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Digital Marketing: Gain an Edge with Amazon Holiday Marketing

Digital Marketing: Gain an Edge with Amazon Holiday Marketing

Surging e-commerce sales, particularly during the holidays, isn’t exactly headline news. Everyone’s heard the buzz — things are hopping online. During the 2017 holidays, online sales soared by a juicy 14.7%.  The trend isn’t about to stall. According to industry gurus, holiday e-commerce revenues will rocket higher in 2018.

Not surprisingly, Amazon is electrifying the upsurge. Expect another power surge this holiday season. Bright, blue skies, to be sure.

Nevertheless, it takes more than a trend to lock-in Amazon success. Brands also must come out swinging with a fine-tuned campaign. For clues on accomplishing this, look to the recent Prime Day for inspiration. Soaring sales during that event are linked to specific strategies. By implementing these proven steps in upcoming holiday campaigns, e-marketers will gain a valuable edge.

One edge-gaining maneuver is simple and direct – narrow down your brand’s holiday product offering. Seasonal shoppers won’t jump on everything in your catalog. Some products grab; others won’t. Retailers must separate the grabbers from the non-grabbers – and showcase these with maximum effort.

Early deployment is another winning strategy. Waiting for Black Friday to unleash the marketing campaign? You’ll be stuck in the mud, gaping as competitors bolt ahead. The wise guru advises: Plan and implement campaigns well in advance. Research reveals that the longer an Amazon campaign runs, the more effective it is. Months ahead isn’t too early when holiday market share is on the line.

Also advantageous – in fact necessary – is ample funding. Like it or not, brands must pry open wallets to match the competition’s ad spend – which promises to skyrocket during the high stakes season. In certain quarters, doubling the e-marketing budget is recommended. Not a hard and fast rule, mind you. But a good indicator of how cash-committed a brand must be.

Finally, brands will profit handsomely by exploiting Amazon’s search capabilities. As they do elsewhere in cyberspace, product hunters make extensive use of local search boxes. These boxes work best when content is a driving force. Based on current findings, shoppers are more apt to find a product page linked to their interests by relevant content. In a sense, brands and Amazon shoppers are interacting in a mini-SEO environment. Make the most of it.

If you have questions or comments about holiday marketing on the Amazon platform, or about any other brand-related topic, feel free to send them our way.