Shopper intent and demand isn’t siloed to mass events however, and in particular we see eCommerce as the crucial channel for Brands to adapt strategies to reach shoppers at key spending peaks. Being able to adapt and promote products at strategic times, or during certain event sales cycles, can drive significant incremental revenues.

Searches for next week’s World Book Day (Thursday 5th March) show that parents of girls have been feeling the pressure to order/research outfits, and the accompanying books, weeks earlier than parents of boys who shop in a shorter purchase window. For Valentine’s Day, shoppers started to search for gifts beginning of January but search-to-conversion rates were low until week of the 25th January when purchasing rates started to increase significantly. Planning for target customer browsing and buying periods is key to strategy implementation and measurement.

Our top-5 tips for maximising sales during event peaks:

Analyse and Leverage Historical Trends :

We analysed 24-months of eCommerce data across multiple verticals, thousands of product sales and millions of shopper searches. Shopper behaviour trends are largely consistent when comparing the same event from one time period to the next. Data forms strategy so having access to historical data enables a Brand to forecast when customers will be more receptive to certain products and promotional messages.

Optimise Targeted Advertising and Promotions :

Aside from making sure you have the optimal keyword strategy, coordinate paid advertising and promotions to ensure the most effective allocation of spend. Promotions such as vouchers, deals or discounts are strong point of sale tactics that can be enhanced by traffic driving initiatives such as Amazon Sponsored Products. More often these are separate initiatives, being planned and managed by different teams, but can be far more effective in tandem. Sponsored Brands driving traffic to Brand Stores is an effective strategy for New-To-Brand custom during research and browsing periods.

Community Engagement :

Via Amazon Attribution and source tags it’s possible to measure impact on social and other paid media channels in driving sales on Amazon. Your customers are on Amazon, period. Understand the impact on off-Amazon activities in delivering sales to replicate and optimise for future events.

Stock Management :

There is nothing more frustrating than not being able to fulfil customer demand. Ensure you are coordinating fulfilment with promotional activities and shopper demand spikes. If using FBA (Fulfilment by Amazon) ensure to plan for lead times in getting stock into Fulfilment Centres and onto shelves.

Understand Category and Competitive Set :

Via proprietary data sets, we have enabled partners to understand what products have been viewed and purchased the most when shoppers conduct related searches. Leverage Product Targeting and Brand Term Conquest to hijack competitor sales. Gain insight into product type and variations that are popular so that you offer the most in-demand ASIN. Employ category rank tracking to benchmark success metrics.

Our proprietary platform, Ignite, solves for and provides the insights needed to maximise event-driven sales. To discuss further contact us.