Back to Blog

Planning Ahead For the Prime Day 2022: A 7-Step Checklist For Amazon Sellers - Infographic

Maria Navolykina
Maria Navolykina Author

As one of the biggest retailer’s Amazon shopping events approaches, online merchants hurry on with their Prime day arrangements. 

Given the heavy traffic and fierce competition for this annual 2-day sales campaign, planning ahead is crucial for online sellers to have their products front and center in the marketplace.  

Winning Prime Day customers is generally correlated with forecasting the right amount of inventory, efficient advertising, pricing, and data management strategies. 

To help you get your Prime Day preparations in gear and reduce the stress of planning, we put together seven key strategies to fuel your deals and boost your Amazon Prime Day sales. 

Read on to ease your Prime Day planning headaches with:

  • A Prime Day deadlines overview 
  • Pro tips on advertising, pricing, inventory, and data management for maximum profit
  • A downloadable 7-step guide letting you consume helpful content on your terms

First Thing’s First: When is Amazon Prime Day?

Amazon’s Prime Day sales event will be held on July 12 and 13.

Amazon Prime Day Checklist - Infographic

Other Amazon Sellers’ Prime Day Concerns for 2022:

On top of the cut-and-dried routines, the annual shopping event tosses new challenges for Amazon sellers due to the ongoing supply chain issues and growing inflation in 2022.

We are here to offer solutions to the most pressing problems you face:

1. Supply Chain Disruptions

Due to the current economic struggles coupled with the post-pandemic effects, online merchants may see new shipping disruptions in 2022. As noted by Bloomberg, delivery delays for ocean freight have more than doubled in the pandemic.

Main Concern: If your products come from China, it may take them more than 100 days on average to reach a warehouse in the United States, which may prevent you from getting stock ready for Prime Day.

China to the U.S. Delivery Chart
Source: Bloomberg

Solution: Against this backdrop, you’d better count on products that you have on hand to discount and promote instead of hoping that a shipment arrives in time. Keep a sharp eye on your inventory and be ready to adapt your plans in case of stocking problems or shortages.

2. Decreasing Consumer Purchasing Power

As inflation gains steam, the U.S. consumers admit that rising costs of goods and services make it hard to afford things. According to the EY U.S. Future Consumer Index, 52 percent of respondents consider price the most crucial purchase criterion, while 42% percent will only buy from brands that align with their values, and provide the gold standard of buyer experience.

Consumer Purchase Criteria
Source: EY

Concern #1: With buyers expected to consume less and focus on low-cost products, retailers should take measures to protect their margins.

Solution: Monitor and foster good reviews from your buyers by offering a positive customer experience. Double-check the information that you provide on your product’s page and ensure that you take care of any feedback.

Concern #2: Amazon Prime members will be looking for great deals, so making your products appealing is the top priority.

Solution: Give your customers more ways to save. With Coupons and Prime Exclusive Discounts, online sellers can make their products stand out and increase the click-through rate during the sales event.

3. Increased FBA Inventory and Storage Fees

Effective April 28, 2022, an FBA fee surcharge of 5% is implemented on each unit sold, including products purchased before that date. As of now, it averages from a $0.15 to a $7.55 increase, depending on product size and category.

A Quick Overview of Amazon FBA Fees

2022 Amazon FBA Monthly Storage Fees:

Standard-size Items

January-September: $0.83 per cubic foot

October-December: $2.40 per cubic foot

Oversize Items

January-September: $0.53 per cubic foot

October-December: $1.20 per cubic foot

2022 Amazon FBA Dangerous Goods Fulfillment Fees:

  • Small standard (6 oz or less to 16 oz) items have a per unit fee of $3.85 to $4.16.
  • Costs for large standard items (6 oz or less to 20 lb) range from $4.29 to $6.57 + $0.30/lb above the first three pounds.
  • Small oversize (70 lbs or less) costs $9.66 + $0.38/lb above the first pound.
  • The medium oversize (150 lbs or less) fee is $13.56 + $0.44/lb above the first pound.
  • Large oversize (150 lbs or less) costs $93.94 + $0.79/lb above the first 90 pounds.
  • Special oversize (over 150 lbs) costs $170.74 + $0.79/lb above the first 90 pounds.

Main Concern: With the new fees, online sellers should redo their math to see how far they can discount the products and still make a profit.

Solution: With fees on the rise, Amazon sellers want to keep costs down. Confirm all your product sizes are accurate so you aren’t overpaying for shipping or storage. Also, mind the inventory in stock, as large items that take up a lot of space or products that don’t sell quickly will incur extra storage costs.

FAQs

1. What are Prime Day eligibility criteria for sellers?

To be eligible for Prime Day Prime Exclusive Discount, sellers should have at least a 4 on their Seller Feedback Rating and offer products with at least a three and half star rating, or no rating. Online sellers with no feedback ratings are also eligible for Amazon Prime Day.

2. Who can access Amazon Prime Day deals?

Amazon Prime Day is a sales event exclusively for Prime members. However, shoppers who have never signed up for Amazon Prime membership before, can get a 30-day free trial that gives them access to the same Prime Day deals as long-time members.

3. How does inflation affect sellers’ strategies for Amazon Prime Day 2022?

Due to the current increase of the supply costs, online sellers either avoid aggressive discounting to catch up with their lost margins, or lower their prices to acquire new customers, even at the cost of decreased profit.

How Seller Labs Can Help You With Prime Day Arrangements

Seller Labs PRO comes up with an array of Amazon seller tools enabling you to:

  • enhance your product reviews management
  • find profitable keywords for better listing optimization
  • leverage your inventory
  • get insightful reports on your Amazon business performance, and more

On top of the robust PRO solution in your corner, our Services team can back you up while developing an efficient Prime Day sales strategy.

If you are looking for a way to take the hassle out of your Prime Day preparations, you can reach out to us, and we’ll take care of them.

Maria Navolykina
Maria Navolykina SEO Content Specialist at Seller Labs

Maria is an SEO Content Specialist at Seller Labs. Once captured by digital and content marketing in her student days, she keeps living and breathing it ever since.

Illustration

Ready for Amazon Prime Day 2022?

Grab our Prime Day Preparedness Checklist to make sure you are. Plus, get a bonus Promotions Cheatsheet!

    Breaking Breaking

    Effective Jan 17, Amazon announced their first FEE increases for 2023 and it is basically everything. Full details here. All exact % changes are noted as well.

    In-depth video and blog post to follow. Subscribe to fee change updates here.

      Illustration

      Thank You!