Insider Tips for Baby Gear Deals: Amazon Prime Day 2018

Insider Tips for Baby Gear Deals: Amazon Prime Day 2018. It’s that time again! Amazon’s Prime Day starts at 3pm Eastern on Monday July 16 and continues Tuesday July 17.

After following this sale for several years, we’ve got some tips on how to get the best deals on baby gear during Prime Day:

  1. Follow us to see curated deals. Last year, we scanned 3420 deals in the baby category during prime day and selected 22 to be Baby Bargains Top Prime Day picks. We will put these on our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts. And don’t forget our Almost Famous Amazon Prime Day deals as found by our readers on our message boards. (Hint: sign up for a free user account and subscribe to that thread–under Thread Tools. You’ll be notified by email when there is a new post!).How do we decide which deals are the best? First, we take large bribes from the baby gear brands. Oh, wait. That’s the other guys. Actually, we first make sure the item is shipped and sold by Amazon or another reputable retailer. No sketchy third parties.Also: the item has to be from a trusted brand we recommend. Then we look at the price history for the item—if we find this is the lowest price in the last six months (or, even better, ever!), then it is a Baby Bargains Top Prime Day pick.
  2. Prime Day is now really Prime Day and a Half. Yes, deals begin at 3pm Eastern on Monday July 16 . . . expect some deals on Amazon devices and a baby gear deal or two that afternoon and evening. But the real bonanza actually gets cranking on Tuesday July 17.
  3. Prime Day deals on some Amazon products and services are live NOW! Example: join Amazon Music for unlimited streaming for just 99 cents for the first four months. See all the current deals here.
  4. What if you aren’t a Prime member? As the name implies, Prime Day is just for Prime members. So are you out of luck if you aren’t a Prime member? No—you can get a 30 day free trial to Amazon Prime so you can get in on the deals. Set a calendar alarm to cancel before the end of 30 days if you don’t wish to continue.
  5. Some deals on Prime Day go FAST! To take advantage, make sure you’ve enabled 1-click ordering AND make sure your credit card number and expiration is up to date.
  6. Expect the best deals on Amazon’s own products.So if you’ve been eying an Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Show or Kindle Fire Tablet, here’s your chance to snag what will probably be the best prices of the year (based on what happened last year).
  7. Understand the different types of deals. Amazon’s dizzying array of deals can get confusing, we know. Here’s some basics:
    Lightning deals are very limited deals that are limited to a certain amount of inventory. Hence, they can sell out in minutes. Jump on one quickly if you want it. You can also join the waitlist if the product sells out before you hit the buy button—some folks don’t complete the sale and you might still get it.  Yes, you can track lightning deals in advance: click on the Watch This Deal button under today’s deals Upcoming. Then Amazon’s app notifies you when the lightning deal goes live.
    Gold Box Deals. These deals last a bit longer—as long as 24 hours—so they are easier to snag. But they can sell out too!
    Amazon Prime Spotlight Deals. Amazon has more inventory of these items and most stay in stock for all of Prime Day.
  8. Set your expectations. So what can you expect for baby gear deals? Will everything be super-cheap? Answer: no. Yes, there will be sales, but expect 20% to 30% off (based on our analysis of last year’s deals). Not 50%. Of course, even 30% off Amazon’s normal pricing is a good deal. So if you plan to buy a car seat, crib or high chair in the coming days, it might make sense to see what pops up on Prime Day.
  9. Expect some funky fashions. Fashions for baby gear that is—last year we saw great deals on car seats, for example, but one deal was only on a seat in a green and pink fashion. I wonder why that model didn’t sell? Baby gear makers use Amazon Prime Day to clear out the garage. So if you aren’t too picky, it can be great for deals!
  10. If you’ve got an Amazon smart speaker, expect Alexa only deals. If you don’t know who Alexa is, skip this tip. For the rest of you, you know what to do.

    Follow us on our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts for the best baby gear Prime Day 2018 deals!

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