Versus the average of the 30 days leading up to Prime Day 2020:
- Spending on Amazon Advertising was up 3.8X
- Advertising-driven conversions were up 2.6X
- Advertiser sales revenue was up 4.9X with average order size up 91%
As has been the case every year since Amazon started the [now] two-day event in 2015, this Prime Day 2020 was the biggest ever. Days before, eMarketer forecasted global sales of the event would reach nearly $10 billion and that’s not even counting the “halo effect” that it has to help drive deal-seeking consumers to shop at other retailers.
In a press release, Amazon didn’t confirm total sales but did note that Prime members saved more than $1.4 billion. The online retailer did go into detail about how big Prime Day 2020 was for their SMB sellers—which have been severely impacted by COVID-19. “We are thrilled that Prime Day was a record-breaking event for small and medium businesses worldwide, with sales surpassing $3.5 billion—an increase of nearly 60% from last year,” said Jeff Wilke, CEO Worldwide Consumer.
Amazon Advertisers went big and it paid off
According to an analysis of Skai clients running Amazon Advertising, spend on the channel was up 3.8X versus the daily average of the 30 days leading up to Prime Day 2020.
Other notable Amazon Advertising KPIs for Prime Day 2020 (versus the previous 30-day average) included impressions up 3.6X and clicks were up 2.9X.
While dramatically scaling up advertising spend can often drive a less efficient return, advertising revenue was up 4.9X versus the previous 30-day average.
While the 2.6X lift in conversion rate over the previous 30-day average was a big contributor to advertiser success, the average order value of ad-driven sales was nearly double (91%) versus the same time period.
Electronics brands made their move
Computers and Consumer Electronics brands spent more—proportionally—on Amazon Advertising than other verticals during Prime Day
- Computers & Consumer Electronics made up 23% of spend, compared to 13% for the previous 30 days
- Computers & Consumer Electronics made up 17% of conversions, compared to 8% for the previous 30 days
- Computers & Consumer Electronics made up 54% of sales, compared to 26% for the previous 30 days
The holiday shopping season rolls on
While the data in this post is only representative of the first day of the Prime Day event (Oct 13), early indications appear to be on par with industry experts who have predicted that this Q4 is still on course for historic advertiser and consumer spending despite the slow year impacted by the pandemic.
Stay tuned to Skai for more analysis on the full Prime Day results, the big week of the Cyber Five (Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday), and the rest of Q4.
