Amazon’s Prime Day events, held annually in July and October, offer small businesses a big opportunity to boost their sales. During the July 2025 event, sales reached nearly $24 billion USD over the course of just four days.
The next Amazon Prime event, Prime Big Deal Days (known colloquially as October Prime Day), is scheduled for October 7 and 8, 2025. If you’re looking to make the most of these two days, consider tapping into these 10 e-commerce trends.
1. Offer big discounts and free trials
Prime Day has become synonymous with steep discounts and limited-time offers. Use this sales event to promote your business, build brand awareness, and guide consumers toward your products. Target new customers by offering free trials on new products and discounts on more affordable items. This gives consumers a low-risk opportunity to try your brand without a big financial commitment.
You can also offer personalized deals and discounts to existing customers. A 2024 SheerID report found that 71% of customers are more loyal to brands that offer them exclusive deals, potentially boosting sales both in the moment and in the long run.
If you don’t sell on Amazon, consider hosting your own sale. Not all consumers have an Amazon Prime subscription to get access to these deals, which leaves an untapped market segment you can target.
“Prime Day is an opportunity all small businesses should leverage — whether or not they sell on Amazon,” said Jinny Choi, Director of the e-commerce team at Ecosense. “With the right strategy, you can tap into the heightened buying mindset.”
[Read more: A Small Business Guide to Selling on Amazon]
2. Target holiday shoppers
October Prime Day is a great time to target consumers looking to tackle their holiday gift lists. Bankrate’s 2025 Holiday Spending Report found that nearly half of holiday shoppers plan to start before October 31 — meaning many are primed to seek out the perfect presents for their loved ones (or themselves).
To drive holiday sales, leverage seasonal marketing strategies that are both relevant to your audience and true to your brand. Consider creating gift bags or boxes of your most popular offerings, or develop a holiday gift guide tailored to different recipient personas. Include seasonally appropriate messaging (such as “get ahead on your holiday shopping”) and gift-oriented promotions (BOGO: “buy one to keep, one to gift to someone special”).
3. Capitalize on the desire to support small and local businesses
Many consumers are eager to “shop small” and support small businesses, even on Amazon. Consider adding Amazon’s Small Business Badge to your seller account to highlight your small business status and appear under the Small Business Search Filter.
Of course, you don’t have to be on Amazon to take advantage of Prime Day shopping sprees. Instead, leverage the buzz around the sale to promote the advantages of shopping locally, including supporting local job creation, reducing environmental impact, and investing in community development. Consider partnering with other local businesses or hosting a community event to attract customers.
Social media is another key way to capitalize on the small business movement, regardless of whether or not your business sells on Amazon during Prime Day. Post consistently about your deals on social media and use relevant hashtags like #SupportSmallWithAmazon or #ShopLocal to boost visibility. Finally, set aside time for customer engagement; responding to your followers can help nurture stronger relationships, an advantage small businesses have over larger competitors.
[Read more: 5 Ways to Build Community Around Your Local Retail Business]
4. Create urgency with countdowns and time-sensitive offers
Creating urgency motivates customers to buy now, especially if they’ve been considering your product but never made a purchase. Tactics like countdown timers, flash sales, and “deal of the hour” offers tap into FOMO and scarcity mentality, encouraging consumers to make faster decisions.
“Sending personalized email offers can drive early traffic and build momentum ahead of the Prime Day rush,” said Choi. “Running flash sales timed to coincide with Prime Day can further boost visibility and attract deal-seekers.”
To make these time-sensitive offers even more appealing, Choi recommends combining them with perks like free shipping, gifts with purchase, and extended warranties.
5. Drive value with bundles and exclusives
Offering bundles, limited-edition items, or Prime Day-exclusive products can significantly boost sales and increase the average order value by encouraging customers to purchase more items at once. Use past purchase data or popular product pairings to help craft bundles that feel relevant and valuable.
As Michael Jankie, Co-Founder of NATPAT, explained: “We don’t just push bestsellers; we promote products that act as on-ramps to our wider range, prioritizing items that unlock higher lifetime value, repeat purchase behavior, or [generate] strong brand stickiness.”
