative keywords to prevent your ads from appearing for irrelevant searches. For example, if your book is not a romance, add “romance” as a negative keyword.

5. Writing Compelling Ad Copy (Sponsored Brands Ads)

While Sponsored Products ads primarily use your book’s existing title, cover, and description, if you eventually decide to use Sponsored Brands ads you will need to write ad copy. This is where you craft persuasive headlines and descriptions that highlight your book’s unique selling points. Think about what makes your book stand out and appeal to your target reader. A/B test different ad copies to see what performs best.

6. Monitoring and Optimizing Your Campaign

Track Key Metrics: Regularly monitor your campaign’s performance, paying attention to impressions, clicks, click-through rate (CTR), ad spend, sales, and Advertising Cost of Sales (ACoS).
ACOS Analysis: ACOS measures the percentage of your ad spend that goes towards sales. Aim for an ACOS that aligns with your profit margins. If your ACOS is too high, consider lowering your bids or refining your targeting.
Keyword Refinement: Add or remove keywords based on their performance. Focus on keywords that are driving sales and eliminate those that are wasting your ad spend.
Bid Adjustments: Increase bids on high-performing keywords and decrease bids on low-performing keywords.
A/B Testing: Experiment with different targeting options, keywords, and ad copy (if using Sponsored Brands).
Continuous Improvement: Amazon Ads is an ongoing process. Continuously monitor, analyze, and optimize your campaigns to achieve the best results.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is ACoS and why is it important?

Advertising Cost of Sales (ACoS) is a key metric that measures the efficiency of your Amazon Ads campaign. It’s calculated as (Ad Spend / Sales) x 100. A lower ACoS indicates that your ads are generating a good return on investment. Aim for an ACoS that is lower than your profit margin on each book sale.

2. What is a good starting daily budget for my Amazon Ads campaign?

A good starting daily budget is typically between $5-$10. This allows you to gather data without spending too much money initially. You can then scale up your budget as you see positive results.

3. How do I choose the right keywords for my book?

Conduct thorough keyword research using Amazon’s search bar, keyword research tools, and brainstorming. Focus on keywords that are relevant to your book’s genre, themes, characters, and target audience. Consider both short-tail (e.g., “thriller”) and long-tail (e.g., “best thriller novel set in Paris”) keywords.

4. What’s the difference between automatic and manual targeting?

Automatic targeting allows Amazon to automatically target your ads to relevant keywords and products. Manual targeting gives you control over which keywords and/or product categories you want to target. Manual targeting offers greater control and potential for higher ROI, but requires more effort.

5. Should I use broad match, phrase match, or exact match keywords?

The best approach is to use a combination of all three. Start with broad match to discover new keyword opportunities, then refine your targeting with phrase match and exact match keywords. Bid higher on exact match keywords, as they are the most relevant.

6. How often should I check and optimize my Amazon Ads campaigns?

You should check your campaigns at least once a week, and ideally more frequently (every 2-3 days), especially when you’re first starting out. Look for trends in your data and make adjustments to your bids, keywords, and targeting as needed.

7. What is a “negative keyword” and why should I use them?

A negative keyword prevents your ads from appearing for irrelevant searches. This helps you to save money by ensuring that your ads are only shown to people who are likely to be interested in your book.

8. How can I improve my book’s cover to make it more appealing in Amazon Ads?

Your book cover is your first impression. Make sure it’s high-resolution, eye-catching, and clearly conveys your book’s genre. Consider A/B testing different cover designs to see which performs best.

9. What is the best bidding strategy to use on Amazon Ads?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Dynamic bids – down only is a conservative approach, while dynamic bids – up and down is more aggressive. Start with dynamic bids – down only and gradually experiment with other strategies as you gain more experience.

10. Can I run Amazon Ads for free books or books in Kindle Unlimited?

Yes, you can run Amazon Ads for free books and books enrolled in Kindle Unlimited (KU). For free books, the goal is to increase downloads and build your audience. For KU books, the goal is to increase page reads.

11. What reporting should I run to analyze my campaigns?

The most important report is the Search Term report, which shows you the actual search terms people used when they clicked on your ad. Use this report to identify new keywords and negative keywords. Also analyze the Advertising report for overall campaign performance.

12. Are Amazon Ads the only marketing I should be doing?

Absolutely not! Amazon Ads should be part of a broader marketing strategy. Continue to focus on building your email list, engaging on social media, and reaching out to book reviewers and influencers. Consider it as one important part of the whole ecosystem to drive discoverability for your book.