What is Amazon DSP and Why You Should Use It

With the digital marketing landscape continually evolving, it's important for small and growing businesses to stay ahead of the curve - especially when it comes to advertising with big market players like Amazon.

Enter Amazon DSP: this branch of Amazon's advertising ecosystem is perhaps one of the most effective and personalisable options yet, with the inclusion of wide-ranging consumer data and customisable targeting options.

But what is Amazon DSP, and how can it be leveraged to bring traffic, visibility, and those all-important conversions to your business? Let's take a look.

What is Amazon Demand Side Platform (DSP)?

Not to be confused with Amazon’s Delivery Partner Service, Amazon DSP (Demand Side Platform) is a platform that allows advertisers to programmatically buy display and video ads for their businesses. This means that instead of manual placements and direct deals, these ad spaces are bought automatically based on the specific parameters set by the advertisers. Here are some key points about how the advertising platform works:

Amazon DSP Bidding System

The Amazon DSP stands apart from the typical pay-per-click model often associated with Amazon's advertising ecosystem, and instead uses real-time bidding, allowing you to buy ad impressions individually and in real-time based on your audience targeting parameters. This means that the right ad is displayed to the right user at the right time, significantly enhancing the precision and efficiency of your advertising efforts.

Available to Non-Amazon Sellers

Amazon DSP is not just confined to Amazon-owned websites or apps: DSP extends your reach across Amazon’s vast network of partner websites and apps, as well as other exchanges. This translates into a more significant potential audience reach, beyond those users who are just browsing or purchasing on Amazon.

Consumer Data

One of the main advantages of Amazon DSP lies in its leveraging of Amazon’s rich consumer shopping data: this data can be used to provide incredibly detailed targeting options for sellers, allowing you to reach audiences based on their shopping behaviours, interests, and even their demographics. However, note that the key to making the most of this information is knowing how to analyse it and use it effectively; an Amazon DSP agency can come in useful here, especially for new sellers on the platform, or those new to Amazon advertising entirely.

Benefits of Amazon DSP

So, what makes Amazon DSP so useful for sellers both on and off the platform? It’s simple: Amazon DSP is more than just an advertising tool: aside from advertising, it offers a range of benefits and data that can help amplify your brand presence, reach your target audience more effectively, and ultimately drive more conversions:

Benefit 1: Extensive Reach

One of the main advantages of Amazon DSP is its extensive reach. With the platform, your ads are not limited to Amazon-owned sites; they can appear on a multitude of third-party sites and apps within Amazon's partner network. This broad scope gives you the opportunity to reach your potential customers wherever they are on the internet, not just when they are on Amazon.

With Amazon’s DSP consumer base spanning up to 400 million global consumers every month, DSP can be an incredibly effective way to increase your brand exposure and reach audiences at various stages of the customer journey.

Benefit 2: Advanced Targeting Capabilities

Amazon DSP's advanced targeting capabilities are another standout feature of the platform, and use Amazon’s exclusive first-party data; this includes insights from Amazon’s customer base and their shopping habits.

These insights allow you to target audiences based on factors such as past purchase history, product searches, wish list items, and more. Such specific targeting means your ads are delivered to the most relevant audiences, which increases the likelihood of engagement and conversion.

Benefit 3: Comprehensive Reporting and Analytics

With Amazon DSP, you also have access to comprehensive reporting and analytics tools that help you monitor your campaign performance in real-time. You can see metrics like impressions, click-through rates, and conversions, and more importantly, Amazon DSP now provides 'New-to-brand’ metrics, allowing you to understand how many customers purchasing your products are new to your brand on Amazon. This data is crucial in evaluating the effectiveness of your campaigns, optimising your ad spend, and making data-driven decisions for future campaigns.

The Bottom Line

Overall, Amazon DSP is an incredibly powerful advertising tool that can allow brands and small businesses to reach wider audiences, harness advanced targeting capabilities, and gain deeper insights into their campaign performance.

If you’re new to Amazon’s advertising model, we’d recommend enlisting the help of an Amazon Ad agency like ours to help get your campaigns started - Amazon advertising can be complex and hard-to-navigate for a beginner, and having on-hand expertise can result in a much more effective - and high-converting - campaign.

FAQs

Can I use Amazon DSP if I'm not selling products on Amazon?

Yes, one of the unique benefits of Amazon DSP is that it's not exclusively for Amazon sellers. Even if you don't sell products on Amazon, you can still use Amazon DSP to leverage Amazon's extensive audience data for targeted advertising.

How does Amazon DSP differ from Amazon Sponsored Ads?

While both are useful advertising tools within Amazon's ecosystem, these two options serve different purposes. Amazon Sponsored Ads mainly operate within Amazon's platform, promoting product visibility in search results and product pages. On the other hand, Amazon DSP allows you to programmatically buy ad placements across Amazon's platform and various third-party sites, extending your reach significantly.

Can I manage Amazon DSP campaigns on my own?

While it's possible to manage Amazon DSP campaigns independently, it requires a good understanding of programmatic advertising and the ability to analyse campaign data effectively. If you lack experience in these areas, consider seeking the expertise of a digital marketing agency that specialises in Amazon advertising - they can help you set up, manage, and optimise your Amazon DSP campaigns for the best possible results.

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