Introduction to the A9 algorithm

1. What is the A9 algorithm?

The algorithm word Algorithm happens to have 9 words, so it is called the A9 algorithm

Before 2018, the A9 algorithm was public, but it cannot be opened now. It can be traced back through the time machine

(Image source: Screenshot of A9’s official website)

From the official website of the A9 algorithm, we can see the core of the algorithm:

(Image source: Screenshot of A9’s official website)

translate it to

(Image source: translated screenshot)

2. Four principles of A9 algorithm

The four principles of the A9 algorithm are: Searching Indexing, Product Relevance, Past Search Patterns and Past Traffic Patterns

(Image source: Cross-border Michael)

2.1.Searching Indexing

Searching Indexing, information that can be searched and can be indexed. First of all, let’s be clear, why should it be included in the system?The information filled in by the products we upload will be put into the database of the platform by Amazon. With every action of the user, the corresponding data will be processed and displayed.

What information about products can be included?Title, ST, five-point description, long description, these should be familiar to everyone, but the intended use, product type, specific style, related topics, and A+ can all be included in the system

The platform explains the keyword attributes:

(Image source: Cross-border Michael)

2.1.1 Where will the content of the Listing we write be included?

Title, 5 Points, ST, Long Description, Intended Use, Item Type, Specific Style, Related Topics, A+ and more.

2.1.2 How will these contents be used by Amazon?

Some of the content on our listing will be used by Amazon as Index By Search (search traffic collection), and some will be used as Browsed (classification function). For details, please refer to:

(Image source: Amazon backstage screenshot)

(Image source: Amazon backstage screenshot)

Indexed by Search:

(Image source: Amazon backstage screenshot)

(Image source: Amazon backstage screenshot)

Indexed by Search: keyword collection, used for search index

Used by Browse: browse display, used to display on the page

There are explicit requirements for the Style Guides, and each value can be found in the BTG (Classification Tree Guide)

Browse Tree Guides (BTGs): ref=ag_1641_shel_G1641

2.1.3 Search Terms on Amazon

Adult Products

Adult products are products that are designed to be used for sexual purposes or contain sexually explicit images, captions, or other content that is intended to be sexually arousing.

All Product Search (APS)

All Product Search is an “All” search on Amazon. It is not for a specific classification. For example, a search from the home page is an all-product search.

ASIN

An Amazon Product Number (ASIN) is an item number in the Amazon catalog. Every item you see on Amazon.com has an Amazon Product Number (ASIN).

ASIN optimization

ASIN optimization is the art of preparing ASINs to the highest standards for the benefit of buyers, sellers and Amazon. This is not an attempt to trick or “play” the system.

brand name

Brand name is a required catalog attribute. The product’s brand name will appear on the ASIN detail page. For example, jeans from “Levi’s”.

browse

Buyers shop in our store by browsing the links, which are mainly displayed on the left side of the page. Buyers browse by category (e.g. “TV/Audio”, “Beauty”) and segment (e.g. color, brand, price).

Classification node

The taxonomy structure consists of taxonomy nodes. For example, shampoo is a leaf node in the beauty makeup classification structure. Items should be assigned to at least one specific relevant category node in order to be searchable.

Classification node number

Each classification node has a unique ID. The assortment node number is used to assign the ASIN and the buyer cannot see the assortment node number.

Browse Segments

You can use browse segments such as by color, size, and brand to refine shopping results.

gist

This attribute provides information about the main features and benefits of the item. The bullet points should be less than 1,000 characters in total (not each bullet point) and should be written for ease of reading. They are not always indexed by Amazon Search, but are always displayed in full on the product detail page. Read more about the gist.

directory properties

Catalog attributes are fields you see when editing product information in Seller Central. Each directory entry is a collection of attributes. For example, a book has attributes “title”, “author” and “publisher”. Collectively, this information is called directory data.

Directory Spam

Catalog spam is catalog data that violates the terms of the Seller Program. For example, other brand names or ASINs are not allowed in the directory data for an ASIN. Catalog spam is also data that is not related to the product it describes, for example, the inclusion of “mobile phone cases” in the catalog data of shoes is catalog spam.

describe

Product description is a required catalog attribute. Each ASIN should have a product description. This is the paragraph of text that describes the product and appears on the ASIN detail page.

