Is the server or host a metric for SERPs? Amazon Webstore a plus?

[QuietProgress]

Hello Friends,

I have been pondering a question that I bet Ben or some of the other clever folks this list will know.

Do the search engines give a preference to sites hosted and served from larger companies like Amazon?

With an Amazom Webstore, it would have our domain name but Amazon would supply much of the structure and back end like card processing and check out.

Could having amazon as the server be an indicator of better results in the SERPS similar to having a stronger Domain Authority?

Are there any draw backs for optimization when using an Amazon Webstore?

Thank you.

QP

[CodyWheeler]

I highly doubt search engines offer any kind of favoritism based on your host. If so, it would be an extremely small factor.

Where you would see an indirect benefit is with your user experience. Using a trusted, tried, and true checkout provider with a proven excellent level of user experience like Amazon will have inherent SEO benefits such as returning visitors, higher engagement, cross selling with your other items, higher revenue, etc.

Since you're using it on your domain you're not going to inherit any of their domain authority.

The drawbacks in my eyes would be the lack of complete customization and ownership that you have over the webstore. It's your stuff, but it's Amazon's service. You are bound by their rules. I'm not familiar enough with the platform to know if they have any SEO functionality built into the webstore such as custom URL rewriting and canonicalization tools, but I would imagine you are going to be limited to doing some of this type of advanced SEO stuff if you cannot access the web controls.

If anyone knows a definitive answer to this please chime in.

[EGOL]

I do not believe that you will receive any benefit from using an Amazon Webstore.  However, if you start listing items on Amazon.com you will have a great opportunity to get search engine traffic from the strength of the Amazon domain.  I used to sell a lot via Amazon - but their high fees drove me to selling on my own site.  It's really hard to beat Amazon.com in the SERPs.

[CodyWheeler]

Ditto - I sell on Amazon too, but use my own site to sell as well. Amazon opens up a whole new market that I wouldn't otherwise have, so I deal with their fees, but you have to have multiple distribution points.

Going back to what i said earlier. Be sure you read all of the terms and conditions of using their Webstore. I love Amazon, but they have tricky lawyers just like anyone else