Amazon Rolls Out Red Carpet for Sellers With Buy With Prime, Alexa Upgrades

Targeted marketing emails, pages that direct shoppers to off-site sellers and Alexa artificial intelligence tools are three new marketing solutions Amazon is piloting to help direct-to-consumer (DTC) eCommerce merchants reach Amazon shoppers and direct them to their own site. 

The marketing solutions, which are part of the new Buy with Prime program that gives online merchants the ability to offer Prime Shopping benefits to shoppers off Amazon, were announced Wednesday (Sept. 14) at Amazon’s annual seller conference, Accelerate, according to information emailed to PYMNTS. 

With the new targeted marketing emails, sellers will be able to send free emails to people who have already purchased products from their Amazon stores. This Tailored Audiences tool will also provide performance and reporting metrics, and while it is in beta testing now, there are plans to roll it out to all U.S. sellers in early 2023.

To help sellers direct Amazon shoppers to sellers’ own DTC sites, Amazon is also beta testing new Buy with Prime pages within brands’ stores, as well as Sponsored Brand ads that appear within shopping results on Amazon and let shoppers choose to buy directly from the seller.

Meanwhile, new Alexa artificial intelligence tools will enable brands to provide suggested responses that Amazon’s voice assistant can use when customers ask common questions about the branded products. 

As PYMNTS reported in April, Buy with Prime is meant to boost Amazon’s relationship with sellers as rival Shopify continues to expand its presence and swoop in on the eCommerce giant’s turf. 

Read more: Amazon Takes On Shopify With ‘Buy With Prime’ 

An Amazon executive quoted in the materials supplied to PYMNTS said that the new projects announced at Accelerate will help DTC online sellers drive traffic and convert shoppers. 

“With the launch of Buy with Prime, sellers have begun to increase conversion by offering shopping benefits that millions of Prime members love and trust — including fast, free delivery and a seamless checkout experience,” said Peter Larsen, Amazon’s vice president of Buy with Prime. “Now, we’re taking the next step by piloting marketing solutions to help Buy with Prime sellers attract more engaged shoppers to their sites.”