Amazon Backend Keywords Guide: Character Limit Updates 2024
Just like any search algorithm, Amazon’s A10 analyzes multiple factors when it comes to displaying a final result – keywords being the main source of assessing the relevancy of your products listing. To tell the algorithm that your product is a good option, you obviously need to include as many keywords as possible. Or do you?
Human perception of things is different from that of a machine, often being drawn to captivating titles and engaging, informative content. But for a seller, combining both doesn’t always come with ease without losing on the visibility of a product due to search engine’s peculiarities.
Business owners understand the significance of keywords in amplifying visibility and sales. However, excessively packing keywords into listings, otherwise known as “keyword stuffing,” is known to cause shoppers to view your brand as unreliable. To avoid running into such a situation, backend keywords come to the rescue.
In this article, discover what backend keywords are, how to properly implement them and how these hidden gems can help you “separate” search engines from real customers without losing on your product’s discoverability.
What are Backend Keywords?
To help businesses reach more relevant traffic, Amazon offers backend keywords. Your audience will never see these keywords on your page, but your page will still rank for them, as they appear at the “back end” of your listing.
Search engine rankings are highly dependent on backend keywords, as the algorithm takes them into consideration when deciding on your product’s relevancy. Using them prevents you from stuffing your product title, description and bullet points with dozens of keywords. In this way, sellers keep their product appealing to the human eye, as well as not hindering the indexing of keywords relevant to that listing.
Frontend vs Backend Keywords
Frontend and backend keywords serve distinct yet complementary roles in optimizing product listings on Amazon.
Frontend keywords are the visible, customer-facing terms that appear directly in your product titles, bullet points, and descriptions. They are crafted to attract and inform potential buyers by highlighting key features, benefits, and unique selling points of the product. These words highly affect the algorithm as well, but you shouldn’t forget that it’s not only the “robot” who is going to assess how you incorporate these keywords into your product listing, but real customers too.
You only have so many keywords to include, therefore, strategic placement is crucial. Think of it from a customer perspective: what is it they’d want to learn about your product in the first place? Consider what aspects of your product are most likely to catch a customer’s eye and address their needs by placing these words at the forefront of your content.
Aspect | Frontend Keywords | Backend Keywords |
Visibility | Visible to customers in titles, descriptions, etc. | Hidden from customers; only visible to the Amazon algorithm |
Purpose | To provide direct information and attract customers | To enhance searchability and indexing |
Content | Limited to key phrases that fit naturally into text | Can include synonyms, spelling variations, and long-tail keywords |
Backend keywords, meanwhile, offer the flexibility to include additional search terms that might not fit naturally into the visible content. This is where you can get creative with synonyms, alternate spellings, and even misspellings that customers might use. By doing so, you ensure that your product is indexed for a wider array of search queries
Why are Amazon Backend Keywords Important?
On Amazon, backend keywords are crucial to search engine optimization (SEO) and product visibility. They directly influence how your products are indexed and ranked in Amazon’s search results, which is crucial for driving organic traffic and increasing sales. Here’s why you should consider implementing backend keywords in your product listings:
1. Product Visibility
Amazon’s search algorithm uses backend keywords to determine the relevance of your listings to search queries. By strategically selecting and placing backend keywords, you can improve your product’s chances of appearing in more search results, thus increasing visibility. This aspect is especially beneficial for reaching customers who use alternative search terms that might not be included in your product’s visible content.
2. Ranking and Indexing
When Amazon indexes your product for certain keywords, it means your product is eligible to appear in search results for those terms. Effective use of backend keywords ensures that your products are indexed for as many relevant search terms as possible, thus improving their overall search ranking.
3. Humane Content
As an Amazon seller, you will constantly find yourself standing in between two worlds: on one hand, you need to use plenty of keywords to catch the attention of Amazon’s A10 algorithm. On the other, you need to keep your content natural and readable, otherwise customers might not even understand what your product is about. Backend keywords help you keep this balance without cluttering the product listing with unnecessary information.
How to Add Backend Keywords to your Listing
Adding backend keywords to your listing is a relatively easy process, just follow these steps:
1. Log in to your Seller Central Account and navigate to “Inventory Tab” -> “Manage Inventory”.
2. Here, you will be met with a list of your products. On the very right of each product, there will be an “Edit” button which you need to click on.
3. In the newly opened window, click on “Keywords”. Here’s how it will look like:
This tab might look confusing to some sellers, so let us break it down and help you understand what you need to write in each bar.
1. Search Terms
This is where you put in your backend keywords. Think about all possible words and phrases which a customer might use to search for your product, including those which point out your product’s features or use cases, for example “automated”, “easy to use”, “simple to assemble”, “lightweight”, etc.
2. Target Audience
Who are the customers for whom your product is intended? Answering this question, include your target consumers in this field. For example, if you’re selling a laptop, your target audience might include students, designers, gamers, entrepreneurs, etc.
3. Subject Matter
Here, you have to describe your product’s physical attributes, including its material/color/size and other unique features.
4. Intended use
Describe how you expect customers to use your product and in which situations it can come in handy. For instance, a portable camping stove can be marketed for outdoor activities like hiking and backpacking, highlighting features that make it suitable for such environments.
5. Other Attributes
This section offers the chance to highlight your product’s specific uses and distinct features, calling for a detailed approach to ensure every important aspect is addressed.
6. Platinum Keywords
In 2016, Amazon closed the program, rendering Platinum keywords useless. This classification is no longer active, though a keyword field for these queries remains in Seller Central. These keywords, however, no longer impact SEO, so don’t bother writing anything in this field and focus on other aspects of your listing’s keyword optimization.
