Historically, Prime Day has provided a midsummer sales boost to brand owners. This year, however, Amazon has postponed Prime Day 2020 until at least October 5th due to COVID-19.
Whether Prime Day 2020 is happening or not, here are 4 important facts we know about it and what you can do to prepare so you’re not caught off-guard.
1) There is no date set in stone for Prime Day 2020
Despite what many news outlets are reporting, October 5th may only be a tentative date and can change at any time. In an interview with CNBC, an Amazon spokesperson confirmed, “We have not made any announcements regarding Prime Day.”
It’s no surprise that Amazon has kept their announcement under wraps. Even before this year, Amazon’s Prime Day dates were only made public a few weeks before the event.
2) Amazon Logistics still hasn’t caught up
What this means for Sellers: Get your inventory in. Stay stocked. Be ready to move to Seller Fulfilled Prime if necessary.
Ensuring your inventory and supply chain pipeline remain stable is important. Read more about how to take steps to avoid inventory disruptions and stay stocked here.
The deadline for Black Friday shipments is November 3rd. This means that if Amazon imposes a stock limit before Prime Day in October, sellers could have inventory refused.
And because Prime eligibility is less of an important factor for winning the buy-box, FBM can be more beneficial for some brand owners than FBA.
3) Amazon Prime Day 2020 could be canceled altogether
It’s a possibility that Prime Day could be canceled by Amazon in totality, as it’s been pushed twice already, from July to August, then August to October.
Alternatively, Amazon Prime Day 2020 could take place on different days depending on where Prime members live. To avoid clashing with big holiday shopping dates, Prime Day deals for Prime members could work differently than usual.
Either way, investing in marketing campaigns before Amazon Prime Day 2020 may not be the best option for some sellers. Consider if holding out for other sales events, like the “Turkey 5” held over Thanksgiving weekend, is more advantageous.
4) Buyers will still buy if Prime Day 2020 doesn’t happen
Based on a consumer survey conducted by Jungle Scout, 48% of consumers say they are shopping more frequently on Amazon since the COVID-19 pandemic than they did previously, and nearly two-thirds (63%) of U.S. consumers have increased or maintained their online spending.
To prepare your business for Prime Day deals and the holiday shopping season, it’s always in your best interest to revamp your listings.
Ordering a listing optimization service, like the kind we offer at Lab 916, to optimize your text and image content for Amazon is a great place to start.
From there, monitoring your sales prices and taking advantage of Amazon coupons can help you further capitalize on customer interactions. Additionally, creating new product bundles (like 2-packs) and adding a coupon discount can make it more attractive to customers.
You can also set up additional strategies to support your sales efforts with classic marketing tactics like email blasts, advertising, and landing pages.
The Takeaway
Even though Amazon’s not 100% sure about when Prime Day 2020 will take place, that doesn’t mean the platform is going anywhere soon. With the increase in online shopping, and holiday buying season looming, brand owners should still stay on the defensive.
Third-party sellers can still catch up to quarterly sales projections if their relationship with suppliers remains stable.
Staying in stock, even while logistics are scattered at Amazon fulfillment, puts sellers in a position to pivot their e-commerce strategy as necessary.
—– Editor’s Note ——
As of August 17th, Amazon has finally released some details regarding Prime Day 2020 to sellers.
In an email to Handmade sellers, Amazon suggested that sellers submit Prime Exclusive discounts by September 25, 2020, and Prime Member discounts by August 28, 2020.