General keywords

Generic keywords are catalog attributes of terms relevant to a buyer’s search. They should contain synonyms, abbreviations and alternative names for the item. Learn more about the effective use of search terms and different types of keyword attributes.

Index Suppression

Index suppression is a directory attribute. When its value is True, Search suppresses the ASIN, ie buyers cannot discover the ASIN. To see if your item is suppressed, go to Inventory > Manage Inventory > Suppression. After you fix the issue (see the “Issues Needing Fix” column), the item should become searchable within 72 hours (maybe sooner).

Product Type Keywords (ITK)

Product type keywords are primarily used in the United States. They are a way of assigning ASINs to specific classification nodes. For example, a US ASIN with a product type keyword value of “skincare” is automatically assigned to the “skincare” category node.

keyword match

Amazon Search will not do partial matches. This means that search results for “fitbit charging straps” contain all of these terms in their catalog data.

Key words

Buyers search using keywords on Amazon. Sellers include relevant keywords in their catalog data.

Delay

Latency is the time between when an ASIN is changed and when the change goes live on Amazon. Changes to new or existing ASINs may take up to 72 hours to take effect. Latency may be slower or faster, depending on website traffic and other technical factors.

Release date

This attribute represents the product launch date and should appear first on the Amazon Web Store in the format YYYY-MM-DD. Unable to search for items with future release dates.

Parent ASIN

Items with variations (eg size, color) have parent ASINs and child ASINs. The parent ASIN is a generic item (eg Levi’s 501 jeans). A child ASIN is a specific variation of an item (eg Levi’s 501 Jeans, plus size, black). Parent ASINs keep item relationships together, allowing one detail page for all variations of an item, rather than a separate detail page for each variation. The parent ASIN cannot be purchased.

Platinum Keywords

Platinum keywords are redundant. Previously, platinum sellers would use platinum keywords to assign ASINs to their stores. The store no longer exists (replaced by the store), and sellers no longer need to fill in platinum keywords. Read more about the different types of keyword attributes.

Location

Position refers to the position an ASIN occupies in featured shopping results. Featured is Amazon’s default sorting option.

search limit

Search queries like “gluten-free blend” may have some restrictions, such as shopping results that only contain ASINs that meet food restriction verification requirements. The search query “red dress” constraint displays shopping results assigned to the dress category node and the red segment selector.

shopping results

Buyers see shopping results when they search on Amazon. The look and feel of shopping results may vary. Product views and shopping scenarios will continue to be tested.

Search for troubleshooting

The goal of search troubleshooting is to ensure that all of your items are discoverable by buyers. See Manual search troubleshooting tips in My ASIN is not searchable. You can use a tool called Determine Why an Item Isn’t Showing:

Tip: Search for “Not For Sale” in the Seller Central help area to access this tool. Enter your ASIN and this tool will diagnose why it is not discoverable:

To conduct a bulk review, visit the Brand Dashboard ([Performance > Brand Dashboard]). Use the Improve Listing and Suppress Links on the Manage Inventory control panel. The Listing Quality and Suppressed Items Report ([Inventory > Inventory Reports > Listing Quality and Suppressed Items Report]) is another way to continually review inventory, correct errors, and ensure it is fully discoverable.

subject keywords

Topic keywords can only be used for media products (books, music, etc.).

product name

Title is a required catalog attribute, and there should be one for each ASIN. Search results consist of item names, descriptions, images, prices, and other features such as badges. See Trade Name Requirements.

valid value

Valid values ​​are valid values ​​for catalog attributes used in classification node assignment queries. For example, “blue” (used in the color browsing segment) is a valid value for the catalog attribute “color name”, but “midnight blue” is not.

2.1.4 Effective use of search terms

In order for shoppers to find your products on Amazon, it’s important that you provide some search terms that shoppers are likely to use when searching for your target product.

Search term optimization tips:

• Stay within length limits.

• Contains synonyms.

• Include spelling variations, but not necessarily misspellings.

• Contains abbreviations and aliases.

