This blog post was originally contributed by Dan Crittenden, the eCommerce Dude at PorkRinds.com and Rudolph Foods.

The latest update of Amazon broad match modifiers for Sponsored Brands campaigns helps products reach more customers and control advertising costs. Best of all, this new function works with Ignite. 

Since the inclusion of Amazon broad match keyword modifiers in Sponsored Brands, we have received a steady stream of questions about this powerful new advertising function. In answering customer questions, one particular fact has become evident: most people don’t understand or know much about how Sponsored Brands broad match keywords work.

What is an Amazon broad match modifier?

A broad match modifier is an alternative to using keywords and negatives together. It’s like adding a broad match keyword and then adding a bunch of negatives. It serves to improve your click-through rate and conversion rate by qualifying customers.

Does Amazon show words not included in broad match keywords?

As it turns out, Amazon includes related searches and close variations when serving Sponsored Brands advertisements. For example, Amazon sees the gender-neutral “running shoes” as a related search for “mens running shoes”. Whereas, “mens sneakers” is interpreted as a close variation. Amazon contends that this update “helps you reach even more shoppers who may be interested in your products.”

When should you use Amazon broad match modifiers?

Here are a couple of use cases to help you understand when broad match modifiers are most useful.

1. Requiring modifiers for hyper-focused Sponsored Brands ads: For example, if ‘red’ is the only color you sell of a product, make it required so you don’t show ads for ‘yellow’ or ‘blue’.
2. Refinement for multipurpose products: Let’s say you sell pet beds. A Sponsored Brands campaign targeting dog owners could use broad match modifiers with the word “dog”, and vice versa for cat bed ads. Using broad match modifiers eliminates the need for negative keywords for each campaign and ensures you aren’t targeting “pet bed” or other generic terms.
3. Improved control over which Sponsored Brands ads show up: Let’s say you sell two main categories of products. With Amazon broad match modifiers, you can ensure the correct Sponsored Brands ad shows when shoppers search different variations with your brand name included. With modifiers specific to your product categories you can capture the appropriate traffic for each Sponsored Brands ad and leave room for a third Sponsored Brands that target only the brand name and a mixture of products.

How to use Amazon broad match modifiers in Sponsored Brands ads?

Using broad match modifiers is as simple as placing a “+” before the word that must be included in the broad match search term. Advertisers can use multiple broad match modifiers in a single Sponsored Brands broad match keyword, like “+mens +running shoes”.

For example, if I create the broad match keyword “+mens shoes” the “+” tells Amazon that the word “mens” must be included in any user search term in order to surface an ad. This means that “mens running shoes” would trigger an ad, but the related search “running shoes” would not.

Also, keep in mind that broad match keyword related searches, close variations, and modifiers are only available with Sponsored Brands and not in Sponsored Products ads.

Do broad match modifiers work with Ignite?

Yes, they do! You don’t need to worry about running your ads on multiple platforms because Ignite supports this new Amazon feature.

And if you’re not managing (especially automating) your Amazon advertising with Ignite then you need to start with a risk-free 30-day trial to simplify and maximize your campaigns.