Yes, we are well aware that the major shopping holiday season is still a couple months away. However, in the world of online retail, being well prepared, well in advance can be the catalyst for your success this holiday season. Every year beats the previous year in holiday sales online, and in keeping with that trend, 2018 is predicted to blow 2017 out of the water. Just to give some perspective, $94.4 billion was spent during November and December of 2016 while $108.15 billion was shelled out during those exact same months in 2017. People spend money during the holidays and you have to be prepped and ready to take advantage of that influx of money into the economy!
Whether this is your first holiday season as a private label retailer or if you’ve seen your fair share of success, getting your Amazon store prepped and ready NOW is the best way to keep your customers happy. And happy customers keep coming back for more whether it’s the holiday season or not!
Dates to Remember
Here’s a list of important dates coming up in the 4th quarter that you’ll need to remember when prepping your Amazon store for the sales rush:
Thanksgiving November 22nd
Black Friday November 23rd
Cyber Monday November 26th
Chanukah December 2nd-10th
Christmas December 25th
Boxing Day December 26th
Kwanzaa December 26th-January 1st
New Year’s Eve December 31st
RETURNS SEASON ALL of January!
Chinese New Year February 15th-21st
Amazon Long-Term Storage Fee Assessment Day February 15th
Prepare Your Inventory
The 4th quarter of the year is considered “Winning Time” due to a massive 30% increase in sales! Given this huge increase in sales, you want to make sure to supplement your inventory to be able to fulfill those customer orders. Amazon has the experience behind them to know when their sellers should start prepping their online stores for the holiday. They’ve sent out 2018 holiday selling guidelinesto their FBA sellers to advise them on when their shipments should be on-site at their fulfillment centers to ensure products are available to customers during the peak season.
Black Friday & Cyber Monday
Inventory for these two major online shopping (and shipping!) holidays should arrive at Amazon fulfillment centers by November 7th.
Christmas
Inventory for THE holiday of the year, Christmas, should be there by no later than December 1st.
Inventory for 2018
Any inventory meant to sell in 2019 should hold off on being sent to the Amazon fulfillment centers until after December 17th. Otherwise, only send your items meant to sell in 2018.
Boost Your Potential for Sales
There’s obviously more to slapping a picture and vague description on your private label Amazon listing if you want to see true online retail success. You have to incentivize your customers this holiday season because all of your competitors will be pulling out all the stops to increase their sales. This is when the old adage “it takes money to make money” comes in when you invest in sponsoring your product listings. Back in 2015, for every $1 spent on sponsored product ads, an average of $13 was generated in sales revenuefor those products. That’s definitely worth factoring in that extra money in your Amazon store budget this holiday season.
There is money to be made this holiday season on the Amazon Marketplace and whether you’re just starting out or have had a couple successful seasons under your belt, we’re here to help. With online classesand one-on-one coaching, our goal is to lead our students to success in online retailing. You too could see some of this exciting holiday season money madness that our previous students enjoy year after year!