• All lowercase can be used.

• No need to use punctuation such as “;”, “:”, “-“.

• Separate words with spaces.

• Do not provide duplicate words in the Search Terms field.

• No need for various stop words such as “a”, “an”, “and”, “by”, “for”, “of”, “the”, “with” and so on.

• Use singular or plural; both singular and plural are not required.

Search terms (keywords) are prohibited:

Violation of these rules below may result in Amazon disabling your ASIN and taking action against your account.

• Do not include your brand or other brand names in search terms.

• Do not include ASINs in search terms.

• Do not contain profanity

• Do not use temporary statements such as “new” or “promotion.”

• Do not use subjective expressions such as “best”, “lowest price”, “incredible”, etc.

• Do not use abusive or offensive words

brand name:

Apple, Nike, Amazon, etc.

Temporary expressions:

Now Available, New, Current, Discounted, Just Released, Last Chance, Last Moment, Newest, Limited Time, New, On Sale, This Week (This Month, This Year, etc.), Today, etc.

Subjective expressions:

Amazing, Best, Cheap, Cheapest, Effective, Fastest, Cheapest, Least, Most, Popular, Trending, etc.

Example

extra words

We recommend that you don’t include the following types of terms in your search terms:

Classification

words to avoid

Stop words:

a, also, and, any, because, in, because of, but, by, for, from, in, into, is, belong to, on, or, therefore, some, such, this, for

common problem

1. What is the difference between bytes and characters?

In the Search Keywords field in Seller Central, there is a built-in byte calculator that stops accepting input that exceeds the length limit in bytes (not characters) because some search keywords contain multi-byte characters.

The ratio of the number of characters (eg a – z, A – Z, 0 – 9) to [bytes] of alphanumeric characters is 1:1. When dealing with more complex characters, such as umlauts in German (like ä), which are 2 bytes per character, the length changes. Other complex characters, such as Japanese and Chinese characters, may have 3 or 4 bytes. In some cases, search terms may contain both single-byte and multi-byte characters, which complicates prediction of character counts.

2. Are spaces and punctuation counted?

Do not count. Amazon Search doesn’t count spaces or punctuation when calculating the length of a search keyword. For readability, search keywords should be separated by spaces. Punctuation may be used, but is not required.

3. Why is there only one search keyword field?

Reducing the search keyword field from five to one is an attempt to improve the quality of Amazon’s search results. Previously, sellers could add up to 5,000 bytes of search keywords, but that resulted in a lot of spam (irrelevant search keywords). Reducing the number of search keywords helps sellers focus on using only relevant words to describe specific products.

4. After reducing the search keyword field to one, how are the search keywords in the removed field handled?

To facilitate this transition, we merged the contents of all search key fields into the first field. Sellers need to click “Save and Finish” to overwrite the content and stay within the length limit. Sellers can edit the content first, and then click [Save]. After saving, any extra content will disappear.

5. What happens if my search keywords exceed the limit?

If a search keyword exceeds the limit, Amazon Search will not index any search keywords for that ASIN. If your ASIN is indexed, it means it is eligible (but not guaranteed) to appear in search results matching your search keywords.

6. How do I bulk update search keywords for my ASINs?

You can download a spreadsheet of existing product information if the ‘Assorted Listings Report’ option under the Inventory tab is enabled in your Seller Central account. If this option is not enabled, you can request Selling Partner Support to enable this option for your account. After downloading the current product information, you can use the Inventory File template to upload changes in bulk through the “Partial Update” feature.

7. Why are some of my search terms not searchable?

Amazon uses machine learning models to determine the relevance of search terms. We think related terms may change over time as Amazon’s machine learning models continue to collect data. This is an automated process and Amazon reserves the right not to use all keywords provided when retrieving items.

2.1.5 After studying, we should realize:

1) Do not exceed the number of words, and write listings in strict accordance with the specifications to prevent demotion

2) BTG is our must-see guide, look at it according to your own category

3) Item Package Qty cannot be changed later.

4) Why did the comments disappear after the variant was merged? Because the attributes do not match, you need to check one by one to see if there are only one or two different, such as Size, Color, etc.