In 2023, Black Friday drove 9.8 billion dollars in online sales. It’s clear that Black Friday is one of the most important days of the year for business owners. Are you ready for it?
You need to take advantage of the biggest shopping day of the year, and if you’re reading this, you may already be behind. Don’t worry, we’re here to guide you. Read on for 10 top marketing tips to make the most of Black Friday and the surrounding shopping days.
1. Start Your Campaign Early
In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, building anticipation and excitement is crucial. Many people start making their Black Friday shopping plans well ahead of time, especially for brick-and-mortar businesses. You need to make your way onto their shopping lists.
Launch targeted ads highlighting holiday deals, promotions and exclusive offers to grab the attention of your customers. You should be hinting at Black Friday promotions from the time Halloween is over. Your window for this is quite small, so take advantage of it.
2. Amp Up Your Email Marketing
Many people falsely believe that email marketing is outdated, but that simply isn’t the case. Email marketing offers one of the best ROIs of any marketing strategy or method. Often, if people aren’t successful with their email marketing, it’s because of low-quality emails.
Craft compelling email campaigns to build and nurture customer relationships. Send exclusive promotions and early access to sales, personalized product recommendations, and behind-the-scenes information to keep customers engaged. Share limited-time email-only offers to create urgency and encourage sales.
3. Focus on Your Social Media Strategy
Leverage your social media platforms to drive engagement and boost sales during this important shopping season. Find out where your customers are and start posting there. All businesses should be posting on the current biggest social media sites, namely Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X (though the sites you focus most on will vary depending on your target audience).
Consider hosting giveaways and contests that encourage customer participation and new followers. This will increase traffic to your social media pages and your website. Take advantage of user-generated content and utilize relevant hashtags like #BlackFriday and #CyberMonday to further increase visibility. Collaborate with influencers that suit your brand to expand your reach.
Aim to post engaging content at least once per day during the leadup to Black Friday.
4. Offer Thanksgiving Week Promotions
During Thanksgiving week, launch doorbuster deals and limited-time offers to kickstart sales. Provide free shipping and in-store pickup options (if available) for added convenience, as many people are quite busy during this time.
It can be fun to offer different deals every day of the week to keep customers engaged. This will also help differentiate Thanksgiving week from Black Friday so customers won’t feel let down when the big day arrives. It gives customers who may not be available to shop on Black Friday due to their own jobs and responsibilities a chance to get a great deal.
5. Consider Special Deals for Loyal Customers
Customer loyalty is a big deal, and too many businesses forget the customers that made them so successful in the first place. As the holiday season approaches, give your current customers a special gift.
Send customers who have already bought from you extra coupon codes or early access to Black Friday deals. Not only will that give you a boost in sales, but it will also encourage future loyalty.
6. Take Advantage of the Whole Weekend
Black Friday kicks off the holiday season, but many business owners choose to extend the sales through Monday. Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, offer site-wide discounts and category-specific deals to attract customers. You can keep the sale consistent to appeal to those who can’t shop on Friday or offer different discounts on different days.
Create bundle deals and value sets to increase average order value. Utilize retargeting ads to reach abandoned cart customers and encourage completion of purchases.
7. Refine Your Content Marketing
Don’t neglect your content while you’re focusing on making sales. You want to attract and engage customers, but you don’t want to drive anyone away by being too “salesy.” You need to find a balance that both provides value to viewers and increases sales.
Create engaging content like holiday gift guides, decorating and entertaining tips, and recipes to attract customers who may not directly be looking to buy products (yet). Share charity partnerships and fundraising initiatives to highlight brand values. Use behind-the-scenes stories and brand histories to create emotional connections.
8. Optimize Your Website
If you run an online shop, is it ready for the biggest shopping day of the year? The last thing you want is for long load times or glitchy shop pages to ruin your Black Friday sales. Get ahead of it and do some testing ahead of time. Remember, you have about four seconds to grab and hold a customer’s attention. If your website is slow or glitchy, you’ve lost them.
Don’t forget mobile users. 76% of American adults use their phones to make online purchases. Anyone traveling for Thanksgiving is more likely to be doing this on Black Friday. Ensure seamless mobile experiences by optimizing email campaigns and landing pages for mobile devices.
9. Make the Deals Count
Consumers often feel disappointed with modern Black Friday sales. Sales may only cut a small amount off of the original price, or even exclude the most popular items. While this may seem smart from a finance perspective, it’s a poor tactic for marketing and customer loyalty.
Customers expect legitimate sales, and they want the dopamine rush from getting a good deal. The increase in sales will make up for any decrease in profit from individual items, and you’ll build a reputation for having fantastic Black Friday deals. This reputation will improve your sales in the long run.
10. Post-Sale Follow-up
After the holiday weekend, send thank-you emails and surveys to customers to show appreciation and get feedback. Analyze those surveys, as well as your sales data, to inform future marketing strategies.
Offer extended sales and clearance events to continue driving sales and to get rid of excess products. Encourage customers to share purchase experiences on social media to create social proof. This user-generated content will act as free marketing materials.
Are You Ready for Black Friday?
As Black Friday approaches, are you ready for the big sale? These tips will help you make the most of the biggest shopping weekend of the year. Kick off the holiday season right!
If you’re in need of a marketing revamp, Payani Media has the experts you need for the job. From video marketing to email lists (and so much more), the Payani Media team can help you boost your business and increase your profits. Reach out so we can start working together today.