Amazon headline search ads are the banner-style ads that sit at the top of Amazon search results with your logo, a custom headline and several of your products. Amazon renamed them Sponsored Brands in September 2018, when it folded its separate ad programs into one Amazon Advertising brand. Same ad. New name. If an old guide, course or agency proposal says “headline search ads”, it means Sponsored Brands today.
This guide covers who can run them, which of the three formats to pick, how to set one up, and how to bid and measure without wasting budget. Each section is built as a decision: if this, do that. My aim is simple: when you finish, you should know whether to launch now, later, or not at all.
Can you run headline search ads? Check this first
Amazon limits Sponsored Brands to vendors, book vendors, KDP authors, agencies, and professional sellers enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry. Adult, used and refurbished products, and products in closed categories, are not eligible.
Walk through it in order:
- Are you enrolled in Brand Registry? No: you cannot run Sponsored Brands as a seller. Start with Sponsored Products, and read whether you can sell on Amazon without Brand Registry before deciding to register.
- Do you have at least three related products? No: the product collection format needs 3 to 10 products. A single-product brand can still use the video format.
- Do you have a Brand Store? No: the Store spotlight format is off the table, and you lose the best landing page. I’d build a basic Store first; our guide on how to create an Amazon storefront walks through it.
- Are your Sponsored Products campaigns profitable? No: fix those first. Sponsored Brands rarely rescue a listing that does not convert, because the click still lands on the same product pages.
Four yeses means you are ready. Fewer means a smaller start, not no start at all. In practice, I’d rather see a brand launch one tight collection than five loose ones.
The three formats, and when to pick each
| Format | What it shows | Best when | Needs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Product collection | Logo, headline, and 3 to 10 products | You sell a range and want to own a search | 3+ eligible products |
| Store spotlight | Up to three Brand Store sub-pages | You sell several categories | A Store with at least three sub-pages |
| Video | A 6 to 45 second auto-playing video | One hero product that is easier to show than describe | A compliant video |
My default pick: start with a product collection on your core generic keywords, and add video for your best seller. Motion catches the eye in a grid of static images, and footage explains an item faster than a headline can. Store spotlight suits brands with clear sub-categories; for a ten-product brand it is often one format too many.
Where they appear: Amazon lists placements on top of and within shopping results and on product detail pages, on mobile and desktop. Top of search is the slot most people mean by “headline”.
How to set up Amazon headline search ads, step by step
- Pick a goal. Amazon’s goal-based setup offers “Drive page visits” (paid per click) and “Grow brand impression share” (paid per 1,000 viewable impressions, top of search). For most sellers I’d recommend page visits first, because you pay only when a shopper acts.
- Choose the format using the table above.
- Choose the landing page. Options are your Brand Store, a product detail page, or a new landing page Amazon builds from three or more items you select. My pick is usually the Store, since it gives a shopper the most to browse.
- Write the creative. Use sentence case: Amazon’s moderation rules say to capitalize only the first word, proper nouns and trademarks. Your logo must be your registered brand logo. Custom images cannot be plain product shots on a solid or transparent background, so show the product in use or in a setting.
- Set targeting. Keywords in broad, phrase or exact match; products or categories; or theme targeting, which lets Amazon pick keyword sets related to your brand or to your landing page.
- Add negatives from day one. Negative keywords and products stop spend on searches you already know do not convert.
- Set budget and bids. Amazon has no minimum spend for click or impression campaigns and suggests at least $10 a day. Treat that as a floor for learning, not a target.
Submit, then expect a moderation review before the ad goes live. Don’t bother launching on a Friday if you want to watch the first days of data closely.
Targeting: which option, in which situation
- Branded keywords (your brand name and item names): run them. They protect your own search from competitors, and when you own that slot, rivals can’t. Defensive, but worth it in my view.
- Generic keywords (“bamboo cutting board”): this is where headline ads earn their place. Use exact and phrase match on terms already converting in your Sponsored Products search term report.
- Competitor brand keywords: test small. A shopper who typed another brand’s name asked for someone else, so I’d cap bids until your own data says otherwise.
- Theme targeting: useful for new campaigns with no keyword data yet. Let it run, then move winners into exact-match campaigns you control. Don’t forget this step; it’s where most of the value sits.
