If you think it is too early to start planning for your Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2018 campaigns, you are mistaken! In less than 4 months it is that crazy shopping time of the year and the question is: Are you Black Friday ready?


Budgets will depend from brand to brand and company to company, but even though you might not have the budgets the major ecommerce brands have, it is still worth looking at their strategies, what they did, how they did it etc. Use their strategies and success as inspiration for your Black Friday campaigns!

Regardless of your size and budgets, you can use these strategies to come out on top and increase your sales and profits.

Companies that understand Black Friday and how to drive value from it will keep the following in mind when they plan their strategies:

 

  1. Take advantage of the Black Friday ‘early shopping’ trend:

As the saying goes… the early bird catches the worm. Amazon is generally great at this! They focus on taking advantage of the expected early-shopping trend predicting that the majority of consumers would complete their holiday shopping prior to Black Friday. To ensure they are on the ‘shopping lists,’ they generally roll out Black Friday deals a month early.

 

No matter if you are a big corporate or a small niche boutique shop, you can do the same, either start with sales earlier and build up to Black Friday or send them emails telling them what is coming.  E.g. don’t wait until Black Friday / Cyber Monday, start sending early-bird deal emails! Inform them of what is coming, what they can expect, even incorporate a Black Friday count down timer.

 

  1. Stay true to your brand:

Yes, you want to rev up your marketing and drive sales, but do it in the voice of your brand, this can be done in the way you present your promotions, copy you use and how you choose to promote it. Email copy is crucial to get their attention along with great subject lines, J. Crew used a great subject line previously: The biggest, best, most amazing, OMG, beyond anything, ever, sale event. Starts now.

 

  1. Speak the ‘language of your target audience:

Show your shoppers that you understand their needs and interests and create campaigns with them in mind. During the build up to Black Friday, consumers will be bombarded with advertising messages; you need to stand out from the rest!

 

 

  1. Be the expert:

Although Black Friday is about driving sales, it is also about driving long term growth. Being an expert in your industry will contribute to building trust, which will lead to a long term relationship and repeat business. Know what and why you do it and make sure you do it best!

 

  1. Create a dedicated page on your website:

Creating a dedicated page on your website / online shop with all the promotional products will help you organise the structure of the site and will help visitors to find the products easier, which will create a positive user experience.

Black Friday is a great way to increase sales and profits, but also a great way to expand your audience and build lasting relationships with customers. Besides this, it is a way of telling your story and strengthening your brand in the market place.

A good way to get ahead and stand out from the competition is via email marketing campaigns.  Create clever email campaigns to promote to your existing database and to a 3rd party database, by starting early and keeping front of mind, consumers are likely to remember you and spend their money with your company.

Start early and take advantage of Black Friday 2018!

 

 

References: