How Amazon harnessed its influencer network to create buzz and sell products around Prime Day

• Amazon offered several incentives to motivate influencers to promote Prime Day this year.
• Leading up to the annual two-day event, influencers shared shopping guides and deals with followers.
• This Prime Day, Amazon influencers earned 21.6 times more on average per day than on other days in 2023.

This year, it was nearly impossible to miss Amazon’s annual two-day sales event, Prime Day. Influencers on platforms ranging from TikTok to Instagram’s buzzy new app Threads shared their favorite products and Prime Day deals with their followers.

The event returned on July 11 and 12, and the company used its network of social-media stars to generate momentum. TikTok creators such as fashion and beauty creator Alix Earle, as well as comedy creators Leenda Dong and Jake Shane, have gone live on Amazon’s TikTok account for “Prime Night: Duel for the Deals.”

Amazon team members were busy recruiting influencers to create content promoting sales and specific products in the months leading up to the event.

Influencers have become central to many marketing strategies, including Prime Day.

“As consumers, we want that personalized curation from creators,” said Lindsey Gamble, Mavrck’s associate director of influencer innovation. “We want to know not only what products they are using, but also how it looks, and creators have a way of providing a more personalized shopping experience.”

The event is also the biggest payday opportunity of the year for Amazon influencers. According to the company, Amazon influencers earned 21.6 times more per day during Prime Day 2023 than they did on a daily basis in 2023.

The Amazon influencer team reached out to talent managers and creators in the lead up to this year’s event to provide advance notice of the timing of Prime Day, share a sneak peek at certain deals, and provide paid content opportunities to help creators prepare for the event.

First, earlier this year, Amazon hosted an event in Austin, Texas, where 200 creators previewed Prime Day deals and were encouraged to begin creating content ahead of the event.

Then, in June, Amazon hosted a series of webinars in which members of the influencer program shared best practices for Prime Day, provided a sneak peek at deals, and answered questions. The company also encouraged creators to submit content ahead of time for the chance to be featured across the US Amazon store, providing additional visibility to maximize onsite earnings, according to the company.

Amazon released Instagram and TikTok filters during Prime Day, and team members kept creators up to date on trending deals.

Amazon “was really coaching them on what channels to create content on and how to repurpose that content,” according to Gamble.

During and after Prime Day, Amazon provided various paid incentives to creators. This year’s Prime Day incentives included increased rates, additional payouts, and gift cards.

Crest 3D Whitestrips and a Yeti 12-ounce insulated cup were this year’s best-selling Amazon creator products during Prime Day. According to the company, the top selling products for fashion influencers this year were women’s Levi’s shorts and Amazon Essentials men’s loose fitting shorts.

How Amazon is building its influencer network and the challenges it has faced

To become an Amazon influencer, creators must first sign up on Amazon’s website, where they must answer a series of questions and provide links to their YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok accounts. Once accepted, the program provides influencers with a suite of tools and features that allow them to earn money by promoting products on social media or directly on Amazon using content formats such as livestreams or product review videos.

Amazon’s affiliate program has become a valuable resource for many tech, beauty, and lifestyle content creators looking to make money. Nonetheless, the company has encountered some difficulties. Amazon Inspire (Amazon’s new TikTok-like feature) and Amazon Live (its livestreaming platform) have had difficulty attracting influencers.

For some creators, Amazon Live can be a “hit or miss,” according to Jay Kent-Hume, cofounder of talent management firm The Sociable Society. He went on to say that the success of an Amazon Live is dependent on the influencer promoting it on a separate platform or Amazon pushing the stream to the homepage.

“We’re trying to figure out how to go live on YouTube and Amazon at the same time and have it all work together,” Kent-Hume explained.