Solved: Need PPC Manager to Boost Amazon FBA Sales

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out. I'm happy to give you some initial thoughts and guidance on your situation with Amazon FBA and PPC, particularly regarding your struggles and whether hiring a manager is the right step just now. It's a really common challenge when you're starting out on Amazon, so don't feel like you're the only one finding it tough. There's a lot to get your head around, and Amazon PPC can feel like throwing money into a black hole if you're not careful.

My immediate thoughts, having seen this quite a bit with new sellers, is that focusing *only* on PPC might be putting the cart before the horse. PPC is designed to drive traffic, but if that traffic lands on a listing that isn't compelling or isn't ready to convert, you'll just end up with high ACOS and no profitable sales. Think of it like this: you can send all the people in the world to a shop, but if the products are poor, the displays are messy, and there's no one there to help, no one will buy anything. Amazon PPC is similar – it brings the people, but your listing needs to do the selling.

Before throwing more money at ads, let's talk about the foundations...

Honestly, the single most important factor for success on Amazon, especially when you're starting, is having a really strong product listing. This sounds simple, but it's where so many new sellers fall down. No matter how good your ads are, they won't convert if your listing isn't up to scratch. Before you worry too much about PPC managers or complex campaign structures, you need to make sure your listing is a conversion machine.

What does a "conversion machine" listing look like? Well, there are a few key elements that absolutely need to be dialled in:

Product Photos: These are your digital shop window. On Amazon, people buy with their eyes first. You need multiple, high-quality, professional-looking images. Show the product from all angles. Include lifestyle shots that show the product being used. Highlight key features visually. Compare yours to successful competitors – are yours just as good, or better? Blurry photos, poorly lit images, or not enough images is a major red flag and a quick way to waste ad spend.

Listing Copy: This includes your title, bullet points, and product description (A+ Content if you can get it). Your title needs to be keyword-rich but also readable and compelling. Your bullet points aren't just a list of features; they should highlight *benefits*. How does your product solve a problem for the customer? Use persuasive language. Your product description should tell the full story, address potential questions, and reassure the buyer. Again, look at successful competitors for inspiration, but make it your own. Don't just stuff keywords in; it needs to flow naturally and sell the product.

Pricing: Is your price competitive? Are you offering good value? If your price is significantly higher than similar products without a clear reason (like superior quality or unique features that are obvious from the listing), people will just click away, leaving you with wasted clicks and high ACOS.

Reviews: This is huge on Amazon. Social proof matters. Buyers rely heavily on reviews. If you have zero reviews, or very few, or poor ones, conversion rates will be low. People are hesitant to buy from an unknown seller with an unproven product. Getting those initial reviews, even if it's just a handful, should be a priority. Amazon's Early Reviewer Program (though I think that's been retired now?) or Vine (if you're eligible) can help, or finding ethical ways to encourage early buyers to leave feedback. Building this trust is vital before scaling with ads.

Honestly, get these things sorted first. If your listing converts well organically, even with a small amount of traffic, it stands a much better chance of converting paid traffic profitably.

Diving into PPC Basics (Once the Listing is Strong)

Once you feel confident your listing is really solid, then you can look at PPC again. You mentioned feeling like you have no clue, even with research. Let's break down a few basics that are absolutely essential and often where people go wrong initially.

Campaign Structure: A common strategy is to start with an Automatic campaign. This is like Amazon doing the keyword research for you based on your listing content. Monitor the search terms report in this auto campaign *very carefully*. Look for customer search terms that led to clicks or (even better) sales. These are potentially good keywords for you. Then, create Manual campaigns. You take those performing search terms from your auto campaign and add them as keywords into a manual campaign.

Keyword Match Types: This is critical for controlling relevance and spend.
-> Broad Match: Reaches the widest audience, includes misspellings, synonyms, related searches. Can bring a lot of traffic but also a lot of irrelevant traffic. Use with caution and lots of negative keywords.
-> Phrase Match: The search term must contain your exact keyword phrase, but can have words before or after it. More targeted than broad.
-> Exact Match: The search term must be *exactly* your keyword (or very close variations). Most precise, lowest traffic volume usually, but highest relevance and often lowest ACOS *for that keyword*.
You want to use a mix, often starting with Phrase and Exact in manual campaigns, or moving high-performing terms from Auto/Broad into Exact campaigns.

Negative Keywords: This is absolutely non-negotiable if you want to control ACOS. As you review your search terms report, you'll see searches that are clearly irrelevant to your product. Add these as *negative keywords* to stop your ads showing for them. For example, if you sell stainless steel water bottles, you'd want to add 'plastic' or 'glass' or 'filter' as negative keywords. This prevents wasted clicks from people looking for something else.

Bidding: Start with lower bids and gradually increase them if you're not getting impressions or clicks. Don't go in too high initially and blow your budget. Pay attention to Amazon's suggested bids, but don't just blindly accept them. Testing different bidding strategies (Dynamic bids - down only is often safest to start) is important too.

Focusing on getting this basic structure and keyword management right can make a massive difference. It's not just about spending money; it's about spending money *effectively* on searches that are likely to convert.

So, about hiring a PPC Manager...

Given where you're at, struggling with the basics and concerned about ACOS when starting, hiring a manager right now might not be the most efficient first step. Here's why:

1. Cost: You'll pay the manager's fee *on top* of your ad spend. When you're just starting, your budget might be better allocated elsewhere (like improving your listing or buying more stock).
2. Doesn't Fix Underlying Issues: As I mentioned, a great PPC manager can optimise campaigns, but they can't make a poor product or a bad listing convert. If the fundamentals aren't there, their hands are tied, and you'll still have high ACOS.
3. Learning Opportunity: While frustrating, learning the basics of Amazon PPC yourself gives you valuable insight into your market, keywords, and customer behaviour. This knowledge is crucial even if you hire someone later.

Hiring a manager usually makes more sense when:

-> You have a product that is already converting and selling well organically, or showing strong potential with basic PPC.
-> You have reached a point where you need to significantly scale sales and are finding the complexity of managing campaigns yourself is limiting growth.
-> You have a sufficient budget for both ad spend *and* management fees, and you want to free up your time to focus on other aspects of your business.

It's an investment to accelerate growth when the base is already strong, not typically a solution for getting the very first sales or fixing a non-converting listing.

Overview of Recommended Steps:

Here's a quick summary of what I'd suggest focusing on first:

So, rather than immediately hiring someone to fix your current ACOS issue, I'd strongly recommend putting the effort into making your listing as good as it can possibly be, and then spending some time getting a handle on the PPC fundamentals yourself. It will give you a much better understanding of what's happening and make any future conversations with a potential manager much more productive.

Sometimes, having someone with experience who has navigated these exact issues countless times can provide clarity and a structured approach that saves you a lot of trial and error (and wasted ad spend). If you get your listing sorted and are still finding the PPC side overwhelming, or you reach a point where you need to scale and aren't sure how, that's often when expert help provides the most value. They can diagnose issues quickly, build sophisticated campaign structures, and apply advanced optimisation techniques you might not know exist yet.

If you'd like to discuss your specific situation in more detail, maybe look at your current listing, and talk through a step-by-step plan tailored for your product, feel free to book in a free consultation. We can go through everything and see what the best path forward is for you.

Regards,
Team @ Lukas Holschuh