Black Friday and Cyber Monday are not just any old sales events — they’re the most noteworthy sales events of the year. Whether you’re a seasoned retailer or a budding eCommerce brand, capitalising on these key dates is crucial for attracting new audiences, staying competitive in your space, and boosting your revenue.
Of course, hitting your Black Friday and Cyber Monday goals probably won’t happen by running another stock-standard site-wide sale. If you want to capture attention and convert it into impressive sales this year, you need both enticing deals and a strategic marketing approach that resonates with your target audience.
In this blog post, we unpack our top 10 Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) marketing tips that will help you revolutionise your holiday strategy. Get ready to make this year’s sale season your best yet.
Let’s get started.
What is Black Friday?
Black Friday is a sales event that marks the start of the holiday shopping season. Originally an American post-Thanksgiving sales event, Black Friday sales have become a significant retail event globally and in Australia, with both online and brick-and-mortar businesses offering significant discounts and deals to boost sales. It begins on the first Friday after the Thanksgiving holiday and lasts for the ensuing weekend, ushering in the Christmas shopping and holiday season sales.
Black Friday is generally considered the biggest sales opportunity of the year. It is a pivotal moment for businesses to increase brand awareness, attract new audiences, increase their online traffic, manage inventory, and boost Revenue. Planning ahead and optimising your digital marketing to include a solid Black Friday marketing strategy is crucial for gaining a competitive edge during this period.
What is Cyber Monday?
Cyber Monday is a 24-hour online shopping event that occurs on the first Monday after the Black Friday weekend. Part of the wider Black Friday period, it offers businesses a chance to extend and reinforce their Black Friday deals, as well as introduce new or enhanced discounts that tempt customers to reconsider missed opportunities.
Retailers often position Cyber Monday as the final opportunity within the holiday season to grab deals before the Christmas shopping season truly kicks in. This instills a sense of urgency and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) that can help drive website traffic to eCommerce stores and boost revenue. Embracing Cyber Monday in your Black Friday marketing campaign is a great idea if you’re already offering Black Friday deals.
10 Black Friday & Cyber Monday Marketing Tips
1 – Create Dedicated, Keyword-Rich Landing Pages
Dedicated landing pages optimised with relevant keywords are paramount to effective BFCM campaigns. Why? BFCM focused landing pages will rank higher than your regular eCommerce site web pages when consumers search for upcoming Black Friday sales, Cyber Monday offers, and holiday deals, therefore improving your visibility on search engines to your target audience. The power of SEO!
Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to identify high-traffic keywords relevant to your offers. Integrate these keywords into your landing page’s content, meta title, and description for best results.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with engaging, eye-catching landing page design. Try including a live countdown to create a sense of urgency or spotlight sale items in limited edition bundles.
You can also try cross-selling by highlighting exclusive discounts or limited-time discounts in pop-up notifications for related product pages to entice new customers and ensure customers spend their maximum budget for your store in one transaction.
Always include a Call-To-Action button such as ‘Shop Black Friday Now’ above the webpage ‘fold’ (the part of the screen users can see without having to scroll) to drive traffic to your landing page.
Remember, make sure your landing page is live well ahead of time to be indexed by search engines.
2 – Start Your Ads Early
Timing plays a large role in gaining a competitive edge during Black Friday and Cyber Monday for many reasons. Firstly, launching your paid ads on social media platforms and Google Ads campaigns ahead of the curve capitalises on cheaper Cost-Per-Click rates. Ad costs naturally reduce with fewer competitors bidding, helping to ensure a better Return On Investment (ROI).
Secondly, an early start means increased brand recall. When consumers are exposed to your brand repeatedly leading up to BFCM and holiday sales, you will remain top-of-mind when purchase decisions are made. This provides ample time to A/B test your ads, refine your targeting, and adjust your campaigns based on initial results, avoiding a situation where you lose sales.
Finally, starting your social media and Google Ads earlier gives you more time to build an engaged audience that you can retarget with tailored campaigns closer to BFCM. Naturally, those who are already aware of your brand are easily motivated to make a purchase when tempted with a discount.
So, how early is ‘early?’ We recommend beginning your social media and Google Ads campaigns four to six weeks before BFCM. In an increasingly saturated market, being the early bird can make a huge difference in visibility and conversions for online retailers and online stores.
