Prime Day 2023 is over, but bigger sales are just around the corner. Almost immediately after Prime Day concluded, Amazon alerted brands to deal submission deadlines for two key events. As seen in the Seller Central screenshot below, brands need to submit deals for a Prime Fall Deal Event by August 11, 2023, and Deals for Black Friday/Cyber Monday by September 1, 2023.
As you may remember, Amazon hosted a Prime Early Access Sale last year from October 11 to 12. Due to the timing of the event, the sale served as an unofficial kickoff to the holiday shopping season. Amazon reported that shoppers purchased more than 8 million toys in the U.S. during Prime Early Access Sale, while Numerator found that nearly a third of shoppers used the event to buy holiday gifts. According to their data, 95% of respondents said they were likely to shop on Amazon again for holiday items.
Below are a few notable Channel Key client wins from last year’s fall event:
- A brand partner in the Home & Kitchen category enjoyed a 76% lift from Summer Prime Day to Prime Early Access Sale
- A brand partner in the Office Supplies category saw their second-highest sales day on the first day of the Prime Early Access Sale
- A brand partner in the Pet Supplies category saw an 87% sales jump on day two of Prime Early Access Sale compared to day two of Summer Prime Day
Preparing for the Fall Prime Deal Event
History shows that shoppers actively browse various product categories to discover, compare, and research new products before the start of a major Amazon shopping event. Since online shoppers rely on information to make a purchasing decision, be sure to audit and optimize your product detail pages to maximize conversions. Review your brand’s Prime Day performance and identify your top-selling products to better understand what Deals may appeal to shoppers. Finally, build awareness in the lead-up to the event with static and video creative for new-to-brand customers with messaging that emphasizes savings.
Use the following checklist to ensure your brand is prepared for the Fall Prime Deal Event:
- Analyze Prime Day Performance to Identify Products to Promote
Begin preparing for the Fall Prime Deal Event by reviewing your brand’s performance during Prime Day. What were your best-selling products? Which types of promotions worked best? Look for areas of opportunity to proactively build a full-funnel approach that will engage shoppers in October. - Build Awareness with Static and Video Creative
Visually communicate the main value proposition of your brand and products with strong creative. Always include your brand logo and a call to action. Imagery should be high-resolution and make your product stand out. According to Amazon, eye-catching product imagery increases your click-through rate by 17%. Keep your copy clear and concise – and encourage shoppers to act. Optimize your video ads by including your brand early on in video creatives. Be sure to include your logo throughout the video to encourage brand recognition. - Implement Savings Messaging to Drive Engagement
Highlight exclusive Prime deals in your ad copy to boost creative performance and drive conversions. This creative should emphasize savings and focus on conversions rather than brand awareness. - Ensure Promoted Products Have Strong Detail Pages
Only promote products with optimized product detail pages. It makes no sense to waste ad dollars driving customers to pages with little chance of converting. Ensure your product pages have strong titles, images and videos, bullet points, A+ content, and positive reviews.
Available Promotions for the Fall Prime Deal Event
Amazon Prime members want two things above all else: fast delivery and good deals. The former is guaranteed with a Prime membership, but brands are responsible for the latter. This is especially true during sales like the Fall Prime Deal Event. To stand out, you need to offer competitive discounts with Deals. Amazon offers three options: Prime Exclusive Discounts, Coupons, and Lightning Deals. There is no sure way to determine which will work best for your brand and products other than trial and error. However, in our experience, Prime Exclusive Discounts generate the most consistent results.
- Prime Exclusive Discounts
A Prime Exclusive Discount is a price discount available only to Prime members. Product offers with a Prime Exclusive Discount will show a discounted price with the regular price crossed out. Buyers will also see a savings summary in search results and on product detail pages. Prices adjusted for discounts are displayed on the Featured Offer detail page for Prime members. - Coupons
Similar to the coupons you receive in the mail, Amazon Coupons provide a discount on select items. Since shoppers want the best deals on sale events, using Coupons can effectively distinguish your products by offering additional For example, Channel Key ran a 20% Off Coupon for a client in the Toys & Games category during a previous Prime Day, which improved conversions by 22%. Coupons are also distinguished with badging, which can help boost sales on both slow-moving and top-selling items. - Lightning Deals
A Lightning Deal is a time-bound, promotional offer featured for 4 to 12 hours (as determined by Amazon) on the Amazon Deals page. Featuring an item as a Lightning Deal may help increase sales and reduce your inventory. However, brands have no control over the exact time their Lightning Deals will run. If Amazon chooses to run the Deal during the middle of the night, you may not see ideal results.
Channel Key Takeaway
Amazon has released little information about its Fall Prime Deal Event other than the deadline for deals submissions. This is good news for you. Many brands are still celebrating their Prime Day victories. Don’t fall for that temptation. Instead, use this time to prepare for the fall Prime event. The stronger your marketing plan, the more advantage you will have over your competition. Also, keep in mind that this event will launch the holiday shopping season. Pay close attention to what campaigns and promotions perform well and carry this momentum all the way into Cyber Week.