Tips to Implementing Amazon Backend Keywords
1. Don’t exceed the limit of 500 characters
The previous limit was equal to 250 bytes, which appeared to be quite complex for some sellers to understand, and some would consider it unfair as some alphabetic characters consumed more than 1 byte (such as umlauts in German (ä)) .
As of 2024, Amazon has increased the limit and changed its conditions: sellers don’t have to deal with bytes anymore, but instead work with what we’re all used to – characters.
2. Don’t use Stop Words
Stop words are common, insignificant words such as ‘and‘, ‘or‘, ‘the‘, ‘in‘, ‘with‘ and others, that don’t add value to search queries. These words are generally filtered out by search engines because they don’t contribute to the relevancy of search results.
3. Don’t use statement of temporary nature
Temporary statements are phrases that highlight fleeting conditions, such as ‘new‘, ‘on sale‘, or ‘limited time‘. While these might seem attractive for drawing immediate attention, they can negatively impact your listing’s long-term search visibility.
4. Don’t include keywords that you’ve already used in your product title, bullet points or descriptions
Such keywords have already been indexed by Amazon’s A10, so why clutter the space you could’ve used to include other backend keywords? Repeating keywords does not increase the likelihood of your product being found.
5. Use either singular or plural keywords
No need to include both, the algorithm doesn’t differentiate between them.
6. Use abbreviations
Many users search for products using shortened forms of words, such as “TV” or “PJs”. In some categories, especially electronics, clothes and automotive, the use of abbreviations is especially popular, so make sure to include them in the list of search terms as well.
How to Identify the Right Amazon Backend Keywords for your Listing
Selecting the right backend keywords is crucial for maximizing your product’s visibility on Amazon. Here’re some strategies you can use to to find the best backend keywords for your product:
1. Utilizing Amazon's Search Term Report
Amazon provides sellers with the Search Term Report – a valuable tool for discovering which search terms shoppers are using to find products similar to yours. By analyzing this report, you can:
1. Identify high-performing keywords that already drive traffic to your product listings.
2. Discover new keyword opportunities that you may not have initially considered.
Using this report, you can refine your keyword strategy to target terms that are more likely to result in conversions.
2. Using Keyword Tools and External Platforms
In addition to Amazon’s internal resources, utilizing external keyword tools can provide a broader perspective on keyword opportunities. Tools such as Helium 10, Jungle Scout, and others allow you to:
1. Conduct comprehensive keyword research to find high-volume, low-competition keywords.
2. Analyze trends and seasonality in keyword popularity.
3. Conducting a Reverse ASIN Lookup
A Reverse ASIN Lookup is a technique that allows you to see which keywords your competitors are ranking for. By entering a competitor’s ASIN into a reverse lookup tool, you can:
1. Uncover the keywords that are driving traffic to similar products.
2. Find highly relevant keywords that you might not have thought of, but are important for indexing and ranking.
By analyzing your competitors’ keywords, whose strategies are likely similar to yours, you can estimate their keyword approach. This understanding allows you to identify which keywords to focus on and which ones to avoid, ensuring you make the most of your marketing budget.
How Do I Know if my Backend Keywords are Indexed?
It’s important to realize that Amazon might not index every keyword you add to your backend search terms or product listings. Amazon uses a machine learning model to decide which search terms are relevant, and this can change as more data is collected.
Therefore, it’s essential to regularly check if your products are indexed under your main and relevant keywords. If some aren’t, you’ll need to remove them and consider alternative keywords to improve indexing.
Here’s how you can check whether your keywords are indexed:
1. Use product’s ASIN
This one is, probably, one of the easiest ways. Extract your product’s ASIN from the listing’s URL or scroll down to the “Product Information” section and find it there.
Copy the ASIN and insert it in Amazon’s search bar, followed by the keyword you’d like to check. If you see your product appear among the others, that means Amazon has indexed it for that keyword.
2. Use third-party tools
Although the first method is easy, it is only applicable if you have a handful of keywords to check. However, if you need to check multiple products for a larger number of keywords, such a procedure will take ages to complete.
In this case, third party tools come to the rescue. The following applications can assist you in checking your keywords without having to go through each individually:
1. Helium 10’s Index Checker
2. AMZScout Keyword Tracker
3. ZonGuru ASIN Index Checker
4. SellerApp keyword ranking
Final Thoughts
Implementing the right backend keywords is crucial when it comes to optimizing your listing, as it proves to be one of the most effective ways of delivering effective long-lasting results.
Remember: the world doesn’t stay still, and neither does the marketplace. Discovering the ideal keywords is an ongoing journey, making it crucial to continuously replace non-performing keywords in your backend search terms.
At Weby Corp, we understand the intricacies of keyword research and the importance of adapting to market changes. Let our team of experts guide you through the process of discovering high-performing keywords that align with your brand goals: Contact Us now!
FAQ
〉 Can I use someone’s Registered Trademark as a keyword?
In general, the anwer is – no, you are prohibited from using someone’s trademark as backend search terms.
However, according to Amazon’s intellectual property rules, sellers may use another’s trademark in specific scenarios:
1. Sellers can list authentic products using a trademarked name. For instance, a seller offering a genuine “Nordic” jacket is not infringing on the trademark, as it’s used to identify an authentic product.
2. Trademarks can be utilized in their standard descriptive sense, as defined in dictionaries.
3. When providing authentic items that buyers can customize, like print-on-demand, sellers may use trademarks. For example, a seller might personalize a legitimate “Eagle” mug with a custom message or design.
〉 Can backend keywords include misspellings or variations?
Yes, including common misspellings or variations can capture additional search traffic that might otherwise be missed.
