Amazon PPC: How Many Keywords Per Campaign Do You Really Need?

Your Amazon PPC campaigns feel cluttered. You’ve got hundreds, maybe even thousands, of keywords crammed into just a few campaigns. Are you doing it wrong? Is this hurting your performance?

It’s a common question for Amazon sellers, and the answer isn’t as straightforward as you might think. The reality is, there’s no magic number for keywords per campaign. The right number depends on your specific goals, products, and campaign structure.

In this article, we’ll break down the key factors to consider when deciding how many keywords to include in each Amazon PPC campaign, so you can optimize your account structure and drive better results. Let’s dive in.

Why Keyword Organization Matters in Amazon PPC

Most sellers don’t realize that the way you organize your keywords has a direct impact on your campaign performance. It’s not just about having the right keywords, but also about structuring your campaigns in a way that allows you to effectively manage bids, track performance, and optimize for profitability.

Improved Budget Control

When you group relevant keywords together in a campaign, it becomes easier to control your budget and ensure that you’re allocating spend to the areas that are driving the best results.

Think about it this way: if you have a campaign with a wide range of unrelated keywords, it’s difficult to know which keywords are performing well and which ones are wasting money. By grouping similar keywords, you can see at a glance which areas are profitable and adjust your bids and budgets accordingly.

Better Data and Reporting

Well-organized campaigns provide better data and reporting, giving you a clearer picture of what’s working and what’s not. When you can easily see the performance of different keyword groups, you can make more informed decisions about where to focus your efforts.

For example, if you’re selling running shoes, you might have separate campaigns for “men’s running shoes,” “women’s running shoes,” and “trail running shoes.” This allows you to track the performance of each category separately and identify any areas for improvement.

More Effective Bid Management

The more granular your keyword organization, the more effectively you can manage your bids. When you have a smaller, more focused group of keywords, you can set more precise bids that are tailored to the specific performance of those keywords.

Here’s what’s happening: Amazon’s algorithm uses your bids to determine where your ads appear. If your bids are too high, you’re wasting money on clicks that don’t convert. If your bids are too low, you’re missing out on valuable traffic. By carefully managing your bids at the keyword level, you can find the sweet spot that maximizes your profitability.

Key Factors to Consider When Structuring Campaigns

So, how do you determine the right number of keywords per campaign? Here are the key factors to consider:

Product Variety and Similarity

If you sell a wide variety of products, you’ll likely need more campaigns to ensure that each product is properly targeted. If your products are very similar, you can often group them together in a single campaign.

Let’s look at a real example: Imagine you sell both coffee makers and espresso machines. These are related products, but they target different customer needs. You’d likely want to create separate campaigns for each product type to ensure that you’re showing the right ads to the right people.

Match Types

The match types you use (broad, phrase, and exact) can also influence the number of keywords you include in each campaign. Generally, it’s best to separate match types into different campaigns to maintain better control over your bids and targeting.

The problem is this: broad match keywords can generate a lot of traffic, but they’re also more likely to show your ads to irrelevant searches. Exact match keywords are more targeted, but they have lower search volume. By separating match types, you can optimize your bids and budgets for each type of traffic.

Campaign Goals

What are you trying to achieve with your campaigns? Are you focused on driving sales, increasing brand awareness, or targeting specific customer segments? Your goals will influence the number of keywords you include in each campaign.

For example, if you’re launching a new product, you might create a campaign with a small number of highly relevant keywords to drive initial sales. If you’re trying to increase brand awareness, you might create a broader campaign with a wider range of keywords.

Budget Constraints

Your budget will also play a role in determining the number of keywords per campaign. If you have a limited budget, you might need to consolidate your keywords into fewer campaigns to ensure that you’re not spreading your spend too thin.

Here’s why that matters: If you have too many keywords in too many campaigns, you might not have enough budget to drive meaningful results for any of them. It’s better to focus your spend on a smaller number of well-targeted campaigns than to spread it across a large number of poorly performing ones.

General Guidelines for Keyword Count

While there’s no hard and fast rule, here are some general guidelines to follow when deciding how many keywords to include in each Amazon PPC campaign:

• Start with a focused approach: Begin with a small number of highly relevant keywords (5-15) per ad group.
• Maintain tight theme: Ensure all keywords in an ad group are closely related to the product being advertised.
• Separate match types: Each ad group should target only one keyword match type (broad, phrase, or exact). This allows more granular control.
• Scale thoughtfully: As you gather data, expand your keyword list carefully, monitoring performance closely.
• Avoid keyword stuffing: Don’t cram too many keywords into a single campaign just to increase reach. Focus on relevance.
• Regularly prune: Continuously review your keyword performance and remove underperforming terms.

Example: One AdLabs client selling phone cases initially had over 100 keywords in a single campaign. After restructuring into tightly themed campaigns with 5-10 keywords each, they saw a 20% reduction in ACOS and a 15% increase in conversion rate within 60 days.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

It’s easy to make mistakes when structuring your Amazon PPC campaigns. Here are some common pitfalls to avoid:

• Keyword stuffing: Cramming too many unrelated keywords into a single campaign.
• Mixing match types: Combining broad, phrase, and exact match keywords in the same campaign.
• Ignoring negative keywords: Failing to negate irrelevant search terms that are wasting your budget.
• Set it and forget it: Not regularly monitoring and optimizing your campaigns based on performance data.

How AdLabs Can Help

AdLabs can help you simplify your Amazon PPC campaign management and optimize your keyword organization for better results. Here’s how:

• Automated bid management: AdLabs algorithmically adjusts your bids based on performance data, ensuring that you’re always getting the best possible return on your ad spend.
• Search term analysis: AdLabs helps you identify high-performing search terms and negative keywords, allowing you to refine your targeting and eliminate wasted spend.
• Campaign structuring tools: AdLabs provides tools to help you easily structure your campaigns based on product type, match type, and campaign goals.
• Reporting and analytics: AdLabs provides detailed reporting and analytics, giving you a clear picture of your campaign performance and identifying areas for improvement.
• Nested Tagging: As customer Shawn Gharib said in his 5-star Trustpilot review, “My favorite underrated feature is the nested tagging of campaigns, search terms, targets, and products.”

Conclusion

There’s no magic number for keywords per Amazon PPC campaign. The right number depends on your specific goals, products, and campaign structure. By following the guidelines outlined in this article, you can optimize your keyword organization and drive better results. Remember, a well-structured campaign is easier to manage, provides better data, and allows for more effective bid management.

This article is based on Episode 82 of That Amazon Ads Podcast. Subscribe for weekly Amazon PPC strategies.