Don’t be one of them.
Here’s our hot take: August and September are some of the most underrated months in retail strategy. While others hit pause or pull back, it’s your chance to double down: on visibility, learnings, and strategic momentum that sets you up for a stronger Q4.
Here’s what brands should be doing right now to keep winning after Prime Day.
Don’t Go Dark: Stay Visible While the Competition Sleeps
Too often, brands treat Prime Day like a finish line instead of a launchpad. But the reality is: shoppers are still in-market. Post-Prime Day, they’re still searching, browsing and comparing. And with less brand noise in the space, you’ve got a prime opportunity to stand out.
What to do:
- Retarget Prime Day traffic that didn’t convert. You have a group of shoppers that showed interest - now it’s time to close the loop.
- Tap into AMC and DSP to reach niche audiences who searched high-intent terms but didn’t buy. These users are valuable, they’re just waiting for the right message.
- Lean into August and September, when CPCs are typically lower and competition is thinner. That combo? A sweet spot for driving efficient performance.
Analyze, Then Act: Make Prime Day Data Work Harder
You just ran a massive promotional event. There’s gold in your performance data, don’t wait until October to start digging. It’s hard to believe, but fall Prime Day is going to be here before you know it. Don’t miss out on gleaning learnings and insights from this key tentpole event to understand what worked versus what didn’t to improve heading into the next.
Key questions to answer:
- What campaigns actually moved inventory?
- What times of day were the highest converting?
- How did your budget flighting land compared to plan? How should you adjust based on performance results?
- Did your key competitors run deals? How did your promos compare to theirs?
- Which creatives converted, and which flopped?
- Which keywords performed?
- Which ASINs underdelivered?
You don’t need to wait for a full wrap-up to take action. In fact, the sooner you optimize based on learnings, the better positioned you’ll be heading into the next big peak. The most successful brands treat Prime Day like a real-time Q4 dress rehearsal.
What to do:
- Build retargeting audiences now for Black Friday and Cyber Monday based on Prime Day engagement.
- Double down on winning tactics. Whether that’s Sponsored Display creative or TikTok video strategy, if it worked in July, evolve it for Q4.
- Drop underperformers early. Whether it's a product or a channel, don’t bring dead weight into your holiday strategy.
TL;DR: Post-Prime Day Playbook
- Stay live in August/September to take advantage of low competition and CPCs, and take advantage of early test and learns based on Prime Day insights to understand what may make a bigger impact during Q4 tentpoles and fall Prime Day.
- Retarget high-intent shoppers with AMC using AMC audiences in DSP or Sponsored Display to keep momentum going.
- Mine your data fast to shape a more effective holiday strategy—don’t wait until October.
- Test + optimize in Q3 so you’re not scrambling in Q4.
Prime Day isn’t the end; it’s the beginning of a smarter, sharper, more efficient path to Q4 success. While other brands fade out, your visibility now can mean dominance later.