Tom:
Welcome to the Clear Ads Podcast: Highway to Sell. This week you’re listening to me, Tom Oln, and for the second time — it’s been a while — I’m joined by one of our long-term account managers, Levi.
Welcome, Levi!
Levi:
Hey everyone, great to be here.
Tom:
This week we’re talking about how to survive the summer sales, and the biggest event of them all — Prime Day.
We’ve covered Prime Day before, but it’s such a huge moment for Amazon sellers that it’s worth diving into again — along with other summer sales and general seasonality trends.
Before we jump into Prime Day specifically, let’s start with the broader topic. How does seasonality affect advertising, especially on Amazon? And what strategies can advertisers use to adapt?
Levi:
Good question. In general, we recommend an “always-on” approach — meaning you keep running ads year-round, regardless of the season.
But if your products are heavily seasonal, your advertising strategy needs to shift to match.
For example, you’ll always want a base level of activity for your hero search terms — the keywords that drive most of your sales. Keep those campaigns active all year.
However, for Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Display campaigns, you might reduce activity during off-season periods and ramp it up when your season starts.
During your peak season, increase your Sponsored Brands visibility — so you’re consistently at the top of search — and use Sponsored Display to retarget people who viewed but didn’t buy. You can even show ads on related products.
If you sell toothbrushes, for example, run display ads on listings for toothpaste or dental floss.
Tom:
Exactly — and that “always-on” approach doesn’t mean running at full power constantly. It’s about knowing when to turn the volume up or down.
As we approach Prime Day, for example, we need to watch search volume and trend data. Are people starting to look for your products?
Even though the event might be weeks away, many customers are already browsing, saving, and adding items to their carts — waiting for deals to go live.
So while you might not see conversions yet, you still want to be visible. If shoppers don’t see you during their research phase, you won’t be on their radar when the sale begins.
And remember — Amazon is more than a store now. It’s a search engine. People go straight there to compare and research products.
That’s when you want your bids and budgets increasing — to make sure you’re visible when people are planning their purchases.
Levi:
Exactly. And this applies year-round. For instance, I’ve just started scaling back bids on one of my winter clients — they sell insoles and waterproof shoe care products.
Now that we’re entering warmer months, demand naturally drops, so we’re reducing spend while maintaining a base level of visibility.
Seasonality doesn’t just affect traffic — it also impacts ad costs. As competition spikes, CPCs go up. But higher costs don’t necessarily mean poor efficiency — because more traffic usually leads to more conversions too.
Tom:
Right. But for sellers with off-season products, like winter gear, Prime Day can be tricky.
If you’re selling hand warmers in July, is Prime Day really worth it?
Levi:
It depends. You can certainly test it, but be cautious. If everyone in your category reduces bids because it’s off-season, and you go the opposite way — you might capture some opportunistic sales from deal hunters.
But don’t be too aggressive. For truly seasonal products, like hand warmers, it often doesn’t make sense to compete during summer.
Tom:
Exactly. For clothing, it’s different — there’s fashion seasonality as well as seasonal weather.
If you’ve got leftover stock, Prime Day can be a good opportunity to offload older inventory before launching your new winter range.
Levi:
Yes, but again, do it carefully. If you’re sitting on old stock, great — discount it and move it. But don’t throw money at products with zero demand.
Tom:
Agreed. Inventory management is a massive factor.
You can have the best PPC campaigns in the world, but if you run out of stock, it’s all wasted spend.
Always make sure your hero products — the ones that drive most of your revenue — are well stocked for Prime Day and beyond.
The event itself might last two days, but the post-Prime Day halo can last for weeks.
Levi:
Exactly. We often see elevated sales for 30–60 days after Prime Day because we can retarget shoppers who viewed but didn’t buy.
Tom:
Yes! And even though Prime Day is officially two days, you can extend your own deals using coupons or strike-through pricing.
That way, if a shopper misses the lightning deal, you can still catch them afterwards.
And make sure your inventory arrives at Amazon well before the event. Lightning Deal submission deadlines have already passed for most regions, but there’s still time to get stock checked in and eligible for Prime.
Levi:
Definitely. Another challenge we see is advertisers forgetting to lower their bids after Prime Day.
Everyone’s afraid to be the first to pull back, so CPCs stay inflated — sometimes for weeks.
