Amazon has reactivated Google Shopping ads in multiple international markets—but notably has not returned in the U.S. yet. For growth marketers, this split reality is a timely chance to revisit how you measure marketing impact across channels, markets, and customer journeys, especially as we approach Q4.
What changed—and where
After pulling out of Shopping auctions around July 23, Amazon resumed spend on international domains roughly one month later, in the week of August 25. Early practitioner data shows impression share abroad rebounding quickly—“as if nothing had happened”—while the U.S. market remains the exception for now. This strongly suggests a deliberate, time-boxed test rather than a long-term retreat.
What we observed in-market (Mile Marker clients)
During the period when Amazon was out of Shopping:
- Big Brands Gain Ground: Major retailers and well-known/established brands immediately saw an uptick in their share of voice and traffic.
- Smaller Brands Gain Efficiency: Medium brands Flat Share of Voice, improved efficiency. For some clients, Shopping impression share held steady, but key performance metrics such as Conv. Rate, CPA, and also ROAS improved even in highly competitive segments
- Impressions vs. Outcomes For other clients, impression share barely moved, yet front-end performance stepped up.
Price, inventory, and budget changes certainly played a role. Still, the timing points to Amazon’s absence unlocking incremental, higher-quality demand—even when raw visibility didn’t spike. Our working hypothesis: a subset of loyal shoppers, unable to find the brand on Amazon, navigated directly to brand sites, boosting efficiency despite static SOV.
How to measure marketing impact in this split landscape
1) Establish clean pre/post windows
Create analysis windows that bracket the key market events:
- U.S.: Pre (through July 22), Post (from July 23 onward).
- International: Pre (through July 22), Pause (to ~Aug 24), Return (from ~Aug 25 onward). Track CPC, CTR, CVR, ROAS, revenue, new-to-brand rate, and contribution margin. Annotate confounders (pricing, promos, inventory, feed changes, campaign budgets) so you can measure marketing impact credibly against business outcomes—not just ad metrics.
2) Separate “visibility” from “value”
Impression share can stay flat while results improve. Pair Auction Insights with on-site conversion and incrementality indicators This is essential to truly measure marketing impact—especially in categories where big box rivals absorbed much of the vacated SOV.
3) Tune for U.S. vs. international realities
United States (Amazon absent):
- Expand testing with Standard Shopping where you need more transparency and control.
- Tighten query mapping and negative structures to protect efficiency.
- Strengthen DTC readiness (speed, UX, PDP depth, alternative payment, merchandising) to measure marketing impact end-to-end—ad click to profit.
International (Amazon returned):
- Expect CPC pressure to normalize; revisit bid policies and budget caps.
- Re-prioritize high-margin SKUs and proven query segments.
- Refresh competitive sets and price position monitoring.
Reports indicate Amazon’s international re-entry tightened competition quickly—another reason to keep your measurement windows discrete and your tactics agile. (Search Engine Land)
5) Connect media signals to commercial outcomes
Bring marketing measurement tools for ROI optimization to the forefront: MMM or lightweight Bayesian calibrations for budget shifts, path-to-purchase attribution for Shopping vs. branded search, and cohort-level LTV tracking. The objective is to measure marketing impact beyond CPC and CTR—toward contribution margin and revenue durability.
What to watch next (and how we’re preparing)
- If/when Amazon reappears in the U.S.: Have pre-approved “snap back” scenarios for bids, budgets, and product prioritization.
- Q4 runway: Map Prime-like events, retail calendar pulses, and promo elasticity by category to keep your measure marketing impact analyses apples-to-apples.
- Retail media + DTC balance: Use this period to benchmark how Shopping contributes relative to Retail Media Networks and your brand.com funnel.
Trade coverage confirms the current status: Amazon back internationally; still absent in the U.S. As conditions evolve, we’ll continue validating results against your category dynamics and broader commercial goals.
Bottom line
This is less about headlines and more about how you measure marketing impact when a major competitor steps out (or back in). The teams that pair disciplined measurement with fast operational pivots will capture outsized gains—no matter where Amazon is active this week.
If you want a tailored readout of your pre/post windows—and a plan for Q4 scenario testing—our Biddable COE is ready to help. Get in contact with us to learn more!
