How should US sellers prepare for Q4 on Amazon in 2025?
Anchor your plan to Prime Big Deal Days (October 7–8, 2025), then Black Friday (Nov 28) and Cyber Monday (Dec 1). Use Lightning Deals for short, high-visibility spikes, Best Deals (7-Day) for multi-day rank building, Coupons for always-on lift, and Prime-Exclusive Price Discounts to capture Prime traffic. Forecast with current US Deals and Coupons fee models so promotions drive profit, not just revenue.
Table of contents
- What’s New for Q4 2025
- Your Q4 Timeline
- Which Promo to Use When
- The Math: Forecast Profit
- Q4 Readiness Checklist
- Why Promos Miss
- US Fees at a Glance
- FAQs
- Sources & Official References
- How We Help
- Call to Action
What’s New for Q4 2025
- Prime Big Deal Days is Oct 7–8, 2025. Treat it as your pre-BFCM rank builder.
- US Deals fees (non-peak): $70/day + 1.0% of deal-attributed sales with the variable portion capped at $2,000 per deal, for Lightning and Best Deals.
- Peak event example (Prime Day 2025): $1,000 Best Deal / $500 Lightning Deal flat fees.
- Coupons fee (from June 2, 2025): $5 upfront per coupon + 2.5% of coupon sales.
- Prime-Exclusive Discounts live in Price Discounts (old PED tool retired Jan 7, 2025). Prime-event merchandising used a $100 per-campaign fee in 2025, billed only if at least one discounted SKU sold.
Your Q4 Timeline (US)
Now → Prime Big Deal Days (Oct 7–8)
Merch and content
- Lock titles, hero images, A+, comparison chart, and a short video.
Pricing and promotions
- Select the right lever per ASIN (matrix below).
- Model contribution margin at promo price and include Deal/Coupon fees.
Inventory
- Confirm inbound is received and positioned; allocate buffer for event velocity.
Ads
- Build event-specific SP/SB campaigns with focused term sets and separate budgets.
Oct 9–Nov 26 (Build to BFCM)
- Rotate Best Deals across variants to grow rank.
- Keep Coupons on top winners for consistent badging in search and PDP.
- Refresh Store modules and run Posts that point into event collections.
Turkey 5: Nov 27–Dec 1 (Thanksgiving → Cyber Monday)
- Use Lightning Deals for top retail-ready SKUs; support the rest with Best Deals and Coupons.
- Bid up proven exact-match terms and high-CVR product targets; prune what’s not converting.
December (Gifting → Last-ship dates)
- Keep Coupons on giftable ASINs; layer Best Deals for steady rank.
- After shipping cutoffs, pivot to gift cards/digital and last-minute messaging.
Which Promo to Use When (US)
Goal
Big, fast spike during PBDD/BFCM
Steady sell-through and rank build
Always-on conversion lift
Prime shopper focus (especially events)
Best tool
Lightning Deal
Best Deal (7-Day)
Coupon
Prime-Exclusive Price Discount
Why
High visibility in a short window; urgency drives velocity. Peak windows use flat fees.
Multi-day badging compounds sessions and CVR. Non-peak fees follow the daily + 1% model.
Green badge in search and PDP; stacks with ads. Budget $5 + 2.5%.
Created in Price Discounts; plan for event merchandising fees when applicable.
Eligibility reminder: To create Deals, you must be a Professional seller with an overall rating ≥ 4.0. Validate each ASIN in the Deals dashboard before scheduling.
The Math: Forecast Profit Before You Submit
- Contribution margin @ promo price = Promo price − Amazon fees − COGS − promo fees (Deals/Coupons).
- Expected units = Baseline units for that window × your historical/event lift.
- Ad support = Incremental SP/SB/SD budget sized for higher CVR.
- Net promo profit = (Contribution margin × expected units) − ad budget − fees.
- Success test = Define the win (e.g., 2-week post-event sessions +25% and rank improvement 10–20% on primary terms).
Q4 Readiness Checklist (14-Day Version)
Day 14–10
- Verify Deal eligibility, Prime promise, and price guardrails.
- Lock promo prices, min/max units; confirm FC coverage.
- Finalize hero images and A+ for priority keywords.
Day 9–7
- Tighten bullets; fix variations/browse nodes that suppress visibility.
- Build event SP/SB campaigns separate from evergreen.
- Stage Store modules, Posts, and email/social assets.
Day 6–4
- Turn on Coupons for cross-sell ASINs you’ll feature on PDPs.
- Check inbound receiving; scrub stranded/suppressed listings.
- QA PDPs on mobile.
