How to Drive External Traffic to Amazon: Attribution, Brand Referral Bonus and Break-Even Math

Quick answer: how to drive external traffic to Amazon

Make sure the listing converts, tag every outside link with Amazon Attribution, enroll in the Brand Referral Bonus so Amazon pays part of the cost back, start with one channel (usually Google Search), and judge it on cost per Amazon sale after the bonus, not on clicks.

Is external traffic to Amazon still worth it in 2026?

For most brands, yes, but for different reasons than a few years ago. Three things changed:

• Amazon now measures it. Amazon Attribution shows what each outside click did on Amazon, so you no longer have to guess.
• Amazon pays part of it back. The Brand Referral Bonus returns a share of each sale from outside traffic, on average 10%.
• Amazon clicks got expensive. In many categories a Sponsored Products click now costs more than a Google click for the same search.

It is not worth it when the listing converts poorly, the product is low priced (under about $15, the margin rarely covers outside clicks), or stock is running low.

Step 1: Get the listing ready before you send traffic

Outside visitors arrive cold. They have not compared products on Amazon yet, so the listing has to do all the selling. Before spending on external traffic, we check four things:

If a check fails, fix it first. Our guides on Amazon conversion rate, getting reviews on Amazon and avoiding stockouts cover each one.

Step 2: Set up Amazon Attribution

Amazon Attribution is Amazon's free tool for measuring outside traffic. Every link you use outside Amazon gets a tag, and Amazon reports what happened after the click: detail page views, add to carts, purchases and sales, counted for 14 days.

1. Open Amazon Attribution from the Amazon Ads console. It is available to brand registered sellers and vendors.
2. Create an advertiser for your brand and add the products you want to promote.
3. Create a tag for each channel and campaign, for example Google Search, Meta prospecting and each influencer. Google and Meta can be connected so the tags are added for you.
4. Use the tagged link as the final URL in your ads, posts and emails.
5. Check the report weekly, and wait 14 days before judging a campaign.

Step 3: Enroll in the Brand Referral Bonus

The Brand Referral Bonus is the reason the math often works. Brand registered sellers who enroll in Seller Central get a bonus on sales from outside traffic that comes through Amazon Attribution tags. Amazon says it averages 10% of the sale price, and the rate depends on the category. The bonus is paid as a credit toward your Amazon selling fees.

Enrollment takes a few minutes: in Seller Central, open Brands, then Brand Referral Bonus, and enroll your brand. Your Attribution tags then count automatically. Without enrollment, the same sales earn nothing back.

Step 4: Do the break-even math before you scale

External traffic should be judged on one number: what an Amazon sale costs you after the bonus, compared with what the same sale costs on Amazon ads. Here is the math for a $38 product:

The click costs and the Amazon conversion rate come from the account in the next section. The result is the useful part: because the Google click is cheaper and the bonus pays part of the sale back, Google traffic only has to convert at about half the Amazon rate to cost the same per sale. Any sale it brings on top is extra rank for the main keyword.

A live example: Google Search to Amazon for a yerba mate brand

In October 2026 we launched a Google Search campaign for a yerba mate brand we manage on Amazon. The setup:

• Keywords from Amazon data. We picked the Google keywords from the brand's Amazon Sponsored Products search term report, so we only bid on searches that already sell on Amazon.
• High intent only. After the first day we paused broad informational terms and kept buying terms such as "buy yerba mate", "yerba mate on Amazon" and product format terms like "yerba mate sticks".
• Ads that say Amazon. Every ad has "Buy on Amazon" pinned as the second headline, with the price and pack size, so the click comes from someone ready to buy there.
• Every click tagged. All final URLs are Amazon Attribution links, so Amazon reports the sales and the Brand Referral Bonus applies.

First week results (October 19 to 24, 2026):

It is too early to report sales: Amazon Attribution counts purchases for 14 days after each click. We will update this section with the cost per sale once the first full month is in.

Step 5: Choose your channels

Amazon's own off Amazon tools are a separate route: Amazon DSP reaches shoppers on other websites and apps with Amazon's data, and Brand Tailored Promotions retargets past visitors with a discount.

Step 6: Measure and scale what works

• Weekly: check clicks, detail page views and add to cart rate per tag. A low add to cart rate points to the wrong audience or the wrong product.
• After 14 days: compare cost per sale after the bonus with your Amazon Sponsored Products cost per sale.
• Monthly: check whether organic rank improved for the main keyword. That is the second return on external traffic, and it does not show in Attribution.
• Scale slowly: raise budgets 20% to 30% at a time on campaigns that beat your Amazon cost per sale.

External traffic mistakes we see most often

• Sending traffic without Attribution tags. You lose the measurement and the Brand Referral Bonus.
• Bidding on research searches. "Benefits of yerba mate" brings readers, not buyers.
• Sending traffic to a weak listing. Low conversion makes every click expensive and can pull down organic rank.
• Using review or rank manipulation services. Paying for reviews, or sending traffic designed to fake sales, breaks Amazon policy and puts the account at risk.
• Judging the channel in the first week. Purchases keep coming in for 14 days after each click.

Frequently asked questions

Does external traffic help Amazon rankings?

Yes, when it turns into sales. Amazon ranks products by how well they sell, and sales from outside Amazon count toward that. Clicks that do not convert do not help, and a lower conversion rate can hurt, so send traffic only to listings that already convert well.

What is the Amazon Brand Referral Bonus?

It is a program for brand registered sellers that pays back a share of sales driven by non Amazon marketing. Amazon says the bonus averages 10% of the sale price, and the exact rate depends on the category. You must enroll in Seller Central and send traffic through Amazon Attribution tags.

Is Amazon Attribution free?

Yes. Amazon Attribution is free for brand registered sellers and vendors in supported marketplaces, including the US, Canada, the UK and the main European stores. It reports clicks, detail page views, add to carts, purchases and sales for each tagged link.

What is the best channel to drive external traffic to Amazon?

For most established brands, Google Search is the easiest place to start, because the shopper is already searching for the product. Meta and TikTok work better for products with a strong visual story or for launches, and influencers work best when the creator's audience already buys in your category.

What conversion rate does a listing need before sending external traffic?

Our rule of thumb is a conversion rate of 10% or more on Amazon PPC traffic, at least 15 reviews with a 4.0+ rating and 30+ days of stock. External visitors convert lower than Amazon shoppers, so a weak listing makes this traffic very expensive.

How long should you test external traffic to Amazon?

Give each channel at least 30 days and enough budget for a few hundred clicks before you judge it. Amazon Attribution reports purchases within 14 days of a click, so early numbers always look worse than the final ones.

Final thoughts

External traffic works when it is treated like any other ad channel: tracked, judged on cost per sale and scaled only when the numbers hold. Amazon Attribution makes it measurable, and the Brand Referral Bonus makes it cheaper than most sellers expect.

Olifant Digital runs Amazon PPC, DSP and Google and Meta campaigns that send traffic to Amazon for established brands. Every account is run by senior account managers with 7+ years of experience, and we back our work with a 60-day guarantee. Learn more about our Amazon services or start with a free marketing plan.