A Prime Day Unlike Ever Before
Amazon’s Prime Day 2020 was a bit different as with most events occurring this year.
The event was moved from July to October 13-14. Despite the change, the savings event experienced success and raised some questions regarding the new consumer shopping experience. It may be October with Halloween just around the corner, but brands such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target are sounding jingle bells and sending holiday wishes, causing consumers to already indulge in holiday shopping and… big-time savings events.
2020 has shown us the increasing importance of businesses having a strong digital and omnichannel presence. Amazon, along with other brands, has started to reprioritize, reorganize, and reinvent their image online, making themselves more and more appealing to the consumer.
Prime Day 2020 was forecasted to reach a worldwide sales total of $9.91 billion, a 43% increase from last year’s $6.93 billion (eMarketer). Is this a result of more and more companies pushing digital and omnichannel?
Absolutely.
What Did Prime Day Look Like for Smaller Businesses?
This year’s Prime Day also allowed a big step forward for smaller businesses.
According to Amazon, small and medium businesses generated $3.5 billion in sales, making it the most successful Prime Day ever. Amazon has prioritized sharing products from smaller businesses for consumers who are looking for efficient, reliable brands. To have a smaller business doesn’t mean that digital expansion isn’t right for you: it means that your brand can continue to reach your ideal customers in more ways.
What Products Won?
Amazon Prime 2020 offered a whopping $1.4 billion in savings across 19 countries. As these individuals saved and shopped, there was a multitude of products making their way home to new residences.
Items ranged from tech to toys with some of the best-selling products around the world including:
- The Echo Dot
- Fire TV Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote
In 2019, Prime Day had a similar list of best-selling products:
- Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote
- Echo Dot
- Instant Pot DUO Plus 60
- LifeStraw Personal Water Filter
It is likely that the Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote and the Echo Dot remains popular between 2019 and 2020 given that both are an invention of Amazon’s and posted major savings during Prime Day sales. It does not seem that COVID-19 impacted the top-selling items.
As for the top-selling categories, those included:
- Bedding
- Wireless Accessories
- Nutrition & Wellness
- Arts, Crafts & Sewing
- Health Care
Amazon appealed to the consumer through collaboration, efficiency, necessity, and timing.
And they weren’t the only ones doing so.
Amazon Prime Day’s Competition
While Amazon Prime Day was a success, it did not go without some competition. This major savings event was challenged by Walmart’s Big Save and Target’s Deal Days.
From October 11-15, Walmart hosted major deals during their yearly Big Save event. In fact, Walmart’s event was both longer in duration than Amazon’s and they offered in-store pickup so you can bring your order home as soon as the same day, a huge advantage for online shoppers not offered by Amazon. As mentioned before, this omnichannel focus offers a competitive advantage for brands.
Walmart has been pushing this focus for some time now, aware of the threat Amazon poses. After seeing the deals of their Big Save event and going back to their reveal of Walmart+, it is clearly paying off.
As for Target, their Deal Days event took place October 13-14. Consumers looking to save big not only shopped in-store but online: the two-day savings extravaganza on Target.com grew by more than 2.5 times compared to last year. This is likely a result of Target making some effective changes to their website such as clearer descriptions of products and higher-quality images. Guests of Target, with or without a membership, also had the option of Drive Up and Order Pickup, which grew nearly 300%. since the previous year. Target, much like Walmart, is redirecting in major ways to expand touchpoints with customers across digital and physical channels
A Round of Applause for Brands Adapting to 2020
2020 has been challenging.
We all know this. However, it’s up to brands whether they will embrace the changes and adapt. Amazon, Walmart, and Target are all pushing new business strategies zeroing in on omnichannel and digital. If your brand isn’t gaining strength and traction online, then the competition will remain steady and overwhelming.
The pandemic has certainly changed the way consumers shop, and as we’ve seen from last week’s major savings events, omnichannel and digital are no longer a matter to be taken lightly.
If you’re curious about learning more, feel free to reach out to Harvest Group. We are more than happy to talk about all things digital, omnichannel, and resourceful to your brand’s success.
