How a Sports Nutrition Brand Improved ACOS 29% with AMC Audiences

This sports nutrition brand sells protein powders, creatine, and performance supplements to fitness-focused consumers on Amazon. Operating in a highly competitive and seasonal category, the brand relies on efficient advertising to maintain profitability while capturing peak demand during key fitness periods.

The Challenge

The account was strong—but constrained.

Keyword-based targeting drove consistent sales, but it limited how far the brand could scale. Growth depended on shoppers actively searching, which meant expansion became increasingly expensive as competition intensified.

Over time, rising cost-per-click pushed efficiency down. ACOS climbed into an unprofitable range, and TACOS remained elevated—putting pressure on margins despite steady demand.

The challenge was clear: maintain growth while improving profitability in a category where search alone was no longer enough.

Why Quartile

Quartile identified that the limitation wasn’t performance—it was reach.

Keyword targeting captures existing demand, but it does not expand beyond it. To improve efficiency at scale, the brand needed a way to prioritize higher-value shoppers, not just more traffic.

With Pro Suite, Quartile enabled audience targeting directly within Sponsored Ads—bringing Amazon Marketing Cloud insights into campaign execution.

This allowed the strategy to evolve from intent-based targeting to behavior-based targeting.

The Solution

Quartile introduced AMC audience targeting as a layer—not a replacement.

Instead of restructuring the entire account, Pro Suite was integrated gradually into existing campaigns. This preserved performance stability while introducing stronger signals into the system.

High-value audiences were prioritized, including:

• Amazon high spenders  

• Shoppers who had engaged but not purchased  

Budget allocation shifted progressively toward these segments, eventually representing a meaningful share of total investment.

This approach allowed the account to:

• Focus on shoppers with higher purchase likelihood  

• Improve conversion rates without increasing traffic volume  

• Reduce wasted spend from low-intent clicks  

The strategy was simple: improve who sees the ads, not just how many.

Results & Impact

The impact was immediate and sustained:

• ACOS reduced by 29%, significantly increasing efficiency  

• TACOS reduced by 21%, strengthening overall profitability  

• Audience campaigns outperformed standard campaigns, delivering higher conversion rates and lower cost per acquisition  

Audience segments consistently delivered stronger results than non-audience targeting, proving that shopper quality—not just volume—drives performance.

These results demonstrate that in competitive categories, efficiency gains come from better targeting—not just better bidding.

Ongoing Value & Future State

With Pro Suite integrated, the brand now operates with a more advanced targeting strategy. Audience insights continue to guide budget allocation, improving both efficiency and scalability.

Quartile is expanding this foundation to unlock further growth opportunities, including broader audience activation across additional channels.