What Is an Amazon Lightning Deal?
An Amazon Lightning Deal is a flash sale in which a discount is offered on a limited number of product units over a short period of time. The deal can last from 4–12 hours, or until all products are claimed.
Customers can find Lightning Deals on the “Today’s Deals” page, on Prime, and in organic searches. Items featuring Lightning Deals will be highlighted with a badge on their respective product pages until the deal ends. Customers can also visit the “Upcoming Deals” section on “Today’s Deals” to review new Lightning Deals 24 hours in advance.
While Lightning Deals can help boost sales, not all deals achieve the same success. We’ll discuss a little more about this type of Amazon promotion to help you determine if it’s something that could work for your business.
How to Apply for Amazon Lightning Deals
Both sellers and individual ASINs must meet specific requirements for eligibility to apply for Lightning Deals:
Seller Requirements
- You must be an Amazon Professional seller. Individual sellers are not eligible for Amazon Lightning Deals. Professional sellers must also receive a minimum of 5 feedback ratings per month to qualify.
- Your seller account must hold a 3.5-star rating. Seller feedback measures the quality and speed of packaging, fulfillment, and customer service. If your rating is below 3.5, you’ll have to improve your shoppers’ buying experience first before applying for Lightning Deals.
Product Requirements
- Alcoholic beverages are not eligible for Lightning Deals. Make sure the item is not restricted, nor deemed offensive or inappropriate, by Amazon.
- The product must be rated a minimum of 3 stars.
- Brands must have more than 20 available units in the warehouse prior to the sale. Amazon may cancel the deal if you have insufficient inventory to meet demand.
- Items must be sold in new condition only. Amazon does not accept used products for Lightning Deals.
- Price of the item must be reduced by at least 20%.
- The deal must feature the lowest selling price of the year.
How to Set Up Amazon Lightning Deals
Creating a Lightning Deal is easy. Here are the steps:
- Log into Seller Central, go to the “Advertising” tab, and click on the “Create a new deal” button.
- Select the item to promote. You will then be directed to the Lightning Deals dashboard, where you’ll input all relevant information for the deal.
- Choose a timeframe in which the deal will run. While you can propose specific dates, only Amazon can set the exact duration of each Lightning Deal.
- Set the deal. Submit the reduced price, along with item quantities and variations.
What Products Are Best Suited for Lightning Deals?
The best products for Lightning Deals are your bestsellers that have broad appeal. Amazon may penalize you if the deal fails to yield a high enough sales rate, so it’s only wise to choose a product you know will sell well.
You can additionally use Lightning Deals to boost the organic search placement of products already ranking near the top of search results. Successful deals can easily push these products to the number one spot.
Lightning Deals can also be a great opportunity to sell out a product you intend to discontinue – simply set the maximum quantity to match your remaining inventory. There’s less worry here for penalization as well, because even if the deal underperforms, you won’t be running it on that product again.
How Much Does a Lightning Deal Cost?
Throughout most of the year, the fee to run a Lightning Deal is $150. During high-volume events like Prime Day and Cyber Week, these fees increase to $300 or more.
In addition to Amazon’s fee, you’ll also need to consider the cost of the discount. If you run a Lightning Deal for 20% off a product normally costing $100, and you sell 100 units, that’s $2,000 in “lost” revenue – but by no means should this discourage you. With Lightning Deals, a short-term return shouldn’t be your objective; rather, it’s best to focus on long-term profitability that will result from higher organic search rankings as well as the acquisition of new customers.
Running a Sponsored Products ad on the item featured in your deal is a good strategy to increase its success. Bear in mind, however, that the additional cost of this campaign will also contribute to the overall cost of your Lightning Deal.
Lightning Deal Benefits
Amazon Lightning Deals are generally beneficial for customers and online retailers alike. As an Amazon seller, you could reap the following benefits:
- Increased visibility - Lightning Deals are promoted throughout Amazon. This amplified visibility will generate more brand awareness, clicks, and sales.
- New customers - Lightning Deals are displayed to all Amazon visitors, exposing your listings to new customers who may not have found you through organic search results.
- Reduced inventory and fees - A great way to shed excess stock, slow-moving products, and out-of-season items, Lightning Deals have the potential to help reduce your FBA fees.
- Improved organic ranking - These deals can boost your organic search result rankings due to increased sales activity and customer reviews.
When Should You Consider Signing Up for Lightning Deals?
Running a Lightning Deal is a great way to start building long-term success for a particular product, not just for a short-term sales boost. A common misconception about Lightning Deals is that they’re a quick and easy way to churn out profit. While a successful deal will help increase sales, this doesn’t always translate to immediately observable results. Lightning Deals can be expensive, and if short-term profit is your primary concern, they’re not really the best way to go.
Lightning Deals are much more effective as part of a larger marketing strategy. If your goal is to boost discoverability, increase organic search placement, or acquire new customers (all of which can have a significant effect on sales overall), Lightning Deals are a great solution to consider.
Are Lightning Deals Worth It?
Keep in mind that, while Lightning Deals help increase sales, they come at the expense of your profit margins. You need to cleverly pick the products that can be used for this type of promotional campaign for it to be viable.
Before taking the plunge into your first Lightning Deal, you should spend time evaluating your current products and business goals, as it can be a costly mistake. Always tweak and tinker with any existing offerings or discounts beforehand to help find that sweet spot. .
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