May 6, 2026
Drive Prime Day Success
Prime Day is widely viewed as a sprint to drive as much revenue as possible, creating a frantic cycle of bids, budgets, and low-funnel tactics. But don’t get caught up in this misconception.
Record-breaking results aren’t determined during the event; they are forged in the weeks of strategic preparation — well before the first lightening deal is clicked. Success belongs to those who view Prime Day as the crescendo of a carefully orchestrated customer journey.
Let’s dive into how even brands without an always-on media presence can shift how they view Prime Day — and win.
Outcomes are determined before the event begins
- Fuel the algorithm before the event. During the deal event, Amazon’s algorithm favors brands that have established efficient performance during the lead-up. Use the 4–5 weeks before the event to build momentum and generate actionable signals by testing ad placements, campaign structure, audiences, and bidding strategies.
- Map the full journey to gain cross-channel clarity. Investing in a multi-channel approach across display, sponsored brands, and sponsored products rather than sponsored products alone can lift the increase in sales during Prime Day from 14%* to 139%.* Unlock the Clean Rooms’ power by creating custom audience segments and optimizing touchpoints to influence the shopper at the best time with the right message.
- Play defense. Don’t let competitors succeed from your demand. As shoppers look for deals from brands they know, branded searches spike. At the same time, competitor brand term conquesting also takes off. Dedicated brand defense campaigns and organic ranking optimization will protect your brand, so paid and organic can co-exist at the top. Mirror search defense in display by retargeting store page visitors and competitors’ past purchasers.
- Stay flexible by shifting budget in real-time to capture demand. In fast-paced, high-competition environments like Prime Day, static budgets burn out quickly. To stay in the game for the full event, create a flexible in-flight channel investment optimization strategy backed by a data-driven pacing plan. This will allow you to drive visibility early while budgets can shift to capture demand when shoppers are deepest in the funnel on days three and four.
- Harvest post-event momentum to gain long-term loyalty. Keep the momentum going by targeting shoppers of related products and “window shoppers” who engaged with your brand but didn’t convert. Post-event, adjust your bidding strategy to maintain higher organic ranking visibility to prevent a rank cliff, which typically occurs when the sale day ends and the traffic falls back to normal levels.
*Source: Amazon’s Prime Day 2025 Sponsored Product and Advanced Strategy guides
