Walmart Search Brand Amplifier (SBA) Now Available via Platform Partners

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“With the general release of Search Brand Amplifiers, Walmart is giving sellers the ability to manage their own SBA ad efforts via a trusted Platform Partner like Tinuiti. With this comes greater management agility, improved operational efficiencies, and the ability to both view and manage your omni-channel performance efforts from a unified location.”

— Stuart Clay, Associate Director of Strategic Marketplace Services at Tinuiti

We will still be able to make bid updates for existing keywords in the campaign while the review is in-progress, or pending.

SBA ads serve as an ideal complement to Walmart Sponsored Products, with each playing an important—but different—role in successfully advertising on Walmart.
SMB enables us to manage in-flight, providing our clients with greater details regarding bid updates, keyword lists, and more. In addition to its lower barrier of entry, another key benefit of SBA ads is the agility they bring. Because our team is managing these ad units themselves, we are able to act quickly and strategically. This agility can be especially beneficial for brands with strong seasonality considerations, or those who regularly launch new or updated products and want to give them fast, broad reach.

What are Search Brand Amplifier ads?

Previously, SBA ads were exclusively managed by the Walmart Connect team, and were generally available as a component of larger Display packages that commanded a high cost of entry. Walmart has now unlocked this inventory for their platform partners, including Tinuiti, enabling us to purchase, create, and manage SBA campaigns on our clients’ behalf.

Previously, SBA ads were exclusively managed by the Walmart Connect team, and were generally available as a component of larger Display packages that commanded a high cost of entry. Walmart has now unlocked this inventory for their platform partners, including Tinuiti, enabling us to purchase, create, and manage SBA campaigns on our clients’ behalf.

Want to explore the capabilities of this unique search ad product, newly available for partners through the API? Reach out today to chat with an expert!

• Products must be in-stock, published, and the base item
• Products must be available for sale online (not in-store only)
• Items must be winning the Buy Box
• Up to 10 products can be added to each campaign
• Individual SKU positioning within the ad is based on the item’s popularity and cannot be manually adjusted
• The minimum bid for SBAs is currently $1; bid multipliers are not available
• Currently only available through API for 1P suppliers (not 3P advertisers)

Walmart Connect Creative Review Process

Similar to Sponsored Products ads, there are certain requirements that must be met to take advantage of SBA ads. These include:

Newly Launched Campaigns

As Walmart Connect noted in their announcement regarding SBA:

• Brand name and logo
• Click URLs
• Headlines
• At least two items
• At least one keyword bid

Existing Campaigns

As their name suggests, these ad units are designed to “amplify” your brand presence and share of voice on Walmart, reaching potentially new customers in the mid-to-upper funnel.

• Adding new items or keywords
• Adding, disabling, or re-enabling an item will require that approved keywords be re-reviewed

Once a campaign is up and running, the following will necessitate a review by the Walmart Connect team:

Tactical Advantages of Search Brand Amplifier

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“If you want to dominate search, this is invaluable, as customers are two times more likely to view an SBA placement than any other search ads.”

Walmart SBA Reporting

• Ad Group Performance
• Brand Performance
• Daily Performance
• Item Performance
• Keyword Performance
• Page Type Performance
• Platform Performance
• Item Health Report

Before a campaign launch, the Walmart Connect team will review the following, and approve or disapprove each. For a successful launch, all of the below must be reviewed and approved: