Amazon Prime Day: Getting the Best Online Shopping Deals

By: Dannie Phan | August 14th, 2020

In case you thought 2020 has taken literally everything good out of your life, have no fear: Amazon is still expected to hold its Amazon Prime Day event in 2020 (hold for applause).

It’s true, Amazon started off primarily selling books. However, as internet shopping became more popular, the online retailer expanded and now sells just about everything from just about everywhere. You can buy clothes, shoes, back to school supplies, electronics, and even furnaces through the website. There really are some incredibly weird and wonderful things being sold on Amazon.

Anybody can purchase from Amazon, but only signing up for Amazon Prime gets you access to Amazon’s audiobook platform and its video streaming service.

Okay, now that you have the basics of Amazon and Prime membership, back to the topic at hand. Amazon Prime Day is an annual 2-day sales event that brings exclusive deals to Prime members.

The company typically holds Prime Day in July – the sale was scheduled for 15th and 16th of the month in 2020 – but decided to delay the event because of all the complications the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) has caused around the world. Amazon said the sale would run in the US in August at the earliest, but suspicions are running high that it will take place in October.

What are the Best Deals Available on Prime Day?

Prime Day brings deals on loads of different products, and services too, but some of the most popular items in the past few years have been electronics. Savvy savers look to get the hottest items on deep discount during the sale.

Last year, for instance, when Amazon claims its one-day Prime Day surpassed Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined, the Echo Dot smart speaker was selling at almost half price.

Meanwhile, the iPad Pro was selling at a $280 discount. Remember how hot the InstantPot was in 2019? Well, it was selling at half off it’s original $100 price tag.

There were so many deals on so many items and online shoppers weren’t left wanting.

How to Take Advantage of Prime Day Deals

Taking advantage of Prime Day is simple. The first step you can take is to sign up for a Prime membership because only Amazon Prime members can take advantage of some exclusive deals. You can do your prep work ahead of time by signing up for a free trial on Amazon Prime. You’ll find out there’s more to membership than participation in Prime Day. You’ll also get free two-day shipping, access to the aforementioned streaming service including Prime Video, and loads of other benefits.

Make your list of must-haves. Being prepared and knowing what you’re looking for will help you take advantage of the savings as they come. Lots of other people may be eyeing the same Nintendo Switch console you are, so be ready with fast fingers and a credit card! Apple, Samsung, Sony, Google tend to offer electronic gadget deals. In particular, Amazon devices will see some sweet deals, so watch out for Kindles, Fire TV sticks, and Amazon Echo devices (get ready to welcome Alexa into your home!) in particular.

Find out what deals are coming down before everyone else by checking out the ‘Deals’ section of the Amazon app. You can even set up notifications to be sent to your iphone or Android device so you know exactly when your favorite headphones and 4K TVs go live.

Is Amazon Prime Day Really the Best Day to Shop?

Because the Prime Day date has been postponed, you may wonder whether it’s even worth your time to shop then, rather than waiting until Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales hit the internet. It’s really your call, but consider this: Amazon estimates it may have lost $100 million by postponing the event, so it (and many of its third-party sellers) has a lot of lost ground to recover. That said, all retailers have ground to recover so Black Friday may also be one for the record books.

If you’re going to shop a Prime Day sale, whenever it may be, it’s not a bad idea to check competitor sites for deals on the same day, as they try to rival the retail giant. While some may skip Prime Day altogether, opting to focus on traditionally successful shopping days in the final quarter of the year, others, like Walmart, Best Buy, and Target are likely to capitalize on the notoriety of the day to capture some of the overflow traffic.

Walmart Plus, the retail giant’s membership service in answer to Prime, is set to drop September 15, just before the forecasted date for Prime Day 2020. You can bet that’s no coincidence, and that Walmart will offer exclusive deals for Plus members to rival Prime Day.

Target ran its “Deal Days,” a sale that coincides with Prime Days each July, on its usual day in 2020. Still, don’t be surprised if some extra special sales are on to compete with Amazon Prime Day deals this fall.

Be Ready

Keep your ear to the ground, and sooner or later Amazon will make a final decision about the Prime Day shopping event. Whether you choose to purchase your items or not, checking out the deals in preparation for fall sales could be worth your while. Doing your homework can go a long way in helping you snag the items that you want while getting the best possible deal. When the day comes, keep checking back for Lightning Deals that might only last a short while.

Looking for deals sooner rather than later? There are loads of ways you can earn points on Swagbucks.com that can go towards a free Amazon gift card you can use any time you want! Happy shopping!