Every product you sell on Amazon has a unique ASIN, or Amazon Standard Identification Number. At first glance, this number may not look important, but it’s a key piece of data that you can use to help your business grow.

As an Amazon seller, you’ve probably wondered how to optimize keyword research so your products earn that coveted “#1 Best Seller” spot. Have you ever wanted to check in on your competitors and see which keywords they’re ranking for? Once you know their product ASIN, you can do exactly that with a reverse ASIN lookup.

If you’d like to increase Amazon listing traffic and craft PPC ad campaigns that propel you above your competition, this guide on reverse ASIN lookup is for you.

Amazon ASIN Explained

Amazon uses the ASIN to identify each of the millions of products in its database. For books, the ASIN is the same as the book’s International Standard Identification Number (ISBN). Think of an ASIN as a Universal Product Code (UPC) that’s only used on Amazon. You can’t choose or change your ASIN because Amazon assigns each product an ASIN automatically.

You can use ASINs to keep track of your own products, too. It’s a handy way to organize and monitor your catalog, especially if you sell dozens of products on the Amazon marketplace. 

What Is Reverse ASIN Lookup?

If you know your competitor’s ASINs, you can perform a reverse ASIN lookup and find actionable data that you can use for your own product research. A reverse ASIN lookup provides insights into competitor sales, keyword search volume, similar products, and much more.

How to Perform a Reverse ASIN Lookup

There are a number of ways to perform a reverse ASIN lookup. The exact steps may vary depending on the tool you use, but here’s a general outline of how reverse ASIN lookup works:

1. Find your competitor’s ASIN. Choose a competitor product that you’d like to outsell. If you’re not sure where to start, select a product category that interests you, then click on the top-selling product for that category. Look for the “#1 Best Seller” tag to identify this product. Alternatively, start typing a product category into Amazon’s search bar. You’ll see a list of long-tail keywords to choose from. On an item’s page, scroll to the “Product Details” section. You’ll find the ASIN in this section.
2. Enter the ASIN into a reverse ASIN lookup tool. Copy the ASIN and paste it into the search bar of your preferred reverse ASIN lookup tool. Amazon Brand Analytics is one free option, but you must be Brand Registered on Amazon to use it.
3. Get your competitor’s keywords. Search for your chosen ASIN, and you’ll get a list of keywords that your competitor’s product ranks for. You can use these keywords to build your own PPC campaign and help you outrank your competition. Focus on keywords that customers search for frequently and disregard terms with a low search volume. It’s easier to rank highly for keywords with low search volume, but if few buyers look for these terms, targeting them with your PPC ads isn’t worth your time.
4. Review your results. A good reverse ASIN lookup tool will show you how many buyers search for certain terms, whether that keyword is trending up or down for a specific search result, and how easy or difficult it is to rank for the keyword. Some tools also show the PPC bid you can expect to pay for ads targeting that keyword.

Dive Deeper Into Reverse ASIN Lookup with Amazon Brand Analytics

Amazon Brand Analytics gives you a treasure trove of product research data that can help you develop high-performing PPC campaigns. If you’re not familiar with this tool, though, the amount of data it gives you can be a bit overwhelming. Let’s take a look at the most important categories and what they mean.

Item Comparison Report

In this category, you’ll find the competitor ASIN with which your product is compared. You’ll also see a side-by-side report of how many customers viewed your product compared to your competitor’s product on a given day.

Repeat Purchase Report

This category shows you how many orders were placed for a product over a specified period of time. You’ll also see the number of unique customers and the amount of revenue generated per product through repeat purchases.

If your repeat purchases are lower than you’d like, check out the “Frequently bought together” section of your reverse ASIN search report. This may give you some ideas for product additions and bundles that you can suggest to customers, which could boost repeat purchases.

Alternate Purchase Report

This report shows you which products customers ultimately bought after viewing your product pages. You’ll find ASINs for each product. Check out the product page for each ASIN to compare your competitor’s listings to your own.

If customers regularly choose your competitor’s products over your own, you can turn the tide in your favor by improving your product descriptions and pages. Here are a few suggestions for improving your product pages:

• Write descriptive titles that include key information such as brand, color, weight, and size.
• Include high-quality images that show your product from different angles.
• Add video to show customers how the product works. Many Amazon sellers don’t use video on their product pages, so this trick will help you stand out from the competition.
• Use bullet points to list product features so they’re easier to read. Break up large sections of text with bold headings and shorter paragraphs so customers can quickly find the information they’re looking for.
• Respond to negative customer reviews promptly and professionally. Thank the buyer for their honest feedback, apologize for their dissatisfaction, and offer to make the situation right.

Find Out How Click Fluency Can Help You Outrank Your Competition

If you’re ready to learn more about branded keywords, reverse ASIN lookup, and Amazon ad management, schedule a call with Click Fluency today! Click Fluency is a full-service Amazon agency with the expertise to build PPC campaigns that will have you outranking your competition.