Most Amazon advertisers run the same keyword in Broad, Phrase, and Exact. Someti
By Gabriel Caceros · April 16, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Most Amazon advertisers run the same keyword in Broad, Phrase, and Exact.
Sometimes in the same campaign.
That is not really a strategy.
That is your keywords competing against each other.
Let me show you what that can cost.
A supplement brand came to us spending $38K/month on Sponsored Products.
Their setup was simple:
• One campaign structure
• Mixed match types
• Everything kept together for simplicity
But here is what was actually happening on a keyword like organic protein powder.
Broad match:
• Average CPC: $1.84
• CVR: 8.2%
• ACOS: 34%
Phrase match:
• Average CPC: $2.12
• CVR: 12.1%
• ACOS: 28%
Exact match:
• Average CPC: $2.47
• CVR: 18.3%
• ACOS: 21%
All three match types were running together.
That meant they were competing for budget and traffic inside the same structure.
Here is the problem:
When you mix match types, Amazon optimizes at the campaign level, not at the match-type level.
So your budget tends to flow toward the traffic source that gets impressions first.
That is often Broad.
Not because it is the best performer.
Because it casts the widest net.
Meanwhile, Exact is usually the most efficient and highest-converting match type.
But it does not get the budget priority it deserves.
So we restructured the account with match-type separation and cross-negatives.
The architecture:
Campaign 1: Exact match
• Only proven, high-converting terms
• More aggressive bids
• Tightest budget control
Campaign 2: Phrase match
• Terms that are showing promise
• Moderate bids
• Exact terms added as negatives
Campaign 3: Broad match
• Discovery and query mining
• Base bids
• Exact and Phrase terms added as negatives
The cross-negative strategy is the part most advertisers miss.
If organic protein powder exists in Exact:
• Add it as a negative in Phrase
• Add it as a negative in Broad
Why?
Because when a shopper searches that exact term, you want the Exact campaign to win that auction.
That is where conversion rate is strongest.
That is where a higher bid is more justified.
Without cross-negatives, Broad, Phrase, and Exact can all enter the same auction.
Then Amazon decides which one gets served based on bid and relevance.
You lose control.
Results after 45 days:
Before, mixed structure:
• Total spend: $38K
• Exact got 22% of budget
• Overall ACOS: 31%
After, separated structure with cross-negatives:
• Total spend: $38K
• Exact got 47% of budget
• Overall ACOS: 24%
Same budget.
Same products.
Same keyword set.
Just better campaign architecture.
The framework is simple:
Broad = discovery
Phrase = validation
Exact = scale
Broad says: let us see what works.
Phrase says: this looks promising.
Exact says: this definitely works, let us lean in.
In 2026, as Amazon pushes more impressions toward Broad and Auto, clean match-type separation matters more than ever.
If they are all in one campaign, you are flying blind.
#AmazonAds #SponsoredProducts #AmazonPPC #EcommerceMarketing #RetailMedia