E-commerce and Amazon Glossary Complete Guide to Online Selling Terms

 A

Account Health Rating

Amazon’s evaluation of a seller’s performance across multiple metrics including order defect rate, cancellation rate, and late shipment rate.

Advertising Cost of Sales (ACoS)

The ratio of ad spend to generated sales, expressed as a percentage. Calculated by dividing total ad spend by total sales from advertising. A lower ACoS indicates better advertising efficiency.

Advertising Placement Report

A detailed report showing how ads perform in different placements (top of search, product pages, etc.), helping optimize placement bidding strategies.

Advanced Bidding Strategies

Automated bid adjustments based on specific goals like target ACoS or maximizing impressions, including dynamic bidding up and down.

Advertising Strategy Optimization (ASO)

The process of optimizing Amazon product listings to improve organic ranking and visibility in Amazon’s search results.

Attribution Window

The time period after a user clicks on an ad during which their purchase can be attributed to that advertising interaction.

Average Cost Per Click (Avg. CPC)

The average amount paid for each click on an advertising campaign, calculated by dividing total ad spend by total clicks.

Automatic Targeting

Campaign setting where Amazon’s algorithm automatically chooses relevant keywords and product targets based on your listing information.

A+ Content

Enhanced brand content A.K.A A+ content is available to brand-registered sellers on Amazon, featuring rich media content including custom image modules, enhanced text placements, and interactive features that help showcase brand value and product details.

Amazon Brand Registry

A program that gives brand owners access to powerful tools for brand protection, enhanced advertising options, and A+ Content capabilities. Requires a registered trademark to enroll.

Amazon Business

A purchasing solution for registered businesses offering bulk pricing, multi-user accounts, and business-specific features like approval workflows and detailed spending analytics.

Amazon Choice Badge

A distinction awarded to highly-rated, well-priced products that are available for immediate shipping. This badge helps customers quickly identify quality products in search results.

B

Best Sellers Rank (BSR)

A numeric value assigned to products indicating their sales performance within specific categories.

Bid Adjustments

Percentage changes to base bids based on targeting or placement options to optimize ad performance.

Bid+ (Bid Plus)

Legacy Amazon feature that automatically increased bids by up to 50% for top-of-search placements.

Brand Analytics

Advanced reporting tool for brand-registered sellers providing valuable insights including search terms and market basket analysis.

Brand Defense

Strategy of bidding on brand terms to protect market share and prevent competitors from capturing branded traffic.

Buy Box

The prominent “Add to Cart” and “Buy Now” buttons on Amazon product pages. Winning the Buy Box means being the selected seller for a product when multiple sellers offer the same item.

Bundle Listing

A product listing that combines multiple complementary items sold together as a single unit, often creating unique value for customers.

C

Catalog Change Request

Formal process for requesting updates to ASIN details in Amazon’s catalog.

Category Approval

Permission required to sell in restricted categories on Amazon.

Campaign Placement Optimization

The process of adjusting bid strategies and placements across different ad positions (top of search, product pages, etc.) to maximize advertising effectiveness.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

The percentage of users who click on an ad after viewing it, calculated by dividing total clicks by total impressions.

Conversion Rate

The percentage of website visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase. Calculated by dividing the number of conversions by total visitors.

Cost Per Click (CPC)

CPC is the amount paid by advertisers each time a user clicks on their sponsored product listing or advertisement.

D

Daily Budget

Maximum amount you’re willing to spend per day on an advertising campaign.

Dayparting

Strategy of scheduling ads to run during specific times of day to optimize performance.

Detail Page View Rate

Percentage of ad clicks that result in views of your product detail page.

Display Advertising

Visual ads shown on websites, including Amazon’s owned and operated properties.

Dynamic Bidding

Amazon PPC feature allowing automated bid adjustments based on likelihood of conversion.

Dropshipping

A fulfillment method where sellers don’t keep inventory on hand, instead transferring customer orders directly to manufacturers or suppliers who ship products to end customers.

Digital Marketplace

An online platform where multiple sellers can list and sell products to customers, such as Amazon, eBay, or Etsy.

E

Elastic Search

Amazon’s search algorithm that determines product ranking in search results based on factors like relevance, price, availability, and customer behavior.

F

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)

A service where Amazon stores, picks, packs, and ships products on behalf of sellers, while also handling customer service and returns.

Feedback Score

A rating system based on customer reviews and feedback that helps establish seller reputation and trustworthiness.

G

Gross Merchandise Value (GMV)

The total value of merchandise sold through an e-commerce platform over a specific time period, before deductions for fees, refunds, and returns.

Global Trade Item Number (GTIN)

A unique identifier for trade items, developed by GS1, including UPC, EAN, ISBN, and other product identification numbers.

I

Inventory Turnover Rate

The number of times inventory is sold and replaced over a specific period.

Inventory Performance Index (IPI)

Amazon’s measurement of FBA seller inventory management efficiency, considering factors like inventory levels, sell-through rate, and storage utilization.

International Standard Book Number (ISBN)

A unique identifier assigned to books and book-like products, required for listing books on Amazon and other marketplaces.