Day 3–1
- Raise bids on proven exact terms and your best ASIN-targets.
- Freeze non-critical catalog edits.
- Brief support/VAs on volume and FAQs
Event days (PBDD, BFCM, CM)
- Watch inventory, Buy Box, and price guardrails every few hours.
- Funnel budget to highest-CVR queries; pause weak spend.
- Post socially to capture branded search lift.
Post-event Days 1–7
- Roll back event copy; keep a lighter Coupon 1–2 weeks to reduce rank drop-off.
- Move winning terms into evergreen.
- Check halo: sessions, rank, S&S sign-ups, reviews gained.
Ready to finalize your Q4 promo calendar?
Why Promos Miss (and the Fix)
- Price credibility:Avoid pre-event list hikes; shoppers compare.
- Shallow inventory: Over-allocate for window velocity (especially Lightning).
- Retail readiness gaps: Thin images, no video, unclear bullets—fix before discounting.
- No ads support: Promos without ads leave money on the table.
- Ratings/reviews: If below 4.0, focus on CX and review velocity first.
US Fees at a Glance (Sept 2025)
- Deals (non-peak days): $70/day + 1.0% of deal-attributed sales; variable portion capped at $2,000.
- Deals (peak events like Prime Day): $500 Lightning / $1,000 Best Deal flat fees (2025 example).
- Coupons: $5 upfront per coupon + 2.5% of coupon sales (effective June 2, 2025).
- Price Discounts: No fee on non-event days; event fees apply (e.g., Prime events). Prime Day 2025 PED campaigns: $100 per campaign (up to 500 SKUs), billed only if at least one sale occurs.
- Ratings/reviews: If below 4.0, focus on CX and review velocity first.
Caption: US fees current as of September 2025. Check your Seller Central store for the latest rates before scheduling.
FAQs
Use Lightning for short, high-visibility spikes (PBDD/BFCM). Use Best Deals when you want multi-day sell-through and rank compounding.
Often yes. The badge lifts CTR and CVR in search and PDP; forecast with $5 + 2.5% and set a profit floor.
In Advertising → Price Discounts. The standalone PED tool was removed on Jan 7, 2025. For Prime events, plan for the per-campaign merchandising fee when applicable.
Prime Big Deal Days: October 7–8, 2025. Black Friday: Nov 28. Cyber Monday: Dec 1.
Should I run Lightning Deals or Best Deals for Q4?
Use Lightning for short, high-visibility spikes (PBDD/BFCM). Use Best Deals when you want multi-day sell-through and rank compounding.
Are Coupons still worth it with the 2025 fee change?
Often yes. The badge lifts CTR and CVR in search and PDP; forecast with $5 + 2.5% and set a profit floor.
Where do I set up Prime-exclusive discounts now?
In Advertising → Price Discounts. The standalone PED tool was removed on Jan 7, 2025. For Prime events, plan for the per-campaign merchandising fee when applicable.
When exactly are the 2025 peak dates?
Prime Big Deal Days: October 7–8, 2025. Black Friday: Nov 28. Cyber Monday: Dec 1.
Sources & Official References (US)
The links below point to Amazon’s official US documentation and announcements.
- About Amazon — Prime Big Deal Days 2025 dates (Oct 7–8)
- Seller Central Help — Deals overview & eligibility (US) (login required)
- Seller Central Help — Understand Deal fees (US) (login required)
- Seller Central Help / Event Playbooks — Prime-level flat fee examples (Best Deal, Lightning Deal) (login required)
- Seller Central Help — Coupons fee update (effective June 2, 2025) (login required)
- Seller Central Help — Price Discounts (includes Prime-exclusive; non-event vs event fees) (login required)
- Seller Forums (News) — PED tool retired; moved to Price Discounts (Jan 7, 2025) (login required)
- Seller Forums (News) — Prime-exclusive discount event fee (per-campaign) (login required)
- Seller Forums (News) — Promotions update: %-off without claim code requires minimum quantity (login required)
How We Help Amazon Sellers (US)
We’re known for helping suspended sellers get reinstated—and for keeping sellers from getting suspended in the first place. Our team works 7 days a week on strategy, compliance, and profitable growth.
- Deal strategy and execution (Lightning, Best Deal, Coupons, Prime-Exclusive)
- Listing optimization and retail readiness
- PPC + Promotions orchestration
- Account management and compliance
- VA services for weekly promotions and catalog ops
- Appeals and reinstatement when things go sideways
Ready to map your Q4 promo calendar—with the right mix of Deals, Coupons, and Price Discounts plus ads and inventory targets? Book a free discovery call and we’ll tailor the plan to your catalog.
