Amazon Terminology Cheat Sheet

Are you confused by Amazon terminology and acronyms? Here, we define the most common Amazon terminology that ecommerce companies will find.

Ecommerce isn’t always easy to decode for beginners. Even once you gain your footing as a seller, there are many new terms and acronyms that you’ll continue coming across. This not only applies to general ecommerce tactics, but also to selling on Amazon.

That’s why we put together this Amazon terminology guide. We organized this list in groups and in alphabetical order for ease. Feel free to bookmark this cheat sheet and return to it in case there’s a word or phrase you don’t recognize.

 

Advertising Terms

• Ad orders. How often users purchase after clicking an ad.

• Ad sales. Total number of weekly sales that one ad generates.

• Ad status. Current standing of your ad―running, paused, or archived.

• Automatic targeted ads. Amazon displays your ads to users most likely to click on them.

• Amazon advertising. Various paid marketing services offered by Amazon.

• Bid. How much money you put towards an ad.

• Clicks. The number of times a user selects your ad.

• Daily budget. The amount you’re willing to spend on ads per day.

• Headline search ad. An ad that appears at the top of SERPs.

• Impressions. The number of times users see your ad.

• Manually targeted ads. Campaigns where you input the keywords and other details to ensure your ads are shown to those likelier to purchase a product.

• Pay-per-click (PPC). An advertising model where you only pay a fee when a user clicks on your ad.

• Product display ad. An ad that shows the product image, title, and copy.

• Spend. How much you spend on advertising in a specific time frame.

• Sponsored ad. A strategy to promote your products throughout Amazon.

• Sponsored brand. A strategy where sellers use branded visuals and other elements to promote their company on SERPs.

• Targeting. How or what you use to attract users in an ad campaign.

 

Amazon Terminology

• A-to-Z guarantee. A warranty designed to protect customers when they purchase from third-party sellers.

• A9 search engine. Amazon’s search algorithm.

• Amazon Condition Guidelines. Used to guarantee quality when buying new and used products.

• Amazon’s Choice. When Amazon recognizes a seller based on low prices, high product ratings, and shipping speed.

• Average sales rank. Measures how often you receive a best-seller rank compared to when you don’t.

• Best seller rank (BSR). How sellers compare to the competition.

• Brand registry. A service that recognizes trademarks to protect brands from fraud.

• Buy box. The area on a listing that displays product and purchase details.

• Early reviewer program. When a seller offers a new product for free or at a discounted price in exchange for an honest review.

• Enhanced brand content (EBC). An option to create more detailed product descriptions.

• European Article Number (EAN). 13-digit number that identifies products in the EU.

• Fulfillment by merchant (FBM). Fulfillment option where sellers ship products themselves. 

• Identification codes (ASIN and SKU). Amazon’s product identification system.

• Lightning deals. An Amazon feature where sellers set specific items at a discount.

• Listing. The web page where customers can learn about and purchase individual products.

• Listing quality score. When Amazon assigns a rating to a listing based on details like keywords, bullet points, titles, images, and descriptions.

• MSKU. Identifier to differentiate the FNSKU from the SKU.

• Performance notifications. A page that lists various customer satisfaction metrics.

• Piggybacking. When more than one seller is on the same listing.

• Prime. Subscription where customers receive perks like free and fast shipping.

• Referral fee. Percentage-based fee that Amazon charges sellers for selling on their platform.

• Seller Central. Your Amazon backend, where you’ll conduct business from.  

• Storefront. Branded stores on Amazon.

Analytics Terms

• Average cost of sale (ACOS). Metric that measures how well your ads perform, based on how much you spend on advertising to generate a sale.

• Conversion rate. Percentage of users who visit your store and become customers.

• Cost of goods sold (CoGS). The total cost you spent to create or sell a product.

• Cost-per-click (CPC). The price an advertiser pays when a user clicks their ad.

• Cost-per-thousand (CPM). The amount you pay when 1,000 users see an ad.

• Return on investment (ROI). The amount of money you earn compared to how much you spent to advertise or market that product.

 

Business Terms

• Business-to-business (B2B). When companies sell directly to other businesses.

• Business-to-consumer (B2C). When companies sell to individual buyers for non-business needs.

• Business model. The way an organization generates revenue, operates its company, creates its products, and identifies its customers.

 

Ecommerce Terms

• Average price. The general cost of a product.

• Bump. A discounted product offered during the checkout process.

• Buy-one-get-one (BOGO). A promotion where a customer buys two products but pays for only one.

• Category. A group of similar items or ones in the same niche.

• Coupon. A promotion where users can save money on their purchase.

• Deals. Products offered at a discounted price for a limited time.