3 – Optimise For Mobile
During Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2022, a staggering 78% of web traffic and 48% of online sales occurred via mobile devices. This trend proves how imperative it is to optimise for mobile this sales season.
Essentially, ‘optimising for mobile’ means ensuring your website and ads are designed for an impeccable experience on smartphones and tablets. This means having swift page loading times, easy-to-click buttons, clear visuals, and a streamlined checkout process with features such as multiple payment options to enhance the user experience.
To achieve mobile optimisation, employ a responsive webpage design (where your webpage design adapts to the user’s screen size), compress images, and use large text, distinct buttons, and mobile-friendly plugins. Regularly test your site on various devices to ensure a smooth user experience. Optimising your website for mobile is important all year round, but particularly so during the holiday shopping season.
4 – Retarget Highly-Engaged Customers
‘Highly engaged customers’ are those who’ve shown significant interest in your products or services, whether through frequent website or social media visits, extended browsing sessions, or abandoned cart instances. They represent low-hanging fruit in the digital marketing realm.
Engaged customers already have an inherent interest in your offerings, so tailoring your approach to them increases the likelihood of conversions. The best way to tap into this audience segment is with retargeting campaigns. For example, a personalised email marketing campaign that highlights products they’ve viewed or that offers special deals may motivate them to finally convert. Similarly, social media ads that spotlight your BFCM offers may help bring highly engaged customers back into your sales funnel.
By retargeting highly engaged customers, you’re making the most of established interest, therefore enhancing your ROI and fostering brand loyalty.
5 – Ensure Your Facebook & Instagram Shops Are Set Up
Simplifying the shopping process can be the difference between a casual view and a confirmed Black Friday sale, which is why setting up your Facebook and Instagram shops is crucial for this BFCM. These social media platforms offer unparalleled convenience, allowing users to browse and buy in-app without redirecting them to their browser app to visit your online store.
The benefits? Reduced steps to purchase and an immersive, visually-rich shopping environment that capitalises on impulse buying. Setting up Instagram and Facebook Shops can take a few days to a week, considering approvals and integration, but you can easily do so following these instructions from Meta.
6 – Offer Subscribers Exclusive Deals
Think long term and use your Black Friday deals to grow your retargetable audience. For example, encourage people to sign up for your mailing list by offering discounts, a free gift with purchase or exclusive promotion to new subscribers via a pop-up on site.
This means that (1) you are likely to generate purchases because new subscribers are already highly interested and now newly motivated by your promotion, and (2) you will grow your subscriber list, therefore increasing the number of people you reach with future email campaigns. By taking a strategic approach to BFCM this year, you can significantly benefit your marketing funnel, customer lifecycle, and brand loyalty while considering the needs of your long-time customers.
7 – Email Marketing
Email marketing campaigns, also known as Email Direct Marketing (EDM), remain an often underappreciated powerhouse in the digital marketing realm. Although we generally recommend focusing on automated flows, such as a personalised welcome email upon subscription or an abandoned cart reminder, events like BFCM are a great opportunity to leverage multi-phase campaigns.
During this period your email marketing campaigns should start with a teaser email a couple of weeks prior, generating anticipation. Follow with a countdown series showcasing daily deals or spotlighting popular products. On the day, send real-time stock updates or flash sale alerts. And don’t forget the post-event phase – a ‘last chance’ or ‘extended sale’ message can capture stragglers. Leveraging email strategically can drive engagement, conversions and bolster customer loyalty.
8 – Time Sensitive Mystery Deals
Injecting a dose of intrigue into your Black Friday & Cyber Monday promotions is a fun way to mix up your promotions and supercharge consumer engagement. For example, concealing tantalising offers until a specific reveal time. This approach creates a dual incentive: the allure of an unknown bargain and the urgency of its limited availability. Offering deeper discounts or a special coupon code for those following your social media posts could be a dynamic way to engage potential customers.
By unveiling exclusive deals at staggered times, you encourage repeated website visits and sustained social media visits over time. This strategy keeps your brand top-of-mind during the crazily competitive environment that is Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but to be done well, you need to leverage a multi-channel approach.