6. Consider flexible payment options
Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) and other flexible payment arrangements have become popular among shoppers looking to save money up front. According to Adobe Business, U.S. consumers spend billions through BNPL each month, reaching $6.6 billion in August 2025 alone. Depending on your business model, your offerings, and your client base, capitalizing on this trend can encourage more customers to make a purchase.
If your business sells on Amazon, you can leverage the platform’s range of payment plans, including Amazon Monthly Payments, credit card repayment plans, and third-party BNPL providers. However, keep in mind that BNPL platforms charge merchant fees that are often higher than those of traditional credit card processing fees. Additionally, as with any third-party provider, your customers’ experience with them may impact their experience with your brand — so ensure any partners are reputable and provide strong customer support.
Offering bundles, limited-edition items, or Prime Day-exclusive products can significantly boost sales and increase the average order value by encouraging customers to purchase more items at once.
7. Create an easy shopping experience
Whether you’re capitalizing on Prime Day online or in-store, offering an easy and convenient shopping experience is key to gaining and retaining customers. For Amazon sellers, it’s important to follow the platform’s established guidelines and confirm the quality of your items before shipping. This can help reduce product returns, which are especially prevalent during sales like Prime Day, where consumers spend more freely. Additionally, ensure your products are well-stocked to avoid running out during the event.
For e-commerce businesses selling independently, optimize your website and its checkout process to guarantee it can handle a surge of customers during the sales event. Ensure your page is optimized for mobile shoppers as well: over half of internet traffic comes from cell phones, and 3 in 4 U.S. shoppers have used their phones to make a purchase. Website malfunctions or outages can undermine trust and drive potential customers toward competitors.
[Read more: 5 Consumer Trends Shaping Spending Patterns in 2025]
8. Optimize for voice-driven shopping
Smart home and smartphone voice assistants have become nearly ubiquitous in recent years, and rates of voice commerce are on the rise. According to CapitalOne Shopping Research, 49% of U.S. consumers use voice search to shop, and 58% use voice search to research local small businesses. Optimizing for voice commerce can help your offerings appear more readily in users’ voice searches.
When creating your product pages and listings, keep two things in mind: how people actually talk, and how voice assistants “read” web information. Crafting your product pages and descriptions with this in mind can help your products get “matched” to the customers looking for them. This means using clear descriptions and tags, natural and conversational keywords, and streamlined checkout processes.
9. Turn customers into advocates
Word-of-mouth is one of the most powerful drivers of any business's growth. And capturing trust and building real relationships is how you turn a one-time buyer into a loyal customer and, eventually, an advocate.
Building that relationship doesn’t end when customers complete a transaction. Check in with consumers post-purchase to reinforce satisfaction and deepen their connection with your brand, and provide exceptional customer support in the event of an issue. Beyond that, occasional check-ins help maintain engagement and reveal opportunities for upsells or valuable feedback.
On Prime Day, take this a step further by encouraging customers to share photos, tag your brand on social media, or leave a review. This kind of user-generated content builds credibility, fosters community, and extends your reach far beyond the initial purchase. When customers feel seen, heard, and appreciated, they’re far more likely to spread the word.
10. Leverage influencer or affiliate marketing
Partnering with content creators ahead of Prime Day is a powerful way for small businesses to generate buzz, reach new audiences, and showcase their products. Influencers can help build excitement by creating unboxing videos, showcasing exclusive deals, or curating “Prime Day Picks” posts to highlight your offerings.
“Promoting your deals through influencers, especially those with Amazon storefronts, can drive qualified traffic, build trust, and help extend your reach during this high-traffic period,” Choi said.
Consider pitching to content creators for inclusion in last-minute listicles or roundups. Collaborating with nano- or micro-influencers ensures targeted visibility and budget-friendly content that feels personal, timely, and trustworthy to their highly engaged followers.
Additional reporting by Callie Cook and Miranda Fraraccio. Some source interviews were conducted for an earlier version of this article.
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