• International Standard Book Number (ISBN). 13-digit number assigned to books that publishers and authors use for KDP and other marketplaces.

• Inventory. Collection of products in stock.

• Logistics. The process of managing products stored in warehouses and other facilities.

• Manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP). The price you sell your products, suggested by its manufacturers.

• Minimum advertised price (MAP). The minimum price set by suppliers.

• Omnichannel. Integrates different eCommerce channels.

• Online arbitrage (OA). Buying items to resell online.

• Opportunity score. Rating that signifies the demand for a product.

• Price match (PM). Pricing strategy that represents what competitors are charging for the same or similar item.

• Private label. Putting your name or logo on a generic product and selling it as a branded item.

• Promotion. Special perks, such as discounts, that sellers offer to customers.

• Retail arbitrage (RA). Buying underpriced items to resell.

• Shipping. Moving an order from the warehouse to the customer’s address.

• Target. American retail corporation that offers online and in-store shopping.

• Upsell. Promotion strategy where the seller encourages customers to purchase more products in an order.

• Walmart. American retail corporation that offers online and in-store shopping.

• Wholesale. Purchasing large quantities of items to sell under your name.

 

FBA Terms

• Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA). A fulfillment option where sellers send their inventory to Amazon warehouses and Amazon handles the picking, packing, and shipping.

• Fulfillment center. Amazon’s warehouses where products are stored and shipped.

• Fulfillment fee. The expenses a seller pays for FBA.

• Fulfillment Network Stock Keeping Unit (FNSKU). The unique identifier that Amazon uses to find products sent to their warehouses.

• Variable closing fee. A fixed cost that Amazon charges to send specific products on its platform. 

 

Global Ecommerce Terms

• Customs clearance. The official department that handles goods passing through a country’s border to be sold.

• Duty tax. A tax paid on imported and exported products.

• Export. Sending goods to another country to sell them.

• Global expansion. The process of expanding business operations to one or more countries overseas.

• Import. Bringing goods into another country to sell them.

• Value-added tax (VAT). Consumption tax added to all products purchased in the European Union (EU).

 

Marketing Terms

• A/B testing. When a seller tests two versions of a product listing, landing page, ad, etc., and sees which one generates the best results.
• Affiliate. An individual or organization that promotes your products for a commission.

• Affiliate marketing. A tactic where a seller partners with an individual or organization to promote their product in exchange for a commission of all sales they bring in.

• Giveaway. A strategy where a seller offers a free product to customers in exchange for free promotion (usually on social media).

• Landing page. A page that users click to convert them into a customer. A product listing can also be a landing page.

• Lead magnet. A free or cheap product or service that businesses offer in exchange for something from the user, usually their contact information.

• Marketing. Tactics used to attract customers to your business.

• Opt-in. A form users fill out to connect with a website. It can be a form for a lead magnet or to subscribe to a newsletter.

• Sales funnel. An illustration that tracks the average journey one experiences toward buying a product.

• Sales page. A web page that entices users to purchase a product or service.

• Squeeze page. A web page enticing users to fill out an opt-in form.

Sales and Profit Terms

• Average monthly sales. Average revenue generated in a month.
• Financial statements. Detailed reports of your income.
• Gross profit. Amount a business makes after deducting its expenses.

• Net income. The income you earned after deducting total business expenses.

• Profit and loss statement. Report on the revenue generated, compared to how much you spent.

• Profit margins. The percentage you earn from a sale after deducting the cost of manufacturing, marketing, etc.

• Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4. “Q” is an acronym for “quarter,” indicating the quarterly periods for each year.

• Revenue. Total income from product sales.

• Sales. Amount of products sold, usually over a period of time.

 

SEO Terms

• Keyword. A term that users enter into search engines.

• Search engine optimization (SEO). Tactics that marketers use to appear on search results.

• Search engine position. The position your page is at on a SERP.

• Search engine results page (SERP). The results that a search engine generates after a user enters a query.

• Search volume. The number of times a user searched a keyword in a specific timeframe (usually one month).

• Traffic. The number of users who visit your website or product page.

 

Use Our Amazon Terminology Cheat Sheet for Your Business

Are you still confused about this Amazon glossary of terms? While this Amazon terminology sheet covers the most basic words that all sellers should know, it’s far from a comprehensive list.

If our Amazon terminology guide has any terms or acronyms that confuse you, you may need extra assistance. Don’t hesitate to schedule a free call with us. We can answer any questions you have and can help you create a powerful selling strategy to succeed online.

 

Author

Stephanie Jensen has been writing ecommerce content for seven years, and her copy has helped numerous stores rank on Amazon. Follow her on LinkedIn for more insight into freelance writing and creating high-quality content.

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