Tom:
Yes, it’s like a Mexican standoff. No one wants to blink first!
And Amazon knows this — which is why we keep seeing more “sales events” added throughout the year. Not just Prime Day and Black Friday, but mini sales like “The Great Summer Sale” or “Beauty Week.”
Levi:
Exactly. More sales events mean more shopping spikes — and more data for us to leverage.
But I’d say the two biggest challenges sellers face are:
-
Inventory management — having enough stock and getting it checked in on time.
-
Over-aggression — going too hard on bids and losing profitability.
There’s a sweet spot between being competitive and being reckless.
Tom:
Couldn’t agree more.
If you’re cautious about budget, you can use Amazon’s Budget Rules. For example, allow a campaign to increase its budget automatically only if performance KPIs remain profitable.
It’s a smart way to protect your spend.
Also, be mindful about when you start ramping up. I wouldn’t go heavy until maybe one to two weeks before Prime Day, depending on search traffic.
And when you review results, treat Prime Day as an anomaly — don’t compare it to regular weeks. Compare it to Prime Day last year for a fairer benchmark.
Levi:
Exactly.
And during that build-up, start expanding your targeting. Go after long-tail variations of your hero keywords so you build up sales history and ranking strength before the event.
Then, when traffic explodes, your listings already have momentum.
Tom:
That’s a great tip.
And remember — if you’ve got strong organic rankings, you might not need to spend heavily on ads at all.
Some brands — like Sony or Apple — can pull back during major events because people are already searching for them directly.
Levi:
True. If you have great brand presence, you can save money by reducing branded bidding during those days. You’ll still capture those sales naturally.
Tom:
So, let’s talk about how to stand out during these sales.
Beyond ads, what can sellers do to optimise their listings and get noticed when competition is at its highest?
Levi:
Go back to basics — the marketing mix: product, price, place, and promotion.
Promotion is your PPC. Price is next.
Shoppers come to Amazon looking for deals, so monitor your competitors’ pricing and aim to be slightly better — even by a few pennies.
If two listings are identical in ratings and reviews, the cheaper one wins.
Tom:
Absolutely. And a clever trick I’ve seen — use strike-through pricing effectively.
If your product usually sells for $40 and your competitors are at $30, you don’t have to drop to $25 to compete.
Offer a $10 discount to show $40 → $30. You’re now implying extra value — customers feel they’re getting $40 worth of quality for $30.
It’s perceived value.
Levi:
Exactly. And don’t forget your reviews.
Check your competitors’ negative reviews and address those points in your bullet points or images.
For example, if their product “breaks easily,” highlight your durability. Not by calling them out, but by showing what you do better.
Tom:
Great point.
Also, update your imagery. Lifestyle photos and videos are a must — especially for products with moving parts or tech features.
And if your Storefront is active, make sure it’s updated for the sale. Feature your hero products prominently.
Levi:
Exactly. A+ Content helps too — but remember, if shoppers are scrolling that far down, they’re already interested. Make sure what they see reinforces trust and quality.
Tom:
Perfect.
Let’s wrap up with how to measure success.
Sales are the obvious metric, but what else should advertisers look at to assess performance?
Levi:
Two big ones — click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate.
If CTR increases during Prime Day, it means your ads and creatives were more effective.
And if your conversion rate spikes, you’ve hit the right audience with the right offer.
You can also look back at past data to forecast future performance.
Tom:
Definitely.
And if you sell a repeat-purchase product, like supplements, focus on lifetime value, not just short-term profitability.
Even if you break even or lose slightly on that first sale, if you win a long-term subscriber, it’s worth it.
Levi:
Exactly — and that’s where Subscribe & Save comes in.
If your product replenishes every 30 days, make sure that option is active during Prime Day. It’s a simple way to convert one-time buyers into repeat customers.
Tom:
Perfect. I think that’s the best way to end — recurring revenue.
Levi, thank you so much for joining this week’s episode.
Levi:
Thanks, Tom — always a pleasure.
Tom:
And speaking of “subscribe and save” — make sure you subscribe to this podcast so you don’t miss future episodes!
You can find more about Amazon advertising, sales, and seasonality at clearadsagency.com.
If you’re thinking about changing agencies, or you just want help scaling your campaigns, get in touch and see how we can help.
Until next time — goodbye from me and Levi.
Levi:
Thanks, everyone. Bye!
