Products

EMARKETER delivers leading-edge research to clients in a variety of forms, including full-length reports and data visualizations to equip you with actionable takeaways for better business decisions.
PRO+
New data sets, deeper insights, and flexible data visualizations.
Learn More
Reports
In-depth analysis, benchmarks and shorter spotlights on digital trends.
Learn More
Forecasts
Interactive projections with 10k+ metrics on market trends, & consumer behavior.
Learn More
Charts
Proprietary data and over 3,000 third-party sources about the most important topics.
Learn More
Industry KPIs
Industry benchmarks for the most important KPIs in digital marketing, advertising, retail and ecommerce.
Learn More
Briefings
Client-only email newsletters with analysis and takeaways from the daily news.
Learn More
Analyst Access Program
Exclusive time with the thought leaders who craft our research.
Learn More

About EMARKETER

Our goal is to unlock digital opportunities for our clients with the world’s most trusted forecasts, analysis, and benchmarks. Spanning five core coverage areas and dozens of industries, our research on digital transformation is exhaustive.
Our Story
Learn more about our mission and how EMARKETER came to be.
Learn More
Methodology
Rigorous proprietary data vetting strips biases and produces superior insights.
Learn More
Our People
Take a look into our corporate culture and view our open roles.
Join the Team
Contact Us
Speak to a member of our team to learn more about EMARKETER.
Contact Us
Newsroom
See our latest press releases, news articles or download our press kit.
Learn More
Advertising & Sponsorship Opportunities
Reach an engaged audience of decision-makers.
Learn More
Events
Browse our upcoming and past events, recent podcasts, and other featured resources.
Learn More
Podcasts
Tune in to EMARKETER's daily, weekly, and monthly podcasts.
Learn More

Prices for Amazon Sponsored Product Ads Continue to Climb

Marketers that advertise on Amazon are continuing to pour more money into paid media on the ecommerce marketplace, according to Q4 2019 reporting from technology providers and performance advertising agencies.

Spending on Sponsored Product ads, which are historically Amazon’s most popular ad product, is continuing to go up, as are prices. Merkle reported that among its clients in North America that had been spending on Amazon for at least a year, Q4 2019 spending on Sponsored Product ads was up 63%. Among US-based clients of Tinuiti, spending on the format was up 30%.

Though the client bases of the two firms are increasing Sponsored Product spending at different rates, and thus seeing different increases in overall click volume, they’re experiencing similar levels of price increases, along with the clients of Pacvue. The three companies reported 12% to 16% increases in the cost-per-click (CPC) of Sponsored Product ads.

Prices on Sponsored Product ads have been rising for a while. In Q3 2019, Pacvue reported they were up 13%, while Merkle reported an increase of 11% and Tinuiti reported a 10% price jump. At the same time, prices on Sponsored Brand ads have been falling due to Amazon adding more inventory for the format in locations that are less likely to result in conversions (meaning some of the placements are less valuable).

Pacvue and Tinuiti both reported CPCs on Sponsored Brand ads were down 8% in Q4 2019. For Merkle’s clients, however, CPCs were up. Merkle noted that Q4 represented a return to year-over-year growth in CPCs for Sponsored Brand ads, after a period of declines due to the increase in inventory.

Even with these declines, Sponsored Brand ads remain more expensive on a CPC basis than the average Sponsored Product ad, according to Pacvue. Pacvue reported an average Sponsored Product CPC of $1.08 in Q4 2019, compared with an average of $1.30 for Sponsored Brand ads.

Together, Sponsored Product and Sponsored Brand ads account for the bulk of Amazon’s ad business, according to our estimates. These, and other primarily keyword-targeted search ads, will net Amazon $9.79 billion in US search ad revenues this year, up from just more than $7 billion in 2019.