Have you ever felt overwhelmed the moment you opened an Amazon advertising report in Excel? You might have wondered, “What do these numbers actually mean? Why is it so complicated? And once I look at this, what decisions should I make?” This guide is for brand managers and marketers who have asked themselves these questions. In reality, Amazon advertising reports are simpler than you think. Once you understand just 7 key terms, hidden issues become visible, and you can start to see clear paths for improvement.
CPC: Cost Per Click. In other words, how much did you pay for a single click?
Example: If 100 people clicked on your ad for a total cost of 50,000 KRW, your CPC is 500 KRW. Is lower always better? Not necessarily. What matters more is whether the click is a valuable click. To evaluate ad efficiency, don't just look at CPC; you should also check the conversion rate.
Budget: The amount allocated to a specific period or campaign
Bidding: Deciding how much you are willing to pay per click
Ad performance varies significantly depending on your budget and bidding strategy. To improve sales, it is more important to strategically manage campaign-level budgets and fine-tune your bids for specific keywords than to simply increase your total ad spend.
Match Type: How to set which search terms trigger your ad
There are three types of Amazon PPC ad match types:
Search terms that include words related to your keyword, similar expressions, plurals, synonyms, and sentences with a different word order
For example, if you set “protein bar” as a broad match, your ad may appear for various related search terms, such as “fitness snacks,” “high-protein snacks,” or “vegan protein bar.”
Search terms containing specific keywords
For example, if you set “protein bar” as a phrase match, your ad may appear for search terms that include those specific keywords, such as “low-sugar protein bar” or “protein bar 12 pack,” but it will not be displayed for search terms like “fitness snacks” or “high-protein snacks.”
Matches exactly with the target keyword.
For example, if you set “protein bar” as an exact match, your ad will only appear for the search term “protein bar” and not for terms like “low sugar protein bar” or “protein bar 12 pack.” Therefore, you need to repeatedly go through the cycle of keyword testing, analysis, and setting the optimal match type.
CTR: The percentage of people who clicked on your ad after seeing it.
A low CTR means that customers didn't feel a compelling reason to click even after seeing the ad. It is highly likely that your ad copy, images, or A+ content were not engaging enough. An ad with a good CTR isn't just about high clicks; it must be targeted accurately and structured to lead to conversions after the click.
ACoS : Advertising cost as a percentage of sales.
Example: 10,000 in ad spend → 50,000 in revenue → 20% ACoS.
While a lower ACoS is generally considered better, a higher ACoS can be acceptable depending on the situation. You may need to accept some losses, especially when building brand awareness or launching a new product.
ROAS : Revenue generated for every 1 unit of currency spent on advertising.
Example: 400% ROAS → 40,000 in revenue for 10,000 in ad spend.
This metric is used for performance-driven analysis.
Search Term Report: A tool to identify the actual search terms customers use by checking what keywords led them to your product.
Analyzing the actual search terms collected through ads can help you discover new keyword ideas or areas for page improvement. For example, if you ran an ad for “protein bars for women” but customers found you through the keyword “weight management snacks,” that means you have an opportunity to expand your brand positioning.
Reading an ad report isn't just about interpreting numbers. It’s about figuring out what those numbers are saying, what customer behaviors they reflect, and where you should allocate your budget moving forward. DISRUPT isn't just a team that runs ads; we are a team that turns reports into strategy. Even at this very moment, we are diving into brand reports to develop concrete execution strategies that boost ad performance. Have you ever felt frustrated while looking at your ad reports? With Amazon marketing agency DISRUPT, those numbers will start to look like a clear strategy.
Account Executive
