The campaign that prints money - and how to not screw it up

Summary

The video script discusses a controversial yet effective Amazon advertising strategy known as a 'catch-all Auto' campaign. This approach involves placing an entire product line into a single automatic campaign, which defies conventional wisdom but has been proven to yield impressive results. The strategy focuses on highly profitable sales rather than clean data or ranking benefits. The key to success with this method is to start with a low daily budget and keep bids very low, typically around 35 cents, which should be relative to the account's average cost per click. The campaign is set with dynamic bids down only, without adjusting placements or adding negative keywords. The speaker warns against the temptation to increase bids, which could lead to poor long-term outcomes. Instead, a fail-safe mechanism should be in place to prevent bid scaling beyond a certain point. The campaign works best with larger accounts and product lines, and careful management is crucial to maintain profitability.

Takeaways

• 🚀 **Catch-all Auto Campaign**: A strategy where an entire product line is put into an automatic campaign on Amazon, which can yield phenomenal results despite going against conventional practices.
• 🎯 **Budget Scaling**: Start with a limited budget (e.g., $50 or $100 a day) and scale up if the campaign performs well, driving sales at a profitable cost.
• 🛒 **Product Line Inclusion**: Include all product lines in the campaign without worrying about grouping them in a conventional manner.
• 📈 **Performance Focus**: The primary goal is highly profitable sales, not necessarily clean data or additional benefits like search term retargeting.
• 🔍 **Data Clarity**: Recognize that data from such campaigns will not be clean, making it time-consuming to extract useful insights.
• 💡 **Bid Strategy**: Keep bids low, with an example starting point of 35 cents, which should be relative to the average cost per click (CPC) in your account.
• 📉 **Bid Optimization**: Only optimize bids downwards if necessary, to maintain the campaign's performance without increasing costs.
• 🚫 **Avoid Bid Increases**: Resist the temptation to increase bids, even if initial results are excellent, as this can lead to negative long-term outcomes.
• 🔗 **Placement Strategy**: Utilize dynamic bids down only and avoid tweaking placements to maintain a 'set it and forget it' approach.
• ⛔ **No Negative Keywords**: With low bids, there's less need for extensive negative keyword management, as the bids naturally limit irrelevant traffic.
• 📊 **Account Size Benefits**: Larger accounts with more products tend to benefit more from this strategy, as it can lead to better overall performance.

Q & A

What is the term used to describe the Amazon advertising strategy where an entire product line is put into an automatic campaign?

The term used for this strategy is 'catch-all Auto'.

What is the primary goal of setting up a catch-all Auto campaign?

The primary goal is to achieve highly profitable ad sales with a lean, low-budget strategy.

Why is it not recommended to increase the bids in a catch-all Auto campaign?

Increasing the bids can lead to a change in the campaign's strategy, potentially causing it to spin out of control and not yield the desired results.

What is the recommended starting budget for a catch-all Auto campaign?

It is suggested to start with a budget of at least $50 or $100 a day to ensure the campaign performs well.

Why is it advised to keep bids low in a catch-all Auto campaign?

Keeping bids low allows Amazon to find good placements across the entire product line without incurring high costs.

What is the recommended bidding strategy for a catch-all Auto campaign?

Dynamic bids down only is recommended, with a default low bid starting at around 35 cents, adjusted according to the average cost per click in the account.

Why is it not necessary to add negative keywords in a catch-all Auto campaign?

With low bids, the campaign is less likely to trigger irrelevant searches, reducing the need for extensive negative keyword management.

What is the potential downside of scaling up bids in a catch-all Auto campaign?

Scaling up bids can lead to higher costs and potentially poor performance, deviating from the campaign's intended low-cost, high-profit strategy.

How does the catch-all Auto campaign differ from a ranking campaign?

A catch-all Auto campaign focuses on profitable sales rather than driving ranking improvements for products.

What is the general advice for managing bids in a catch-all Auto campaign?

It is advised to manage bids at a campaign level, with a focus on not increasing bids and possibly implementing bid caps as a fail-safe.

What is the impact of having a larger product line on a catch-all Auto campaign?

A larger product line can improve the performance of a catch-all Auto campaign, as it provides more opportunities for profitable placements.

How does the catch-all Auto campaign strategy compare to conventional Amazon advertising practices?

It goes against conventional practices by grouping entire product lines in one campaign, which is typically not recommended due to the complexity of data analysis.