Amazon is testing a new attribution tool designed to help advertisers compare whether ads on its sites perform better than those hosted on rival networks. Advertisers who sell on Amazon (but not those who sell through it) are being invited to a free trial of the technology, which represents the latest push into the advertising world by the eCommerce titan.

“For the first time, brands can measure the impact of display, search and video channels based on how consumers discover, research and buy their products on Amazon,” said Devon ORourke, senior product marketing manager at Amazon. “Amazon Attribution, a new beta measurement solution, provides brands that sell on Amazon with sales impact analysis across media channels off Amazon. With on-demand reporting, they are able to uncover the insights needed to optimise their media campaigns in-flight and grow product sales.”

Amazon is clearly hoping that these analytics tools, which cover conversion metrics including page views, purchase rate and sales, will prove that its ads carry an advantage over its rivals, or at least offer advertisers a service thats more competitive with Google and Facebook.

Google has long had an advantage over Amazon in that most advertisers are likely to use some form of Google attribution to not only measure their Google campaigns, but also their Amazon campaigns, providing Google with a glimpse into Amazons reach and scale. Now, Amazon is copying that trick, providing advertisers with the tools to measure ads outside of its own sites and as a result, getting insights into millions of Google searches.

Amazon is already trumpeting the success that initial partners have seen from its attribution tools, pointing to improved cross- channel optimisation and increases in sales. For Amazon, the real measure of success will be whether or not this new tool brings in more advertising spending and helps it build its growing ad business.