You know Amazon. We’re customer obsessed and are known for delivering shoppers with the products they are looking for, as quickly as possible.
Our audiences are also binge-watching film and TV on Prime Video, chatting away to Alexa on their devices and streaming trillions of minutes of content on Twitch. Yes, trillions. In 2021, audiences globally spent a whopping 1.3 trillion minutes streaming content on the service. Twitch is big with gamers – and, with Saudi Arabia’s $37.8bn investment into the sector, a gaming revolution is in the making across the region. Marketers – it goes without saying, you’ll want to get involved.
Whether you’re looking to build brand awareness or drive business growth, Amazon Ads’ full-funnel solutions and first-party insights can help you tell your brand story and reach audiences in the moments that matter to them, both on and off Amazon. Your brand, our audiences.
11:11 and White Friday Are Just Around the Corner
As we head into the biggest and busiest shopping period of the year, it’s important that marketers are able to make smart and informed decisions. Campaigns are seven times more impactful among a receptive audience, according to Kantar research, so cut through the clutter and don’t waste any more time.
Mohamad Itani, head of agency development, MENAT, advertising international expansion, Amazon Ads, says: “At Amazon Ads, we lead with designing ad experiences that delight customers. By shifting your brand’s focus to remaining top-of-mind during the lead-up phase to shopping events – as well as during the events too – you can reach customers in new ways, and our suite of Amazon Ads products are here to help. Find ways to articulate your brand story in a cohesive and compelling way throughout the customer journey – that’s where the real wins are.”
So how can you reach your business goals this peak season? Here’s what marketers need to know.
Start Early
According to a new survey conducted by Amazon Ads and Kantar, shoppers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia are getting savvier with each sales season. Last year, in the month leading up to 11:11 and White Friday 2021, 85 per cent of shoppers from that survey in the UAE and 80 per cent of shoppers surveyed in Saudi Arabia said that they were more likely to purchase a product during the events that they discovered in the four run-up weeks to them. Start communicating to these shoppers early – and think about including channels such as Twitch in your marketing mix – to get your brand front of mind.
“My advice to advertisers in the region as we head towards 11:11 and White Friday would be to start early. Building awareness for your brand early on will give you a better chance for consumers to resonate with your messages during the peak shopping season,” continues Mohamad Itani.
Inspire Your Customers
Whether customers know what they want or not, brands can help customers discover what they need. Our research shows that in 2021, 93 per cent of shoppers surveyed in the UAE visited Amazon for inspiration on what products to buy during 11:11 and White Friday before making purchases. A further 89 per cent of shoppers surveyed in Saudi Arabia also explored products on Amazon during 11:11 and White Friday before making purchases. Promoting your brand with ads can help boost its visibility to both new and existing customers. If you really want to deliver real impact, then inspire your customers on why your products are the best choice for them with compelling messaging and engaging creative.
Boost Your Brand
Advertising during the peak season can help customers discover new brands and products, that they often decide to purchase. In 2021, 93 per cent of shoppers surveyed in the UAE and 92 per cent of shoppers surveyed in Saudi Arabia said ads they saw on Amazon properties during the run up to 11:11 and White Friday helped them discover new products and brands that they then purchased elsewhere. A further 87 per cent of shoppers surveyed in the UAE and 88 per cent of shoppers surveyed in Saudi Arabia said that ads they saw on Amazon properties during 11:11 and White Friday helped them discover new products and brands that they then purchased elsewhere.
Kantar’s Media Reactions study found that customers are more receptive to advertising in 2022 compared to last year, and have more favourable and positive attitudes towards advertising on media channels. With Amazon’s millions of worldwide active customer accounts, as well as first-party insights based on aggregated and anonymous shopping, streaming and browsing signals, marketers can confidently craft relevant campaigns that enhance, rather than disrupt, the customer experience.
Filip Jabbour, the regional GM of MENA Advertising at Amazon Ads, says that the best piece of advice he can share with advertisers right now is to: “Continue to have an always-on campaign approach [with ads] to remain top of mind with audiences through our Amazon Ads solutions. The impact of your investment doesn’t end with the day; we’ve seen how much engagement continues after the event is over.”
Measure Success
We know how important it is for brands to create authentic connections with their audiences during 11:11 and White Friday, but you also want to be able to measure the effectiveness of your advertising during this period.
By leveraging Amazon Ads’ measurement solutions, you can gain insights from your campaigns on what worked, and what you can learn from for future campaigns. With Ramadan just around the corner, this can help you stay one step ahead.
“Amazon Ads is the right collaborator to reach consumers within the full funnel, creating opportunities for brands to reach and engage customers throughout their journey across a diverse range of devices, retail, and media channels. Reaching customers is just one part of the puzzle though; to truly make an impact this needs to be paired with measurement,” says Mohamad Itani.
