If you’ve ever shopped for literally anything on Amazon, it’s no surprise that it has a robust digital ad business catering to brands that want to promote products on its website and app.
What is surprising is that Amazon’s digital ad revenue grew 18% YoY to $8.76B in Q2 — more than analysts expected and outpacing Google and Facebook.
In fact, Facebook’s revenue shrank for the first time ever by 1.5%.
Why?
Unlike the social media companies, Amazon isn’t affected by Apple’s privacy update, which lets iOS users opt out of targeted ad tracking.
People on Amazon are already there to shop. Insider Intelligence analyst Andrew Lipsman toldCNBC that Amazon is more likely to offer an ROI, key for brands worried about a recession.
For brands, Amazon ads are 68% cheaper than Google’s and 44% cheaper than Facebook’s when comparing average cost-per-click.
Fun fact: Amazon also has a virtual product placement tool, meaning it can insert brands into its TV shows and movies in postproduction.