Product Videos May Be the Missing Step in Increasing Your Sales
Amazon has recently rolled out Potential Sales Lift insights by product category for shoppable videos, providing a new way for brands to gauge how video content might impact their sales. This feature estimates the potential sales increase when videos are used to enhance product listings, helping customers make more informed purchase decisions.
The calculation behind Potential Sales Lift compares two cohorts: one that includes brands using videos and one that does not. By analyzing historical sales data, Amazon estimates the potential sales uplift that could be expected when videos are added to listings. This estimate is regularly tested and updated with fresh data, though it’s important to note that the actual sales impact may vary.
Sales Lift Estimates for Product Categories
Amazon's data (January–June 2024) highlights that the estimated sales uplift varies across categories, with some showing a higher potential lift than others. For example:
- Clothing (29.9%)
- Home (24.1%)
- Lawn and Garden (22.9%)
- Office Products (22.4%)
These categories are above the overall average sales lift of 21.8%. However, other categories like Beauty (18.3%) and Health & Personal Care (17.2%) show a lower impact.
While these numbers sound encouraging, it's important to take them with a grain of salt. In reality, the actual sales lift is likely to be much smaller - around 5–10% - and the true impact on sales might be less significant than these numbers suggest. In fact, many factors can influence the actual outcome, such as customer behavior and product category specifics.
Why Video Works Differently for Various Categories
The real power of video content lies not just in increasing conversion rates but in boosting Amazon’s ranking algorithm. Video content can help improve visibility, and while it may not directly drive significant sales increases for all products, it plays an important role in helping your listings rank higher in Amazon's search results.
Many brands are now utilizing customer review videos, which Amazon sometimes displays prominently next to product images, even at the top of the page. These videos can help improve a product’s Amazon ranking, making them more visible to potential customers. This visibility is particularly valuable, even if videos themselves aren’t watched as frequently as some might expect.
For certain categories like Beauty, before-and-after videos may have some impact on conversions by showcasing the product’s effectiveness. However, these videos should be seen as part of an overall strategy that emphasizes visibility and search ranking, not just direct sales.
The Importance of “Avg. % Viewed”
Amazon also provides the Avg. % Viewed metric, which indicates the percentage of customers who watched a video in the past 30 days. While this is useful for understanding how engaging your videos are, it's not always directly linked to immediate sales increases.
If you’re seeing a high percentage of views, that’s a sign your videos are playing a role in educating customers and improving ranking - but don’t expect a massive conversion boost from video content alone.
Video is Indeed King: Make Use of It
While the direct impact on conversions might not be substantial across all categories, video can still offer valuable benefits for brands on Amazon. By adding video content to your listings, you’re not only providing a richer shopping experience for potential customers but also signaling to Amazon's algorithm that your product is well-equipped to meet customer needs.
If you’re unsure how to effectively use videos to enhance your Amazon strategy, reach out to us. We specialize in helping brands maximize the impact of Amazon tools, ensuring that your video content contributes to both visibility and long-term growth. Let us help you leverage video to enhance your Amazon presence and reach more customers.