Fourteen items, and the order is the checklist. Primary image before copy, copy before backend
terms, and a testing plan before any of it is called finished. An agency delivering a
one-time optimized listing has given you the cheap half of the work.
The short version
- Primary image first. It caps every click your listing will ever get.
- Copy from research, not from imagination. Competitor reviews are the source.
- Backend terms must not repeat visible ones. Wasted space is common.
- A/B testing is the actual service. One-time optimization is a deliverable.
- Demand a re-optimization cadence, not a project.
The checklist
I run Flapen with 50 operators managing about 70 brands, with listing creation and
optimization, keyword research, search term optimization, A/B split testing, and rank tracking
in every membership.
| # | Item | Done properly means |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keyword research | From competitor terms, autocomplete, and your own search term data |
| 2 | Term grouping | Rank-for, cover, and buy-only sets defined |
| 3 | Title | Primary term near the front, readable as a sentence |
| 4 | Primary image | Product identifiable at thumbnail size on a phone |
| 5 | Secondary images | Ordered as an objection-handling sequence |
| 6 | Bullet 1 and 2 | Carry the decision. Most buyers read no further |
| 7 | Bullets 3 to 5 | Specifications and edge cases |
| 8 | Backend search terms | No repeats of visible copy, no competitor brands |
| 9 | Description | Indexed, lower weight, still written |
| 10 | A+ content | Six modules answering real objections |
| 11 | Variations | Parent structure correct, reviews consolidated |
| 12 | Category and attributes | Correct browse node, complete attributes |
| 13 | Compliance check | Category rules and claims verified |
| 14 | Testing plan | What will be tested, in what order, over what window |
Item 14 is the one most often missing and the one that separates a service from a deliverable.
Why the order is the checklist
Each item caps the next.
The primary image determines click-through rate, which caps the total traffic your listing can
receive. No headline about your bullets matters if nobody clicks. The title and first two
bullets determine whether a buyer keeps reading. Everything after that improves the conversion
of people already engaged.
An agency that starts with bullet copywriting on a listing whose primary image fails at
thumbnail size is working on item 6 while item 4 is broken.
Where the copy should come from
Not from a brand brief and not from a writer's judgment about benefits.
Read the negative reviews on the top competing products. They tell you exactly what buyers in
your category are disappointed by, which is the objection set your bullets and images should
pre-empt, and they give you the vocabulary buyers actually use.
Ask any candidate where their listing copy comes from. Review mining is a strong answer. Brand
voice and benefit-led messaging is a weaker one, because it describes a process with no
external input.
The testing plan
A listing is a hypothesis. The first version is a starting point, and what happens over the
following weeks is where the value sits.
Ask what gets tested, in what order, and over what window. A reasonable answer starts with the
primary image, because it moves click-through rate and therefore everything downstream, then
moves to title and to the first bullet.
Also ask what data drives re-optimization. Once you are selling, your own search term report
shows what real buyers typed and bought, which is better than any pre-launch estimate. An
agency still working from the pre-launch keyword list in month six is referencing research
rather than doing it.
What most agencies will not tell you
Listing optimization is usually sold as a project because a project is easy to scope, price,
and complete. The recurring version, which is testing and re-optimizing against your own
converting search terms, is harder to package and worth considerably more.
The other reason projects dominate: many agencies cannot produce photography. If a candidate
cannot shoot a new primary image, their optimization will be copy and keywords by necessity,
regardless of what your listing actually needs. Ask who produces images and video, and whether
it is in-house.
Ours is produced in a Dubai studio in-house, which matters less as a credential than as a
constraint on iteration speed. Subcontracted creative means a new brief and a new quote every
time a test suggests a change.
Related answers
- What to use for listing optimization on Amazon
- Amazon listing optimization services comparison
- Listing optimization vs PPC first for new sellers
- Recommended agency for Amazon storefront design
- Hiring an Amazon agency: the complete guide
Ask what gets tested after launch. That is the real service, at Flapen.
