If you want your product to be easily found by shoppers on Amazon, adding generic keywords to your listing is a must. These are broad, non-branded terms that customers commonly use when searching for products. By placing them strategically in both visible (frontend) and hidden (backend) areas of your listing, you help Amazon’s A9 algorithm better understand and rank your product. This guide explains how to effectively add generic keywords to improve visibility and increase sales.
Why Generic Keywords Are Essential for Amazon Sellers?
Generic keywords are essential for Amazon sellers because they significantly enhance product visibility and increase the likelihood of sales in a highly competitive marketplace. These broad, relevant terms help your product appear in a wide range of customer search queries, ensuring it reaches a larger audience beyond just specific branded or niche terms.
- Increase Product Discoverability: Generic keywords form the foundation of your product’s discoverability on Amazon. When customers search using broad terms related to your product category, listings optimized with relevant generic keywords are more likely to appear in search results.
- Capture Customer Intent: By aligning your keywords with what shoppers are actually typing into Amazon’s search bar, you tap into real customer intent. This increases the chances of your product being seen, clicked on, and purchased.
- Drive More Traffic and Sales: Generic keywords help attract a wider audience, driving more traffic to your listings. This broader reach can translate into higher sales volumes, especially when combined with strategic placement in product titles, descriptions, and backend search terms.
- Balance Broad and Specific Targeting: While niche keywords target specific customer segments, generic keywords cover broader search terms, allowing sellers to capture both general and specific demand. This balance reduces missed opportunities and improves overall search ranking.
- Avoid Overcomplication: Generic keywords simplify keyword strategy by focusing on essential, high-traffic terms without cluttering listings with overly specific or complicated phrases. This makes your listing more accessible to a larger customer base.
- Enhance Amazon SEO: Amazon’s search algorithm evaluates keyword relevancy to rank products. Incorporating well-researched generic keywords improves your product’s relevancy score, boosting its position in search results and increasing visibility.
Ways to Add Generic Keywords to Amazon Listing?
Here’s a detailed breakdown of where to add generic keywords in your Amazon listing, both in the frontend (visible) and backend (hidden.
A. Frontend (Visible) Keywords
These are the elements of your listing that customers see. Incorporating generic keywords here not only helps Amazon index your product for search but also impacts conversion by making your content more relatable to what shoppers are searching for.
1. Product Title – Most Important Placement
The product title is the most critical location for placing your main generic keywords because:
- It carries the highest SEO weight in Amazon’s A9 algorithm.
- It’s the first piece of content both the algorithm and customers read.
Best Practices:
- Place high-volume, highly relevant generic keywords at the beginning of the title.
- Keep it concise, relevant, and readable.
- Include important attributes like product type, material, size, or use case.
Example:
“Stainless Steel Water Bottle – Insulated, Leakproof, Reusable Sports Flask, 24 oz”
Here, “water bottle,” “insulated,” and “sports flask” are all generic keywords.
2. Bullet Points (Key Features) – Secondary Keyword Placement
Bullet points are used to highlight key features of the product and are great for incorporating supporting generic keywords that may not fit in the title.
Best Practices:
- Use each bullet point to include one or two unique generic keywords naturally.
- Focus on feature-benefit formatting: mention the keyword while describing a benefit.
- Don’t keyword stuff; make the text helpful and customer-focused.
Example:
- “✅ Double-walled insulation keeps drinks cold for 24 hours – perfect for gym, hiking, and daily use.”
Keywords like “insulated bottle,” “gym bottle,” “hiking bottle” may be used here.
3. Product Description – Natural Keyword Integration
The description allows for longer-form content, so it’s a great place to reinforce your generic keywords without sacrificing readability.
Best Practices:
- Write naturally and conversationally.
- Include broader and related keywords spread throughout the content.
- Think about how a customer would describe the product in their own words.
Example:
- “This durable and lightweight water bottle is ideal for outdoor activities, travel, or everyday hydration.”
Keywords like “lightweight water bottle,” “travel bottle,” etc., are integrated seamlessly.
4. A+ Content (Enhanced Brand Content)
For Brand Registered sellers, A+ Content is an opportunity to visually enhance your product listing. While keywords in A+ Content aren’t directly indexed by Amazon (as of current algorithm rules), they can influence customer behavior and increase sales, which indirectly supports SEO.
Best Practices:
- Use generic keywords in image alt-text (backend).
- Write engaging headings and paragraph content that reinforces your core keywords.
- Maintain brand consistency and use content that educates the customer.
B. Backend (Hidden) Keywords
Amazon gives sellers a dedicated space to add keywords that don’t appear on the listing page but still help with search visibility. These backend keywords are vital for covering relevant terms that might not naturally fit in your title or description.
1. Backend Search Terms – How to Access & Best Practices
How to Access:
- Go to Seller Central → Manage All Inventory
- Click Edit next to your product
- Navigate to the Keywords tab
- Enter keywords in the Search Terms field
Best Practices:
- Use a space to separate keywords (no commas or punctuation)
- No need to repeat words already in the title or bullet points
- Use synonyms, abbreviations, alternate spellings, and regional variations
Example:
If your product is a “reusable coffee cup,” backend terms could include:
coffee mug reusable travel mug to-go cup commuter cup eco coffee
2. Character & Space Limitations (250 Bytes Rule)
Amazon limits the Search Terms field to 250 bytes, not characters. This means:
- Spaces count as bytes.
- Non-English characters (e.g., é, ü) may take up more than one byte.
- Exceeding the 250-byte limit may result in all keywords being ignored.
Tip: Use a byte counter tool or listing optimization software to stay within limits.
