Google PLAs Threaten Amazon

Google continues to expand its reach beyond traditional PPC with nearly 10,000 U.S. advertisers now using Google Product Listing Ads (PLAs) in their paid media marketing. Can Amazon keep market share?

PLAs include product photos with prices and links to the seller’s site on the upper portion of Google’s SERP. With new sellers launching PLAs every day, Amazon’s search results are getting pushed further and further down the page. Sure, Amazon can get its listing inside Google’s PLA space, but as with most things Google, it’s a pay-to-play space.

We recommend sellers occupy as much real estate on the SERP as possible—this includes traditional PPC ads, SEO, and now Google PLAs. While Amazon continues to be a great avenue for sellers, Google’s PLAs are fueled by user’s Google search queries. This puts your products on top of the SERP—and directly in front of the buyer—allowing purchases to be made directly from your site.