For example, start with countdowns and hints on your social media, teasing the ‘big reveal.’ Position your promotion as remarkable and exclusive to keep people hooked (and, of course, be sure to deliver!). Leverage interactive social media features, such as polls or question boxes on Instagram stories, to generate interest and engagement from your audience.
Next, provide first-access or exclusive hints to your newsletter and email subscribers. By promoting this on your social media channels, you can drive traffic to your website and simultaneously increase your email subscriber database. By using your email marketing to make customers feel valued and ‘part of the club,’ you can promote your BFCM deals to a highly interested audience while also fostering brand loyalty and increasing the number of retargetable people for future campaigns.
Finally, generate excitement over the promotion launch to ensure it lives up to the hype you’ve created. Prepare high-quality content to post with the launch, and align messaging and visuals across your digital channels. Try filming videos of your internal team packing orders or celebrating the sale’s launch in a TikTok or Instagram Reel, and be proud to notify customers once you’ve sold out of stock. These tactics position your brand and product as desirable, which can amplify the effectiveness of future campaigns.
Moral of the story – mystery savings add the perfect blend of excitement and exclusivity that shoppers love, which you can use to your advantage. Don’t be afraid to mix it up this year.
9 – Create High-Value Product Bundles
Bundling products is a strategic move during Black Friday & Cyber Monday sales. By grouping complementary items together at a discounted rate, you can enhance perceived value and drive higher sales volumes. This is because customers feel they’re getting more for their money, which often justifies bigger purchases.
For instance, if you’re selling electronics, try pairing headphones with laptops. If you’re in the beauty realm, try offering themed skincare sets. Besides encouraging larger transactions, bundles can introduce consumers to products they might not have considered individually, which may keep them coming back for more and improve their customer lifetime value (CLV). With the right combinations, product bundles can significantly uplift sales and enrich the customer shopping experience.
10 – Follow up With Customers After Black Friday
Post-BFCM engagement is just as crucial as pre-event hype. A strategic follow-up can turn one-time shoppers into loyal customers. Most importantly, reach out to customers with automatically personalised ‘thank you’ emails to showcase your appreciation for their business. To make customers feel even more valued, consider sending exclusive discount codes or early-bird previews of upcoming sales, or ask them for their feedback through a quick survey to gain insights for next time.
This post-event connection deepens the brand-customer relationship, encourages repeat business, and can lead to increased word-of-mouth recommendations. In the world of eCommerce and digital marketing, aftercare can be as impactful as the initial sale.
Bonus Black Friday Marketing Tips:
- Extended Return Policies – Showcase a more extended return window during the sale to encourage hesitant buyers.
- Gift Guides – Curate product lists targeting different demographics or interests.
- Influencer Partnerships – Collaborate with influencers or brand champions to showcase your best deals.
- FOMO Tactics – Use phrases like “limited stock” or “almost gone” to drive urgency.
- Freebies – This can range from offering free shipping, conditional free shipping or limited-time giveaway, and samples with purchases.
- Collaborative Promotions – Partner with complementary brands for cross-promotions.
- Loyalty Programs – Reward loyal customers with early access or extra discounts.
- Referral programs – Reward existing customers by sharing a referral code they can pass on to friends and family.
- User-Generated Content – Encourage customers to share their purchases or wishlists on social media. Offer incentives for doing so.
- Create Scarcity – Showcase a live count of remaining stock for hot items, driving urgency and immediacy.
That’s All, Folks
As Black Friday and Cyber Monday grow in popularity and competition, they demand increasingly unique and multi-channel marketing strategies. If you want to reach new audiences and surpass your financial goals this year, thinking strategically and outside of the box is crucial.
The usual tactics might maintain your current audience, but innovative approaches – from crafting unique mystery deals to exploring untapped platforms – will capture fresh eyes and increase brand loyalty. This year, don’t just follow the crowd! Dare to differentiate, embrace creative marketing avenues, and prioritise genuine engagement. It’s through these strategic shifts and unexpected tactics that you will not only generate sales but foster long-term relationships with your customers.
If you’re ready to uplift your digital marketing in the lead-up to this year’s holiday shopping season, please reach out to our friendly team today. We can’t wait to hear from you.
Until next time,
The Digital Marketing Team at Springboard Digital.