Takeaways for brands: PPC on Amazon has become fiercely competitive, and the rest of Q4 will be just as cutthroat. It’s important to analyze macro advertising trends, and your own PPC performance data from Turkey 5, in order to ascertain where your ‘sweet spot’ lies when it comes to spend, targeting strategies and mix of ad types.
💡 Read Bobsled’s
Inventory is King
In a recent article on , Bobsled CEO Kiri Masters explained that Amazon.com gift cards were one of the Top 6 items sold during Prime Day 2020, a massive uptick from last year, meaning there is an abundance of gift cards out in the market that shoppers will be looking to redeem this Holiday season.
Many more shoppers will undoubtedly choose to buy Amazon gift cards before the year is up. Brands with Prime-eligible inventory are poised to capitalize on all the gift cards out in the market.
Takeaways for brands: Think long and hard about your FBA coverage plan. Consider re-allocating inventory from other channels or enabling FBM as a back up if you feel like you’re primed to get a lot of gift card orders. Prioritize December inventory coverage, but also remember that many shoppers will choose to use their gift cards in January too.
Stand out with Promotions and Store Versions
Bobsled Operations Manager Jordan Ripley provided the following recommendations regarding Q4 promos:
“At Bobsled, we’re observing compelling sale price merchandising across the Amazon ecosystem. For my book of clients, I had gravitated to Prime Exclusive Deals (PEDs) during peak retail holidays such as Prime Day because of the enticing deal badge, no promo fee, and good control over price and flight dates.”
“But if sale prices get similar merchandising in SERP and on product display pages, they could unseat PEDs as discounts of choice as they’re available for all customers, not just Prime customers.”
“Also, the new ‘Store Versions’ feature allows you to create a Holidays-themed storefront that would run for that day only, highlighting specific products with unique creative. Creating a Version does not resemble the typically lengthy Storefront approval process, so if you move quickly, you may be able to get something ready to achieve some last minute Holidays sales.”
On the left: Example of sale price merchandising on an Amazon product display page
Amazon has outlined the steps for creating a Store Version here.
Takeaways for brands: Other brands in your space are likely getting creative with PPC and promotional strategies, so you should be doing the same if you want to compete for clicks and sales during Q4.
DSP can be your secret weapon
Bobsled Team Lead Ross Walker provided the following DSP recommendations:
“If you have consumable products, set up an audience that identifies purchasers as far back as 90 days (typically the max allowed for self-service accounts). Target this audience segment in your line items featuring responsive creative that will show a deal or coupon badge. This lets past customers, a high sales intent segment, know that your product is available with a discount. Make sure you negate recent purchasers that are less likely to want to purchase again.”
Takeaways for brands: At this point, shoppers know they only have a few days to make an order that will definitely arrive before December 25. By harnessing the swathes of shopper behavior data that DSP provides, brands can leave no stone unturned when it comes to promoting seasonal gift items.
