What Sellers Need to Know About Amazon Prime Members

If you sell Amazon Prime then you know how important Amazon’s Prime membership is to the success of your business. 

With 58% of all U.S. consumers subscribing to Prime*, selling Prime means you have a massive ready-to-buy audience at your disposal.

So, to help you better understand Amazon consumers, we’re looking at the collective mindset of Amazon Prime’s uniquely loyal buyers and comparing it to that of Amazon’s non-Prime customers. 

 

Prime members have a close affinity with Amazon

Prime members are Amazon loyalists. 

• 84% of Amazon Prime members said they value being able to shop on Amazon (compared to 52% of non-Prime members).
• If they could only ever shop from a single store, 67% of Prime members said they would choose Amazon (compared to 32% of non-Prime members who said the same).
• And 85% of Amazon Prime members plan to keep their Amazon Prime subscriptions for at least another three months.

And Prime members are becoming increasingly loyal

Since the start of COVID-19, many shoppers (66% of Prime members and 33% of non-Prime members) have developed a greater appreciation for Amazon. 

In fact, 8% of all U.S. consumers subscribed to Amazon Prime since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

And more than twice the number of Prime members (68%) said that Amazon gave them access to products they couldn’t get elsewhere during this time. But non-Prime members are less reliant on the platform, with just 32% saying Amazon offered them what others stores couldn’t.

Plus, Prime members like Amazon so much that, with respect to Amazon Prime Day 2020, 60% of them say they’re already planning to shop on that day.

The positive feelings Prime members have for Amazon don’t just end there though.  More Prime members (82%) think Amazon is a good company for consumers, too.

Non-Prime members aren’t quite as sold on the company, though, with 60% saying Amazon is good for shoppers 

 

So, who are these Amazon Prime shoppers?

Amazon Prime caters to a younger consumer

Amazon Prime memberships are more common among younger people, with two in every three American consumers between ages 18 and 35 having an Amazon Prime membership. 

Amazon Prime memberships by age:

•  18-24: 64% of consumers currently have an Amazon Prime membership
• 25-34: 68%
• 35-44: 63%
• 45-54: 59%
• 55-64: 47%
• 65-74: 44%
• 75+: 28%

Amazon Prime: a luxury item?

At a cost of $119 per year, an Amazon Prime membership may be a bigger cost for some consumers than others. And prime members do appear to have greater financial means than non-Prime members.

For example, while 24% of Prime members reported a household income of $100,000 or more per year, only 9% of non-Prime members said they brought in that amount annually.

In addition, Prime members shop on Amazon more often than non-Prime members: 49% of members shop at least once a week compared to 13% of non-members.

They’re also willing to spend more. In fact, 67% of Amazon Prime members said they would spend more than $100 on a product listed on the site. 

On the flip side, only 41% of non-Prime members said they would be willing to spend that much on a single item.

 

Amazon Prime Member Spending Patterns

Prime members look for good reviews and expedited shipping

For Prime members, the number one consideration when looking for a product is reviews (83%). Finding the lowest price is a close second, at 80%.

Prime members want to find the best product with the best reviews for the lowest price. 

For non-Prime members, it’s the reverse. Their number one consideration when looking for a product is price (70%), while products with the best reviews aren’t far behind (at 67%).

Non-Prime members are willing to sacrifice a bit of social proof for the sake of a lower price.

As for why they use e-commerce, Prime members say they shop online because they:

• Want fast shipping (say 49% of Prime member consumers)
• Don’t have to leave the house (49%)
• Have more product options (45%)

Whereas non-Prime members said they shop online because they:

• Can avoid public spaces (43%)
• Don’t have to leave the house (43%)
• Can see reviews from other customers (39%)

Online spending levels will likely remain the same after COVID-19

Prime members reported shopping on Amazon more often than non-Prime members, both before the pandemic and during:

• Prior to COVID-19, 92% of Prime members said they shopped on Amazon unlike 70% of non_prime members. 
• And Prime members’ shopping on Amazon during COVID-19 outpaced that of non-Prime members as well; 86% vs 50%.

As for what shopping will look like post-pandemic, 78% Prime believe most shopping will take place online. 58% of non-Prime members agreed. But both are looking forward to getting back into physical store:

• 62% of Prime members and 55% of non-Prime members

But many more Prime members said they’d be fine if they couldn’t shop in a brick-and-mortar store again compared to non-Prime shoppers:

• 51% of Prime members vs 24% of non-Prime members

And after physical stores reopen, both Prime and non-Prime members say their online spending and their spending on Amazon will stay about the same:

• Prime members: 44% for online spending and 48% for spending on Amazon
• Non-Prime members: 51% for online spending and 54% for spending on Amazon

Prime member or not, Amazon is the most popular online store

Amazon Prime members shopped at these three stores most frequently before and during COVID-19:

1. Amazon: 89% (92% before and 86% during)
2. Walmart: 52% (58% before and 46% during)
3. Target: 39% (46% before and 31% during)

Only the  third most-frequented online store before COVID-19 changed for non-Prime members. Amazon still came in first, at 70%; Walmart was the second most popular at 48%; and eBay rounded out the favorites at 31%.

However, during COVID-19, 19% of non-Prime members said they’ve shopped at Target, edging out eBay for third place. Amazon and Walmart remained the number one and two choices when non-Prime customers shop online.

Of the top 10 retail stores listed as possibilities, Prime members shopped at these three stores less frequently before and during COVID-19:

• Etsy: 14% average (17% before and 10% during)
• Wayfair: 14% average(18% before and 10% during)
• Macy’s: 16% average (21% before and 10% during)

And like Prime members’ less-frequented stores, non-Prime members shopped at Wayfair and Etsy less frequently than the other eight platforms both before and during the pandemic. Lowe’s came in third:

• Wayfair: 6% average (9% before and 3% during)
• Etsy: 8% average(11% before and 5% during)
• Lowes: 9% average (13% before and 5% during)

 

*Methodology

In May, 2020, Jungle Scout conducted an anonymous survey of 1,006 U.S. consumers. We asked them about their buying preferences and behaviors. 

Respondents ranged in age from 18 to 75+, and represent every U.S. state, all genders and employment types, and various levels of income.

 

For more information about this article and Jungle Scout’s data, please contact [email protected].