Marketplace advertising places your products in front of shoppers already searching with intent to buy, which makes it effective and easy to overspend on. Amazon offers three main ad formats, each serving a different goal and available depending on whether you are brand registered. Knowing what each does helps you start with the right one.
Sponsored Products
These ads promote individual listings and appear in search results and on product detail pages, looking almost like organic results. They are available to nearly all sellers, require no creative beyond the listing itself, and are driven by keyword or product targeting. For most sellers this is where advertising starts and where most spend stays.
Sponsored Brands
Available to brand-registered sellers, these ads show a logo, a headline and several products at the top of search results, or a video in the results. They are suited to building brand awareness, defending your brand name searches and sending shoppers to a brand store page rather than a single listing. They need creative assets and a brand presence to be worthwhile.
Sponsored Display
Also for registered brands, these ads target shoppers by their browsing behavior or by audience interest, appearing on and off the marketplace. They can re-engage people who viewed your product without buying, or place your product on competitors’ pages. They are usually a later addition once the core campaigns are performing.
Action Step
Log in to your advertising console and list which of the three ad types you are eligible to use today. For each eligible type, write one sentence on the goal it would serve for your main product.
This lesson is educational and reflects general practice. Results depend on your situation, market and effort; adapt what you learn to your own context.