Amazon starts testing Product Listing Ads on Google

In 2012, Google’s Product Search was transformed from an organic product search tool into a pay-to-play shopping destination. Since the removal of Product Search, Amazon has not participated with Google’s Product Listing Ads. Until now. Merkle discovered Amazon testing PLAs in the wild — something completely new for the world’s largest online retailer.

According to Merkle’s Mark Ballard, Amazon appears to be testing (and increasing) its PLA presence. We were able to replicate these Amazon Product Listing Ads on both mobile and desktop environments. Mr. Ballard’s anecdotal research is showing that Amazon is currently more apt to appear for home goods retailers, and they are trending up to a 25 percent impression share.

If this does become more than just a test, it could be a huge hit to other (and smaller) retailers that can’t compete with the budget of this shopping behemoth. Advertisers can compare their efforts to what Amazon is doing by researching with the Auction Insights tool.

Head on over to Merkle to read the full story and see all of the PLA data.

About The Author

Greg Finn

Greg Finn is the Director of Marketing for Cypress North, a company that provides world-class social media and search marketing services and web & application development. He has been in the Internet marketing industry for 10+ years and specializes in Digital Marketing. You can also find Greg on Twitter (@gregfinn) or LinkedIn.