Metadata that gets found
Seven keyword fields, three categories and a description. This is your entire search presence on Amazon.
The listing fields are not paperwork. They are how Amazon decides which searches your book can appear in, and once the book is live they are the cheapest thing you can change.
Title and subtitle
The title must match the cover exactly. Amazon rejects listings where they differ, and it is not a judgement call — it is a hard check.
The subtitle is where the search terms go, and it is the single highest-weighted text field you control. Compare:
- A Guide to Watercolour — describes nothing, matches nothing
- Watercolour for Absolute Beginners: 30 Step-by-Step Landscape Projects — says what it is, who it is for, and how much you get
Do not stuff it. A subtitle that reads like a keyword list will be reported, and Amazon does remove listings for it.
The seven keyword fields
Seven fields, about 50 characters each. The rules that matter:
- Never repeat words already in your title, subtitle, author name or series. Amazon already indexes those; repeating them wastes a field.
- Use phrases, not single words. "gift for new mum" beats "gift".
- Do not use other authors' names or trademarks. This gets listings suppressed.
- Do not repeat a word across fields. The index combines them.
Write down twelve phrases a buyer might actually type, then keep the seven that are not already covered by your title.
Categories
You choose up to three browse categories. This is the closest thing to a free lever you have, because "#1 in [narrow category]" is achievable in a small category and never in a broad one.
Go as deep as the tree allows. Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Papercrafts has real competition; Books > Arts & Photography has thousands of books you will never outrank.
The description
You have around 4,000 characters and basic HTML. Structure beats prose:
- One line that makes the promise. Not a synopsis — a reason to keep reading.
- A short paragraph of context.
- Bullets of what is inside. This is what people actually read.
- One line about who it is for.
A wall of unbroken text is the most common reason a good book has a bad conversion rate.
Before the next lesson
Write your seven keyword phrases and pick your three categories now, before publishing. You can change them later, but the first two weeks of a listing shape what Amazon learns to show it for.