As the dust settles from last week’s Amazon Prime Day, here are five takeaways to keep in mind ahead of a likely second Prime Day-type event later this year.
“Prime shoppers didn’t just come out in higher numbers, they came with their wallets more widely open,” John Dick, founder and CEO of CivicScience, said during a recent webinar.
One in 4 US adults shopped Prime Day this year, up from 32% in 2022, per CivicScience. Of those, 42% said they spent more this year than during last year’s Prime Day.
Most shoppers made smaller purchases, with 64% saying they spent under $100. However, over a third (36%) of shoppers said they spent over $100.
More consumers made planned purchases (45%) than unplanned (27%) purchases during the event, though the number of shoppers making both types of purchases increased from 24% in 2022 to 28% this year.
Of those who shopped on Prime Day, 20% shopped Walmart+ Week, 16% shopped Best Buy’s Black Friday in July sale, and 15% shopped during Target’s Circle Week. Prime Day shoppers also participated in sales at Kohl’s and Macy’s, according to CivicScience.
Prime Day shoppers are also favorable toward other marketplaces like Overstock.com, QVC, and HSN, as well as grocery retailers like Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s.
Consumers who prefer apparel brands like Nike, Skechers, and Tommy Hilfiger were not as active during this year’s Prime Day.
“People with a high affinity for apparel were not spending a lot of time on Amazon this Prime Day because you don’t get a lot of brand-name apparel on Amazon to begin with,” said Dick.
“The Prime Day shopper isn’t as much driven by a brand’s social consciousness or political points of view,” said Dick. “They’re not as likely to go out of their way to support a local establishment. They don’t even seem to consult reviews or compare prices as much as the average consumer.”
They’re also not as price sensitive as the general public, though they are more likely to be price conscious about electronics and household products over other categories, according to CivicScience.
For over half (55%) of Prime Day shoppers, brand is equally as important as price. However, when looking at certain categories, like electronics or household products, shoppers may be a little more price sensitive than normal.
“On one hand, Prime Day is bringing deal-seekers to Amazon, but it doesn’t mean that they’re not a highly brand-centric type of consumer,” said Dick. “They are looking for specific brands and types of products, they just know they can get them cheaper during these two days.”
Prime Day shoppers are more likely to be into tech than the general population, leaning toward purchases of smart watches, smart home devices, and AR/VR products, according to CivicScience.
“This helps to explain why electronics sell so well on Prime Day,” said Dick. “It’s a remarkably tech-savvy group of consumers … They are on the front lines of early adoption of new technology.”
They also are prolific users of social media, favoring Snapchat, Twitter, and Pinterest more than the general population.
While consumers ages 35 to 54 represent the largest share of Prime Day shoppers this year, the number of younger millennials (ages 25 to 34) grew the most. However, only 6 percentage points separates the age groups with the largest and smallest shares, so it’s pretty much equal across the board, per CivicScience.
Income distribution was also spread evenly, with 38% of shoppers making under $50,000 a year, 32% making between $50,000 and $100,000 a year, and 29% taking home over $100,000 a year.
“The income levels of reported Prime Day shoppers are pretty much identical to the general population income breakdown that our data would suggest,” said Dick. “Which just means Prime Day is appealing to people up and down the income spectrum for different reasons.”
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