Amazon Prime Day 2021 – Are You Ready?
Mark your calendars for big savings – Amazon’s annual Prime Day sale will begin on June 21 and take place through June 22. The once single day sale has grown into a 48-hour event in recent years with some hidden deals known to be scattered even before and after the announced times.
As of June 7, Prime members were able to earn a $10 Prime Day credit by spending $10 at the more than 300,000 small businesses Amazon has partnered with as part of their Support Small campaign. This support for shopping small on platform is expanded from last year, and Amazon is also touting its Amazon Live offering where users can shop alongside Kristen Bell and Mindy Kaling.
Counter Events/Sales
Most major retailers are expected to put on sales that rival Amazon’s Prime Day. Best Buy, Kohl’s, Target, and Walmart are just a few that like to counter Amazon each year. Last year, Walmart hosted their “Big Save Event” a day longer than Amazon’s event and is expected to compete with Amazon at an even higher level this year to promote its new Walmart+ service. Target held a “Deal Days” event last year and is expected this year to push the Target Circle loyalty program by adding deals that compete with Prime offers. Best Buy will most likely compete heavily with Amazon for TV deals as well as other tech. For kitchen and other home items, Kohl’s will compete heavily with stackable coupons and Kohl’s cash offers. In the apparel category, Old Navy has been running a sitewide sale for the past two Prime days that includes fifty percent off everything and free shipping.
With all the buzz and competition, you can expect consumers, even those who are not Prime members, to be in a deal-seeking mindset as Prime Day kicks off. Even if you are not an Amazon seller, or don’t have a specific Prime Day deal, having a plan to capture those primed to buy with organic search and social as well as everyday low price or counter-deals may help you benefit from the Prime Day ripple effect.
Best Practices for Amazon Prime Day Sellers and Vendors
- Creating Promo Codes: You can create social media promo codes to offer discounts to customers on available products. Share the codes through social media and influencer marketing content. Social media promo codes can start four hours after they are created and last up to 30 days. Customizing the codes is totally up to you. If you want a discount that is 5% off or 80% the choice is yours. Sharing promotions with customers will ultimately drive sales and who does not like a good bargain?
- Offer Prime Exclusive Discounts: The Prime Exclusive Discount is available to Prime members. Products with a Prime Exclusive Discount will appear with strike-through pricing and a savings message for Prime members in search results and on the product detail page. Prime members will receive incentives on different products on Amazon Prime Day.
- Create a Coupon: Through the Amazon platform you can create coupons to offer percentages and money off discounts. The minimum and maximum discounts for coupons are 5% and 80%. You can add up to two hundred parents ASINs (Amazon Standard Identification Number) to one coupon. To help provide a better customer experience, select products within the same sub-category, price level, or product group. Coupons can have an increased budget or an extended duration up to 90 days. Creating coupons can help elevate search placement and increased page views.
- Choose Promoted Products Wisely and Ensure Fulfillment is In Place: Vendors and Sellers can work directly with Amazon for fulfillment (look here for more information regarding options), and using Amazon direct-fulfillment can offer benefits to help you streamline inventory storage, delivery and returns. Taking into account the specifics of your business scale and product offerings are important as you determine whether Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is the right choice though, especially when factoring in receiving timelines. For an event like Prime Day or Black Friday and holiday sales, getting ahead of the decision is beneficial, especially as qualified FBA listings are given access to the Prime audience for whom these events are designed and gain Prime badge visibility.
If you’d like help navigating the Amazon space the AcrobatAnt team is here for you!
