A Guide to Amazon Prime Day for Sellers

Amazon Prime Day is just around the corner, and it’s time for sellers to start preparing. As one of the most important online sales of the year, the stakes may feel high for some vendors, many of whom have struggled to keep up with the ever-changing ecommerce landscape of the past year. 

Since its inception in 2015, Prime Day has become somewhat of a cult classic, causing loyal shoppers to be tuned into possible deals coming their way well ahead of time. As a seller, a little preparation goes a long way in helping you clear out inventory and hit sales goals. Here are some tips to keep in your back pocket as you prepare to make Amazon Prime Day a success for your business. 

What is Amazon Prime Day? 

Amazon Prime Day is a yearly event that offers record low discounts on products across every category, from household items to technology. Amazon Prime Day 2020 will take place from October 13 to October 14. 

Like most things in 2020, this year’s Prime Day is predicted to be a little different. After all, even its timing is already a bit unconventional,  as it’s taking place in October instead of July. That said, as Amazon remains popular with shoppers who are choosing to stay home, there are some predictions that this year’s Prime Day may be bigger than ever.  

Amazon Prime Day glossary of terms 

 Amazon has itself a unique set-up, and with this comes a unique collection of terms. If you are an Amazon vendor, the chances are that you are already aware of these. However, before we continue, it’s a good idea to re-acquaint some of the basics of how Amazon operates so that it’s fresh in your mind. 

Arbitrage:  Arbitrage, or retail arbitrage, happens when sellers source a product from a non-Amazon retailer to sell at a higher price on Amazon. Customers will often buy an item at a higher price because of convenience or due to differences in buying power and product costs across different areas. 

Dropshipping: Dropshipping refers to sellers that offer orders on behalf of a third party (such as a manufacturer or supplier). When an item is ordered from a seller, the third party then sends the order to the shopper. In this model, the vendor never stores the merchandise it sells. 

Private label: In the context of Amazon, “private label” goods refer to products that sellers materialize themselves (through manufacturers) and then sell on the Amazon marketplace. These are often, but not exclusively, well-recognized brands that have their own relationships with suppliers. 

5 ways to get the most out of Amazon Prime Day 

1. Perform a visible audit of your listings

Although Amazon has not provided sellers with a lengthy preparation window, it’s best to use this time to make sure that your product descriptions are error-free. It may also be worthwhile to pay somebody to perform an SEO pass on your listings. It is also vital that you have high-quality photographs of your items. 

2. Clear out your inventory with low sale pricing 

Depending on your business, it may make sense to set your product prices as low as possible, as this gives you an opportunity to save on storage fees and could even help you boost your seller ranking. 

3. Keep note of what other sellers are doing

If you’re aware of what your competitors are selling, you can avoid oversaturating the market with products that consumers won’t buy. By offering a unique product, you are likely to have less competition and more customer visibility. 

4. Invest in Amazon Direct Fulfillment

When buyers invest in Amazon Direct Fulfillment, sellers are able to share their real-time product inventory with their shoppers. Not only does this help you sell faster, but you no longer will have to wait until Amazon receives your product to start selling it. You will also be able to make your complete catalogue available to customers. You will also get the coveted “Ships and Sold by Amazon” tagline below your product, which helps build customer trust. 

5. Create a subcategory page just for Prime Day 

If you use a storefront page for your products, it’s a good idea to put together a page solely devoted to your Prime Day deals. This will help with your overall conversion rate if you are running paid ads as it will bring shoppers to a dedicated landing page that shows all of your Prime Day deals in a centralized place. 

Dos and don’ts for Prime Day success

Do:

• Pay a bit more to use AMS for Amazon Prime Day. Through AMS or Amazon Marketing Services, you can run a paid ad campaign to boost your products to be more visible to shoppers based on keywords that they search for. Prime Day offers a rare opportunity to see an almost guaranteed positive ROA. 
• Use this high shopping traffic day as an opportunity to impress buyers and build relationships with them. 
• Put effort into promoting your most eligible products, i.e., ones that have at least 15 customer reviews and have at least a 3.5 star rating.
• Consider using shipping software to save time by automating your orders and shipping in larger batches

Don’t:

• Expect the sales to rake in if you haven’t done your due diligence in leading up to the day, such as analyzing historical trends and stats.
• Run sales on items with low inventory. The last thing you want to be stuck with is orders that can’t be fulfilled.
• Become discouraged if Prime Day 2020 isn’t exactly what it was in years passed. With millions of people experiencing uncertainty with their jobs and finances, it is possible that fewer folks have discretionary income to play with this year.

Of course, Prime Day may look different for every seller, but with having a little bit of thought behind it, it’s possible to make Prime Day a success for you and your Amazon-based business — a win that is sure to carry you well into the new year.