K

Keywords

Keywords are words or phrases that customers use to search for products on Amazon and other e-commerce platforms. Critical for search engine optimization and product discoverability.

Keyword Bidding

Setting bid amounts for specific search terms in advertising campaigns.

Keyword Harvesting

Process of identifying converting search terms from automatic campaigns to use in manual campaigns.

Keyword Match Types

Different ways to match keywords to customer searches:

• Exact Match: Matches search query exactly
• Phrase Match: Contains phrase in sequence
• Broad Match: Contains all keywords in any order

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Measurable values that demonstrate how effectively an e-commerce business is achieving key business objectives.

L

Lightning Deals

Time-limited promotional offers featuring products at discounted prices, prominently displayed on Amazon’s Deal page.

Long-tail Keywords

Specific, typically longer keyword phrases that visitors are more likely to use when they’re closer to making a purchase decision.

M

Minimum Advertised Price (MAP)

The lowest price at which resellers agree to advertise a manufacturer’s products.

Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF)

Multi-Channel Fulfillment is an Amazon service that fulfills orders from other sales channels using inventory stored in Amazon fulfillment centers.

N

Negative Targeting

Excluding specific keywords or products from your advertising campaigns to prevent irrelevant ad impressions.

New-to-Brand Metrics

Measurements showing how many orders and sales came from customers who haven’t purchased from your brand in the past 12 months.

O

Order Defect Rate (ODR)

The percentage of orders that receive negative feedback, A-to-z Guarantee claims, or chargeback claims. Amazon sellers must maintain an ODR under 1%.

Organic Traffic

Visitors who find your product listings through unpaid search results rather than through advertising.

P

Parent-Child Relationships

Product listing structure linking related products with different variations.

Perfect Order Percentage (POP)

Metric measuring orders delivered on time, undamaged, and meeting customer expectations.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click)

PPC is an advertising model where advertisers pay only when users click on their ads. Primary form of advertising on Amazon and other e-commerce platforms.

Programmatic Advertising

Automated buying and selling of advertising space using data and algorithms to make real-time decisions about ad placement and bidding.

Prime Badge

An indicator that products are eligible for Amazon Prime shipping benefits, typically offering free two-day delivery for Prime members.

Product Identifier

Unique codes that identify specific products, including UPC, EAN, ISBN, or ASIN numbers.

R

Replenishment Alerts

Notifications indicating when inventory needs to be restocked based on sales velocity.

Retail Analytics

Data-driven insights about product performance, customer behavior, and market trends.

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)

Advertising strategy targeting users who have previously interacted with your products or brand but haven’t made a purchase.

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)

A marketing metric that measures revenue generated per dollar spent on advertising.

Referral Fee

The fee Amazon charges sellers when a product sells, typically a percentage of the total transaction.

S

Search Find Buy (SFB)

Marketing strategy encouraging customers to search specific terms and find your product.

Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP)

Program allowing sellers to deliver directly to Prime customers while maintaining Prime shipping standards.

Storage Fee Index

Metric used to calculate FBA storage fees based on product size and time in warehouse.

Search Term Impression Share

Percentage of available impressions your ads received for specific search terms.

Search Term Isolation

Strategy of using negative keywords to prevent overlap between campaigns and control which ad appears for specific search terms.

Sponsored Brands

Ad format featuring brand logo, custom headline, and multiple products, appearing in prominent positions in search results.

Sponsored Display

Self-service Sponsored display advertising solution targeting shoppers based on interests and behaviors.

Sponsored Products

PPC ads for individual product listings appearing in search results and product detail pages.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Techniques used to improve product visibility in marketplace search results and external search engines.

Seller Central

Amazon’s web interface where sellers manage their Amazon business, including inventory, pricing, and orders.

T

TACoS (Total Advertising Cost of Sales)

The ratio of total ad spend to total sales (including both organic and advertising-attributed sales). TACOS provides a broader view of advertising impact on overall business performance than ACoS.

Targeting

The practice of showing ads to specific audience segments based on demographics, behaviors, or other characteristics.

Total Addressable Market (TAM)

The total market demand for a product or service, representing the maximum potential size of your market.

Two-Step Verification

A security feature requiring two forms of identification to access seller accounts.

U

Universal Product Code (UPC)

A barcode symbology widely used in North America for tracking trade items, required for many Amazon product listings.

Unit Session Percentage (Conversion Rate)

The number of units ordered relative to the number of times customers viewed the product detail page.

V

Video Ads

Rich media advertisements featuring product demonstrations, brand storytelling, or educational content.

View-Through Conversions

Sales attributed to ad impressions without clicks within a specified attribution window.

Variation Listing

A product listing that groups related products that only differ in specific attributes like size or color.

Voice of Customer (VOC)

Feedback and insights gathered from customer reviews, questions, and support interactions.

Best Practices for Using This Glossary

1. Bookmark this page for quick reference during your e-commerce operations
2. Review relevant terms before making major business decisions
3. Share with team members to ensure consistent understanding of terminology
4. Check back regularly for updates as e-commerce terminology evolves