Amazon Prime Day 2024 starts in a few days, which means it’s time to get organized. This year’s two-day shopping bonanza is returning to Canada July 16-17As always, customers can expect thousands of scarce offers throughout Amazon top categories including technology, home & lifestyle, fashion, beauty and more.
While Prime Membership is your ticket to access Prime Day deals, but it’s not the only significant thing to have on hand (virtually). To find out how to save time, avoid scams, and score the best deals possible this Prime Day, scroll down.
1. Save time and create a wish list
Unless you are, let’s say, Yahoo Canada Shopping editor, you won’t be spending hours a day hunting for Amazon deals July 16-17. For people with jobs, kids, and other fish to fry, this is where Amazon’s Wishlist comes in handy.
Located in the “Account & Lists” tab, a private shopping list lets you keep all your wish list items in one place and track price changes. If you have a birthday or anniversary coming up on your calendar, you can also see your friends’ wish lists (if they give you access) to easily shop for gifts.
2. How to find the best deals
Amazon’s shopping pages are divided into easy-to-buy sections that give you access to the best daily deals, even outside of Prime Day. Some are only available to Prime members, while others are time-limited. Here are the types of deals Amazon typically offers:
Deals of the day: Products that have been discounted for 24 hours – but when the clock strikes midnight, prices (almost always) go up again.
Flash Deals: These limited-time sales only last a few hours, while supplies last. Keep an eye on the progress bar, because once it reaches 100 percent or the time runs out, the discount ends. Prime members get access to these deals 30 minutes before the public ones.
Coupons: Get the best prices on the products you know and love with an ever-changing selection of coupons.
Prime Early Access Offers: Perfect for those looking to avoid the chaos of Prime Day, Amazon’s early bird deals feature a wide range of products that have already been reduced to Prime Day prices, like these ones.
Prime Exclusive Offers: Even after Prime Day ends, Prime members have access to exclusive deals not available to non-Prime members.
3. Utilize price comparison sites
Even though Amazon Prime Day has the largest marketing budget, it doesn’t mean you’ll find the best deals there.
For example, in Canada, Best Buy Canada, Walmart, Pendulum AND Canadian Tire will likely have their own competing Prime Day sales. And while competing retailers may not offer Amazon’s coveted one- or two-day shipping, their prices may be worth the extra wait.
The price comparison website allows you to compare and filter products based on several criteria, including features, reviews, and, of course, price.
Below are some popular price comparison sites worth checking out before Prime Day.
4. Stock up on basic products
While you may have your eye on a modern 4K Shrewd TV or a couple Apple AirPodsPrime Day is the perfect opportunity to stock up on all those everyday, unattractive essentials: toilet paper, laundry detergent, coffee pods — you get the idea.
To make basic purchases, it is worth keeping an eye on three main departments (they are located on the left, under the “Department” tab):
Home and kitchen
Patio, lawn and garden
Health and personal care
Groceries and delicatessen
Here you’ll find everything from dishwashing liquid and toothpaste to coffee pods to facilitate you get your Prime Day shopping done.
5. Learn how to spot counterfeit reviews and scams
While most sellers and products on Amazon are trusted, well-known brands, that doesn’t mean the retailer doesn’t have problems with counterfeit reviews, shady sellers, and scams.
Amazon Prime deals are like anything else – if they look too good to be true, they probably aren’t.
Let’s go back to our AirPods as an example. Apple will never have a sale that’s, say, 50 percent off. It simply won’t. You can find refurbished or open-sourced products for half the price, but genuine, brand-new Apple products will rarely be more than 10 to 30 percent off. If you see a bigger discount, be cautious, not bullish.
Scam detection sites like Fake spot employ AI technology to detect fraudsters and filter products based on reviewer trustworthiness.
