I’ve done a few Black Friday campaigns in my day.
At the time of writing, I just wrapped up 3, each for a different client… across niches.
It’s anxiety-inducing at the start, a relief when you’re done, and amazing when you watch the sales come in.
So now that I’m done, I want to share with you 9 tips brands use to crush it during Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
Keep reading…
1. Plan NOW
The best time to plan is September. It is now October. You’re not out of time, but you’re getting VERY close.
A LOT goes into this promotion — email strategy, copy, offer, flows, popups, and so on… just from the marketing side.
Planning it out takes time. So get on it NOW.
2. Pick an Offer (No Need to Do a Discount)
Brands love discounts for Black Friday. Doesn’t mean you have to do it.
They’re not “onto something” that you aren’t. They don’t know what they’re doing, either. They’re just doing what’s “safe.”
Plenty of non-discount offers to consider. Things like:
- Giving gifts with their purchase
- Threshold tiers (that stack the rewards/gifts/discounts)
- Bundles
- Bonus loyalty rewards
- Store credit
Or some combination if you want to get fancy.
As an example…
I ran a threshold offer for a small brand that sells sleep headphones. Each tier granted them free stuff or a bigger discount.
That promo almost beat all previous BFCM promos COMBINED.
Not that the offer ITSELF carried all the weight (although it certainly helped). But it shows you can make a killing with non-discount offers.
For another brand, we’re running a threshold offer where they get a free gift, then free shipping, then 20% off at each successive tier (rewards stack).
Again, get creative. Plan this out.
3. Be Clear About EVERYTHING
Black Friday is chaotic for customers, too. Be as clear as possible about all the details. Things like:
- Offer: What is the offer? Are there multiple offers? Do they stack? Will new offers come about? Clarity here also helps customers decide to buy now instead of wait for something better.
- Dates: When does it start? When does it end?
- Exclusions: What products, if any, are excluded from the sale?
They’ll appreciate it and be happier with your brand. They’ll also be more likely to place an order since they know when and what they can buy.
4. Mail a LOT
Black Friday/Cyber Monday is one of the few times of the year when customers are more forgiving of an email barrage.
They know your emails are coming. Most won’t be mad in any real sense. Take advantage. Mail more. “More emails = more sales” is never truer than on BFCM weekend.
If you mail 3x a week, up that to daily. Send multiple times on the first and last days — many promos I run, but ESPECIALLY BFCM, see big spikes at the start and end.
That said…
You should still differentiate yourself. Don’t just spam the offer over and over.
Write solid email content that ties thematically back. This is what makes customers more accepting of your email surge.
For instance, I work with a brand in the animal-based space. One of our emails was about how “our ancestors used to stock up for the winter because it was life or death.”
And then I tied that back to Black Friday being the time to stock up, since it’s our best deal ever… and so shopping now aligned with how our ancestors prepped for the cold months.
See? More interesting and relevant than “BUY NOW BUY NOW!”
5. Write Everything By November 1
Remember how I said to plan everything by October? Well, you want to write everything by November 1.
November 1 strikes a balance:
- It gives you enough time to review and test everything
- It’s not so early that circumstances can change and render your plans moot
A caveat:
This doesn’t mean you need finished, scheduled, ready-to-send emails that a customer could read NOW.
It DOES mean you need the “scaffolding” done. The “meat” of the emails. If things change, you can swap out details (such as offer or dates).
6. Segment Properly
I recommend widening the window for the first email. Perhaps to everyone minus problem profiles (spam traps and whatnot). Same with one of your last call emails.
This will help you reach more people on the initial announcement and bump some people into your engaged segments.
For the rest of the campaign, send either to your usual engagement window or widen it slightly. This will keep reach wider while preserving deliverability.
Oh, and consider excluding BFCM buyers from BFCM mailings. Once someone buys, they’re likely less interested in hearing about the deals.
And if they are, they know the deals and will come back again.
7. Make BFCM-Specific Flows
Customers will get confused if they get your regular flows during BFCM. The copy and offers inside won’t make sense.
Clone all relevant flows and tweak the language to fit BFCM. Flows include:
This sounds like a headache, but it’s fairly straightforward since you don’t have to rewrite from scratch.
Adjust the messaging around the BFCM offer. Add some language about BFCM.
Once the sale goes live, activate all the BFCM flows and pause all the regular versions.
Alternatively:
You could set the BFCM versions live ahead of time, and add a filter that only has them send to people who trigger it between your start and end dates.
However, I understand if this added complexity makes people nervous. So feel free to do the old “flip on the flow when the promo goes live.”
8. Prep Your Popup(s)
Like your flows, your popup needs BFCM-ification.
Swap out your typical offer for info about the Black Friday offer. You don’t want these offers to conflict with each other or give them additional savings on top of their huge BFCM savings.
Tweak the copy to fit the BFCM theme.
Try some new imagery if possible, too. Theme it around Black Friday.
Set it live the moment your sale goes live.
9. Consider an Early Bird Sale
One strategy I learned from Chris Orzechowski, years ago, is the “Early Bird sale.”
Run a sale two weeks before the official Black Friday sale. Let people know this is the Early Bird sale. Inform them of the offer, deadlines, etc. and whether the BFCM offer will be different (so they don’t feel “ripped off”).
You can run the same strategy for this with different offer language, but I like to make them a bit shorter and more urgency-driven.
That headphones brand I mentioned earlier?
I ran a 48-hour Early Bird sale with a different offer for them. It made as many sales as a previous Black Friday sale… with a simple discount offer.
Prepare to Win This Black Friday/Cyber Monday
Black Friday/Cyber Monday. A stressful time… but it can also be a successful time if you do it right.
Follow these tips and get ready to win.
It’s time to start prepping. Go do it now!
What To Do Next
- Share this article with someone who might find it helpful (or entertaining).
- Get my free eBook using the form below to learn the 5 things stopping you from turning “one-and-done” customers into repeat buyers.
- Grab my 21 best email templates/frameworks.
- Reach out to me if you have a sizable email list and make less than 20% of your revenue through email.