Key Takeaways
- What is AMC? A privacy-safe, cloud-based clean room solution for deep advertising analytics on Amazon.
- Access: Requires Amazon DSP or active ad campaigns plus Brand Registry. AMC itself is free.
- SQL-based: Write custom queries or use pre-built Instructional Queries for a quick start.
- Top Use Cases: Custom audience creation, path-to-purchase analysis, multi-touch attribution, and cross-channel measurement.
- AMC Audiences: Push audiences created from queries directly into DSP campaigns, e.g., cart abandoners from the last 30 days.
Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) is Amazon's answer to the growing demand for data-driven marketing in a privacy-first world. As a cloud-based clean room solution, AMC enables brands to analyze their advertising data at the event level without exposing personal customer information. For brands already using Amazon DSP or investing in PPC campaigns, AMC offers an entirely new level of transparency.
This guide explains how AMC works, what prerequisites you need, and how to leverage the platform for your brand, even if you are not an SQL expert.
What Is Amazon Marketing Cloud?
AMC is a privacy-safe analytics environment where you can combine and analyze pseudonymized advertising data from various Amazon channels. Unlike standard reporting tools like the Advertising Console or Brand Analytics, AMC offers:
- Event-level data: Every individual ad impression, click, and conversion as individual data points.
- Cross-channel analysis: Combine Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Display, and DSP campaigns in a single analysis.
- Custom queries: SQL-based queries for tailored analyses that go beyond standard reports.
- Privacy: All data is pseudonymized. Individual customers cannot be identified. Results must meet a minimum aggregation threshold of 100 users.
Access Requirements
Accessing AMC requires specific prerequisites. You need either active Amazon DSP campaigns or active Sponsored Ads campaigns. Brand Registry is also required. Setup is completed through your Amazon account representative or a registered DSP agency. AMC itself is free, but requires ongoing ad spend since the data comes from your campaigns.
Instructional Queries for Getting Started
Amazon offers pre-built queries that you can use without SQL knowledge. These Instructional Queries cover common analyses and can be executed with a single click. For more complex questions, SQL expertise or a specialized partner is required.
Key AMC Use Cases
Custom Audience Creation
AMC Audiences are one of the most powerful features. You can create audiences directly from AMC queries and push them into your DSP campaigns. Example audiences:
- Cart abandoners who did not purchase in the last 30 days
- Customers who viewed 3 or more products but did not buy
- Lookalike audiences based on your top customers
- Customers who purchased Product A but not the accessory Product B
Path-to-Purchase Analysis
Understand the entire purchase path of your customers: Which touchpoints lead to a conversion? How many impressions does a customer need on average before purchasing? Which combination of SP, SB, and SD leads to the highest conversion rates?
Overlap Analysis
Analyze how different ad formats work together. Overlap analysis shows, for example, that customers who saw both a Sponsored Products and a Sponsored Brands ad have a 2-3x higher conversion rate than customers with only one touchpoint. These insights help you optimally distribute your budget across DSP and Sponsored Ads channels.
New-to-Brand Metrics
AMC provides precise data on which campaigns acquire new customers versus reactivating existing ones. This is critical for evaluating your customer acquisition costs and long-term growth strategy.
Limitations
AMC is powerful but has limitations you should be aware of:
- 28-day attribution: The attribution window is limited to 28 days. Longer purchase cycles are not fully captured.
- SQL complexity: Advanced queries require SQL skills or a specialized partner.
- Minimum aggregation: Results must include at least 100 users. Small niches or new campaigns may not generate enough data.
- No real-time data: Data is typically delayed by 24-48 hours.
Is AMC Practical for Mid-Size Brands?
Yes, especially with Instructional Queries. Mid-size brands with monthly ad spend from 5,000-10,000 EUR can derive significant value from AMC without building a data science team. The pre-built queries cover the most important analyses, and for more complex questions, a specialized agency can be engaged on a project basis.