The Biggest Amazon PPC Myth: You Need To Run It All The Time

Author: Maxwell Sigurdson-Scott
June 3rd, 2025

The Amazon PPC Automation That Saves Us Thousands (and Nobody’s Using It)

Most sellers treat PPC like a security blanket.

Even when they’re ranked #1 organically, they’re still running ads on the same keywords.
Still paying for traffic they would’ve gotten for free.
Still afraid to turn things off.

I get it. I used to do the same thing. The logic sounds solid.

  • “If I stop bidding, I’ll lose rank.”
  • “If I pause my ad, my competitor will take my spot.”
  • “If I don’t defend the placement, Amazon will punish me.”

All of that is fear-based thinking. None of it’s actually true.

So we stopped doing it.

Here’s what we do now:

If we’re ranked 1 to 3 organically for a keyword, we pull the bids down to near-zero or turn the ad off completely.
If we drop to rank 4 or lower, the bid turns back on.

It’s not manual. It’s not guesswork. It’s automated.

The setup runs on live rank data that connects directly into our PPC campaigns. The entire flow is built through Scale Insights. Their keyword rank tracker pushes updates into our bid rules. So our campaigns react in real-time without us lifting a finger.

If we’re already ranked #1… why are we paying to show up again?

What exactly are you trying to “protect” by spending more money on something you already own?

What Happens When You Turn Off Top-Ranking Keywords?

We tested this before rolling it out across the account.

First batch: ten high-volume keywords.
Each one ranked top 3 consistently.
We paused or slashed bids when our organic position was 1–3. Reactivated only if we dropped to 4+.

Here’s what we saw:

  • Total sales stayed flat
  • ACoS dropped across the board
  • TACoS improved without lifting organic rank
  • Margin went up

No magic. Just logic.

Turns out, Amazon doesn’t need you to pay rent on keywords you already dominate. As long as your product converts and holds its spot, you’re good.

Let’s repeat that another way. If your product has a high conversion rate (and it does, because it’s ranked 1-3), it will stick there (in most cases).

Why This Works

Because Amazon already knows your product performs.

If you’re in the top 3 organically, it’s because customers are clicking and buying without paid help.

That means your listing is doing its job. The algorithm sees it. The velocity is already there. You don’t need to keep paying for what you’ve already proven.

This isn’t about “saving ad spend.” That’s not the goal.

The goal is protecting profit.

You already earned the spot. Now defend it without paying twice.

And The Best Part?

It’s hands off.

It simply wouldn’t be possible to track manually, anyway (unless you had like 1 SKU and someone watching every keyword 24/7).

Now we don’t have to think about it.

The automation checks our rank. The system makes the decision.
We just watch the results.

It’s boring.

Which is exactly what you want.

Who Should Use This?

If you’re:

  • Running manual campaigns and tired of over-managing bids
  • Ranking top 3 on high-value terms
  • Watching your ACoS creep up for no good reason
  • Wondering why your margin isn’t where it should be

This is your fix.

If you’re already using Scale Insights, you’re halfway there. Now you just need to make a Cannibalization rule in your Strategic Objective (seems complicated… it isn’t.).

Want to know more? Reach out to our in-house PPC Expert, Anthony Nguyen.