3. What to Avoid in Backend Keywords
Avoid the following mistakes to ensure your backend keywords are effective:
- Repetition: Do not repeat words from the title or bullet points.
- Brand Names: Exclude your own brand or competitors’ names—Amazon’s policies prohibit this.
- Irrelevant Terms: Don’t include keywords that are unrelated to your product, even if they have high search volume. It can hurt your conversion rate and may result in listing suppression.
- Misspellings: Amazon’s algorithm accounts for minor misspellings; avoid wasting space.
- Stop Words: Words like “and,” “for,” “the,” etc., are unnecessary.
Best Practices for Adding Generic Keywords on Amazon
To maximize your product’s visibility and sales on Amazon, follow these expert best practices for adding generic keywords, especially in your backend search terms:
1. Avoid Keyword Stuffing
- Do not repeat keywords excessively or use irrelevant terms. Each keyword should add distinct value and relevance to your listing.
- Avoid duplicating keywords already used in your product title, bullet points, or description, as Amazon indexes those separately. This preserves valuable backend space for new keywords.
2. Use a Mix of Broad and Long-Tail Keywords
- Include both broad generic terms and more specific long-tail keywords to capture a wider range of customer searches.
- Long-tail keywords help target niche segments and often convert better by matching specific buyer intent.
3. Include Synonyms, Spelling Variations, and Misspellings
- Add alternate names, abbreviations, regional spellings (e.g., “color” vs. “colour”), and common misspellings to broaden your product’s reach.
- This helps capture diverse search queries that customers might use.
4. Follow Amazon’s Formatting Rules
- Use all lowercase letters; Amazon’s algorithm is case-insensitive but lowercase is standard practice.
- Do not use punctuation marks (commas, periods, etc.); separate keywords with single spaces only.
- Stick to Amazon’s character limit (usually 2500 characters total for backend keywords, or 500 per field if multiple fields are used).
5. Prioritize Relevant, High-Impact Keywords
- Focus on keywords that are highly relevant to your product and have good search volume, avoiding overly broad or unrelated terms that may attract unqualified traffic.
- Use keyword research tools (e.g., Helium 10, Sonar) to identify valuable keywords specific to Amazon search behavior.
6. Avoid Prohibited or Misleading Keywords
- Do not include competitor brand names or any trademarked terms you don’t own.
- Avoid promotional phrases (e.g., “best,” “cheap”) or misleading keywords that do not accurately describe your product, as these can harm your listing’s credibility and ranking.
7. Use Each Keyword Only Once in Backend Terms
- Amazon recommends using each keyword only once in the backend search terms to maximize space efficiency. Repeating keywords wastes valuable characters.
8. Continuously Monitor and Update Keywords
- Regularly review your keyword performance through Amazon PPC data and organic search analytics.
- Update your generic keywords to stay aligned with evolving customer search trends and competitor strategies.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Adding Generic Keywords on Amazon
Adding generic keywords to your Amazon listing is vital for visibility, but doing it incorrectly can hurt your performance. Here are key mistakes sellers should avoid:
1. Skipping Thorough Keyword Research
One of the biggest pitfalls is neglecting in-depth keyword research. Relying on guesswork or surface-level terms can lead to poor search visibility and missed traffic opportunities. Identifying high-volume, relevant search terms is essential to connect with the right audience.
2. Using Irrelevant or Too Broad Keywords
Generic doesn’t mean vague. Using overly broad or unrelated keywords—like tagging “shoes” for a niche running shoe—can attract the wrong shoppers, reduce conversion rates, and waste your ad budget on clicks that don’t lead to sales.
3. Keyword Stuffing and Redundancy
Cramming your listing with the same keyword multiple times weakens readability and makes your product appear spammy. Amazon’s algorithm reads your content once, so repeating keywords, especially in the backend, is an inefficient use of space.
4. Ignoring Amazon’s Character Limits
Amazon enforces strict limits on backend keyword fields—usually around 250 bytes per field. If you exceed these limits, the system may disregard the entire entry, costing you indexing and visibility benefits.
5. Using Prohibited or Misleading Terms
Including competitor brand names, promotional phrases like “best” or “cheapest,” or inaccurate product descriptions can violate Amazon’s terms. This could lead to suppressed listings or even account penalties.
6. Formatting Keywords Incorrectly
Backend keywords should be clean and simple—no commas, no capital letters, and no unnecessary words like “and” or “for.” Misusing formatting reduces their impact and wastes valuable character space.
7. Overlooking Synonyms and Variants
If you don’t include alternative spellings, abbreviations, or common customer misspellings, you limit your reach. Covering all possible ways a customer might search improves discoverability.
8. Failing to Localize Keywords
Using keyword data from the wrong Amazon marketplace (e.g., U.S. keywords for a U.K. listing) can lead to irrelevant targeting. Always tailor your keyword research to your specific regional market.
9. Relying Only on Tools Without Human Input
Tools like Helium 10 or Jungle Scout are useful, but they don’t always understand nuance. Vet all suggested keywords manually to ensure they fit your product and customer intent.
10. Ignoring Negative Keywords in PPC
In advertising campaigns, failing to add negative keywords allows your ads to show for irrelevant searches, draining your budget on clicks that won’t convert.
Conclusion
Effectively adding generic keywords to your Amazon listing is essential for improving visibility, attracting the right audience, and boosting conversions. By understanding the difference between frontend and backend keyword placement—and aligning with how Amazon’s A9 algorithm evaluates relevance—you can strategically position your products for success. Avoiding common mistakes like keyword stuffing, using irrelevant terms, or exceeding backend limits ensures your listing stays compliant and optimized. Ultimately, a well-researched, properly executed keyword strategy not only enhances your organic rankings but also supports your overall growth in a competitive marketplace.