- Product and category targeting: best for video ads on competitor detail pages, where a moving ad pulls attention from a static listing.
Choosing which keywords to bid on follows the same logic as any Amazon ad; our guide on how to choose keywords for Amazon advertising covers it in depth.
Bidding and budget
Sponsored Brands do a different job from Sponsored Products: they buy visibility and new customers as well as sales. So I’d judge them on a different scale, and compare suggested bids in the console before assuming either is cheaper.
- Set a target ACoS per campaign, not one number for the account. Branded campaigns can run far below your average. Generic prospecting campaigns can run above it, as long as the new customers they bring are worth it. If ACoS is unfamiliar, read what ACoS stands for first.
- Raise bids on exact-match winners before raising budget. Budget caps hide whether a campaign is actually working.
- Cut, don’t pause, losers. A keyword with real clicks and no orders after a fair test is telling you something. Honestly, most people wait too long here.
Measure the right thing: new-to-brand
These ads report new-to-brand metrics: orders and sales from shoppers who have not bought your brand in the last 12 months. In my view this is the number that justifies a higher ACoS. A campaign at 40% ACoS where most orders are new-to-brand may be worth more than a 20% campaign selling to existing customers who would have bought anyway.
Here’s my two-week routine. Check three numbers:
- ACoS by campaign, against its own target.
- New-to-brand share of orders.
- Search terms, to harvest converters and add negatives.
For context on ZonHack’s own PPC work: one client managing four brands under a single seller account reached an ACoS below 10% with a ROAS above 9.0 after three years of steady optimization. That is the full account, across ad types, not Sponsored Brands alone, and results like it take sustained work. No shortcut exists.
Common mistakes
- Generic headlines. “High quality products” says nothing. Name the benefit or the use case; when you can’t, I’d question whether the collection hangs together.
- Mixing unrelated products in one collection. The ad should look like an answer to the search.
- Sending traffic to a thin Store. One page with three products wastes the click.
- Judging by ACoS alone, without new-to-brand data. You will cut the campaigns that grow the brand.
- Skipping negatives. Broad and theme targeting will find irrelevant searches. Fast.
Headline ads sit alongside Sponsored Products and Sponsored Display (which Amazon now calls display ads). Our comparison of Sponsored Products vs Sponsored Brands vs Sponsored Display explains how the three fit together, and our note on Amazon PPC campaign structure shows how to organize them. If you would rather hand the whole program over, that is our Amazon advertising management service.
FAQ
What are Amazon headline search ads called now?
Sponsored Brands. Amazon changed the name in September 2018 when it merged its ad offerings under the Amazon Advertising brand. The format, a banner with logo, headline and products, carried over.
Do I need Brand Registry for Sponsored Brands?
Yes, as a third-party seller. Amazon lists professional sellers enrolled in Brand Registry as eligible, alongside vendors, book vendors, KDP authors and agencies.
How many products does a Sponsored Brands ad need?
A product collection features 3 to 10 related products. Video ads can promote a single product, and Store spotlight needs a Brand Store with at least three sub-pages.
How much do Sponsored Brands ads cost?
There is no minimum spend for cost-per-click or viewable-impression campaigns, and Amazon suggests budgeting at least $10 a day. What a click costs depends on the keyword and the competition, so check suggested bids in the console.
Where do Sponsored Brands ads show?
At the top of and within shopping results, and on product detail pages, on desktop and mobile. The top-of-search slot is the one most sellers associate with headline ads.
Are Sponsored Brands better than Sponsored Products?
Neither is better; they do different jobs. Sponsored Products drive most direct sales for most sellers. Sponsored Brands build brand visibility and bring in new customers, which is why new-to-brand metrics matter when you judge them.
Last updated: October 4, 2026. Amazon changes ad formats and placements often; check the Amazon Ads console for current options. Sources: Amazon Ads, Sponsored Brands; Amazon Ads, Sponsored Brands: what to know; Amazon Ads, Sponsored Brands collections; Amazon Ads, theme targeting; Amazon Ads, Sponsored Brands moderation guide; Martech, Amazon streamlines ad products under new Amazon Advertising brand (2018).
