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You may have noticed that retailers are starting to build hype over different holidays earlier and earlier these days. If you saw Halloween costumes and candy hitting the shelves before Labor Day, for example, you weren’t alone.
Similarly, retailers used to begin pushing holiday sales and events at some point in November. Nowadays, it’s not unusual for those promotions to start in October, which is why it pays to save money for them ahead of time.
Amazon is embracing this trend once again with its upcoming October Prime Day event. Dubbed Prime Big Deal Days, it’s an opportunity to load up on holiday and general purchases at a lower cost than Amazon’s already low prices.
As of this writing, Amazon has not announced a date for its October Prime Day event. Last year, though, the event took place on Oct. 10–11. But no matter when the big day happens, if you’re a Prime member, you no doubt want to make the most of it. Here are some things you can do before Prime Day.
Shopping events like Prime Day can be as stressful as they are exciting. You want to snag the best deals on the site, but you also can’t necessarily drop your responsibilities for the day (like the job that’s helping you pay for your new stuff) to spend 10 hours scrolling through product listings and offers.
A good way to get organized and maximize your time on Prime Day is to make a list of the items you want ahead of time. And for purchases that require product comparisons, like a new laptop, do that research in advance.
Then, once your wish list is complete, add those items to an actual Amazon wish list associated with your account. Or put them into an Amazon shopping cart a few days ahead of the big event. That way, you can see price changes in real time and know whether you’re getting a much better deal on Prime Day.
Amazon is all about efficiency and automation — it’s how the online retail giant manages to ship its packages so quickly. Similarly, Amazon makes it easy for you to shop efficiently and keep tabs on deals.
As a Prime member, you can download the Amazon Prime app and sign up for alerts for specific items. If those go on sale during Prime Day, you’ll get a notification so you can pounce. You can also ask your Alexa device to notify you of deals on any items in your shopping cart or on your wish list.
You might snag some great deals during Prime Day this October. But if you put those purchases on a credit card and carry a balance for months, what you save on your purchases, you might spend on interest.
A smarter move? Set a spending budget ahead of time. If you can only afford to pay for $300 worth of Amazon products next month, that’s your spending max. From there, you can prioritize your purchases to make sure you buy the items you want or need the most.
Remember, too, that the holiday season tends to be an expensive time of the year. You don’t want to kick off that season already in debt from Prime Day.
It’s natural to get excited about a big event like Amazon’s upcoming Prime Day. But remember, that two-day event isn’t going to be your only opportunity to save money on the site between now and the end of the year. While it pays to take the steps above to prepare, it also pays to browse the site regularly. And if you need more time to save up for your holiday purchases, rest assured that there will probably be plenty of good deals beyond October as well.
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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Maurie Backman has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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