Amazon began running conversational display ads across the open web for the first time, embedding prompts into banners that let consumers open an Alexa chat and ask for product details, which Alexa remembers if they return, according to Adweek. The expansion comes after Amazon updated its Responsive eCommerce Creative, a shoppable ad format that pulls in product imagery, pricing, and reviews, to now support AI-generated images, animation, and video, rather than just static images and reviews.
Amazon says 20% of shoppers who hit a prompt continue chatting with Alexa, and that 70% of buyers from the ads are brand-new customers. (I'm assuming they mean “new customer for the brand” and not “new Amazon customers” — the latter of which is a stat I don't think is even possible anymore in 2026, given Amazon's market share.)
Amazon also says that advertisers using its AI features see a 14% higher click-through rate and 7% higher return on ad spend. (But don't get too excited, because Amazon will come for that extra margin before you know it.)
The off-site units are priced on a CPM model versus the CPC pricing on Amazon's own site, which Adweek says “could reflect where they actually sit in the sales funnel.” However, the pricing could also be introductory as Amazon tests the format so that it can properly price a cost-per-click.
Personally, I think the format is brilliant. I'm tired of traditional display advertising and feel that the format is long overdue for an overhaul. Amazon's take on conversational display ads turns legacy banner ads into a shopping tool that visitors can engage with, as opposed to a traditional binary decision of clicking or ignoring.
