Prime Day is right around the corner, beginning midnight PDT June 21st to midnight PDT June 22nd.

As an eCommerce business owner and marketer, this is your time to outshine the competition—Amazon included—with SMS marketing to maximize revenue throughout this exciting sales opportunity.

If Prime Day is new to you and your marketing calendar, Emotive is here to help you make the most of it!

Let’s start with a short primer on Prime Day followed by a few key strategies to support your  eCommerce business’ Prime Day sale.

What is Prime Day?

Prime Day is a 24-hour sales event that typically attracts millions of online shoppers to make purchases on the Amazon website or app. There are discounted products and specific Prime Day promotions offered. Prime Day includes both Amazon-branded items and third-party vendor products on sale. 

3 Prime Day eCommerce Strategies You Can Implement

Ready to make the most of Prime Day? There’s no need to have an Amazon storefront to host your own sale! Here’s three strategies that can help your eCommerce business maximize revenue June 21st through June 22nd.

1.Offer Extended Sales On Your Best Selling Products & Slow Moving Merchandise

Since Prime Day is only a 24-hour window, consider offering promotions that extend the day before and after Prime Day. This strategy works well to drive sales of your best-selling products, or to offer heavy markdowns on slow-moving or out-of-season merchandise.

Text your VIP customers to offer exclusive early access to your sale. Then, throughout the Prime Day sale period, send exclusive offers and access to limited-time deals to your entire list to create a sense of urgency and ensure that all of your subscribers feel like exclusive customers.

2. Don’t Rely on ONE Marketing Channel

Amazon will receive the majority of web traffic during Prime Day, so eCommerce brands need to find new strategic ways to stay top-of-mind with prospects and customers while increasing their traffic. Here are four marketing channels you can utilize to your advantage:

  • SMS marketing is a more instant and direct way to drive traffic to your site

  • Paid search marketing campaigns on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest 

  • Organic posts on all social media channels

  • Email marketing campaigns highlighting your products that will be on sale

We highly encourage you to have a SMS campaign prepared for Prime Day because engaging with your audience through personalized text messaging campaigns is easy. SMS campaigns reach customers where they are (on their phones), and are likely to be seen more immediately than other digital marketing communication channels that we mentioned above.

3. Don’t Forget to Mention Free Shipping Options In Your Marketing Efforts

For shoppers, one of the most appealing aspects of Amazon Prime is the convenience of its free one- or two-day shipping options. 

Especially in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the surge in online shopping, many consumers now expect free shipping from online retailers. To stay competitive this Prime Day, eCommerce brands should match Amazon’s Prime perk of free shipping to boost sales. Offer your customers free shipping to persuade them to complete their purchase. You can also encourage customers to  “shop now” to avoid delivery delays and receive their item on time, which may not always be the case with holiday shopping during November and December.

Shipping is a major determining factor in whether or not a customer follows through with their purchase. With highly anticipated shipping delays throughout the holiday season, this is the main reason why 42% of consumers will shop earlier to beat the rush, according to DigitalCommerce360.