Amazon Prime Day Always Wacky But Strong on Staples

I always appreciate the merchandising madness that shows up on Prime Day. It's the one day when all the crazy products and deals come up and are all merchandised on the same page. Here are a few points I noticed throughout:

* CPG in general seemed like it had a strong performance as people are looking for discounts on household staples.

Data sources I'm close to seem to indicate a slight pullback in non-essential consumer goods which would be consistent with the focus on "needs" rather than "wants" this Prime Day.

* On home items that I personally was stocking up on, discounts seemed solid - at least 35% seemed to be pretty common. Some were in Lightning Deals which indicates to me that these promotional vehicles are getting broad usage, especially by the major players looking to drive volume.

* Huge plus and use of Amazon advertising across the board which continues the growth of that channel.

Most common report I have seen states that Amazon Prime Day is about 5x the typical day. Which, hey I will take that.

Some of Kiri Masters sources reporting that this is the top eCommerce sales day so far this year, which would make obvious sense.

* I checked in on a few of the Live Video streams and came away with two thoughts. If live streaming is going to work, I still believe that Amazon is more likely to make it work than anyone. I also feel Amazon still hasn't nailed the format. On mobile I couldn't buy on the livestream, I had to go to a product page, which takes me off the video.

* MarketplacePulse reported that beta Buy With Prime merchants also participated in Prime Day promotions on their websites, making it clear that Amazon is not just about fulfillment and a buy button. It's also about pushing promotions directly to the storefront. That is an angle I didn't quite anticipate but makes a lot of sense.

While the format did allow me to flip through many live streams if I got captivated by one, wouldn't you want to keep me on this page and give me a 1-click buying experience? That wasn't easy.

Looking forward to see if there is another Prime Day later this year in October, as has been rumored. October is not too far off, and I imagine the idea is to give a strong kick-start to the holiday season, especially in a time where inventory levels are still high.

What else did you notice this Amazon Prime Day out there?