The dates for two of the greatest online shopping sales have just been announced:
Black Friday on November 24 and Cyber Monday on November 27.
To help you beat the upcoming sales rush, we prepared a cheat sheet on how to prep your BFCM deals, elevate your marketing game, and engage with customers. Dive in to know how to make this your best BFCM yet!
BIG IDEA
Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) are two of the most anticipated sale events in the U.S. Last year, they brought in more than $20 billion in sales, giving sellers an early Christmas gift.
With this success, this year’s BFCM could set off an even bigger holiday momentum. But as Gorgias suggested, only those with a “solid ecommerce strategy” will enjoy the full swing.
So, without further ado, here are some things you must know to gear up your store for BFCM 2023:
🔑 Preparation is key
Your sales strategy serves a dual purpose: to drive sales during and after shopping. Now that customers are ready to spend more than they did in 2022, it’s your chance to pool new customers to your store.
Here are some tips on how you can handle a surge in orders:
- Update your store policies. For example, you can set a deadline for return/refund requests to beat any delay due to large order volumes. But make sure you communicate any changes to customers to avoid misunderstandings.
- Provide self-service options. You can create a self-service chat menu with automated replies or article recommendations to answer FAQs. This will address repetitive queries, allowing your customer service reps to focus on more crucial issues.
- Build your social media presence. Seize the power of social media in driving purchases by adding shoppable content and attractive promotion ads. You can also collaborate with influencers whose values and audience match your brand to widen your reach.
🥊 Beating the rush = winning the holidays
Just as the early bird catches the worm, the early planner reaps the best rewards.
BFCM promises explosive profitability, but on one condition—beat the short preparation timeline first. Fortunately, the sales frenzy is still months away, giving you enough time to create a foolproof holiday selling strategy.
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BITES OF THE WEEK
- Recent data reveals that 17% of consumers plan to increase their shopping spending this year. You know what this means: time to leverage high purchase intent for brand growth! - DTC
- November is for Black Friday. With retail giants joining this sales event, you should be prepping your deals to maximize your exposure and, by extension, profits. - TechRadar
- Speaking of Black Friday deals, experts are saying this year will be a battle of tech-savvy minds. So, you’re gonna need a lot of automation and tech and some serious optimization tactics. - Algolia
- Prime Big Deal Day isn’t the only holiday sales bonanza to watch out for. There are other big ecommerce holiday events coming up, starting with Black Friday and Cyber Monday this November. - Salsify
- Are your calendars marked yet for the holiday sales rush? If not, Amazon has an FBA holiday guide to help you survive and thrive in the holidays sales events. - Amazon
HOT TOPIC
5 email marketing trends for your Black Friday strategy
Speaking of selling strategies, revamping your email marketing would be a great start. After all, it's an effective way of telling customers about the deals you have in place for the coming sales event.
📧 Litmus shared a list of email campaign trends you can use for the upcoming Black Friday sale:
Early access teasers
Do you know what makes buyers excited? Sending pre-sale, sneak peeks, and early deals campaigns! These will make them feel exclusive and valued—a combo that leads to sure checkouts.
Do note that there's a thing called "too-early emails." So, make sure to send your emails within a time frame that will intrigue customers just enough to avoid losing momentum.
Anti-Black Friday
This approach is for those who want to focus on social problems related to Black Friday. About 81% of millennials support brands that give back to society. 🌱
You should consider doing this if you're targeting the young generation.
Personalized emails
The magic keyword in these emails is "you." Brands that talk to buyers in a second-person view and show tailored offers are more likely to attract curiosity and clicks.
You can personalize your email campaigns by suggesting deals on items they recently viewed. By letting shoppers know that you know what they like, you're increasing your chance of bagging a sale.
Mobile-friendly emails
Data shows that 60% of emails are viewed on mobile devices. It means everyone's turning to their mobile phones, so your strategy should, too! 📱
To create mobile-friendly email campaigns, say "tap" instead of "click" and show bigger CTA buttons. You can also use one-column email layouts, which works best for any device.
Gift guides
Beyond being a sales bonanza, Black Friday serves as the signal of the holiday season. Customers are searching for things they can give to themselves and others. 🎁
A well-tested gimmick to catch attention is sending an email containing gifting how-tos + a side note about your offerings. This will increase your brand exposure, as they will likely visit your website to search for gift items.
📥 Deliver 'em straight
Email marketing has a special advantage: delivering your messages straight to your target market's inboxes. All you need to do is ensure that what they'll read will convince them to go straight to their wallets. 👛
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
How to maximize your BFCM sales in 2 easy ways
BFCM is an ecommerce olympic where only the fast and furious sellers can snatch the top spots. So, aside from preparations and marketing tactics, your actual selling game plan must be on point as early as now.
🪝 To help you make the most (revenue) of this sales event, Gorgias shared the two best ways to keep your customers hooked:
- Increase customer touch points. The more interactions you have with shoppers, the higher their chance of visiting your shop. One tool that can effortlessly initiate customer engagements is pop-up chat widgets. Use them to let buyers know where and how to reach out for queries or help.
- Save abandoned carts. This one could be challenging. The key is to target customers who subscribe to your email and messaging campaigns (they’re usually the ones who can be swayed to check out their carts). Use a persuasive tone and highlight the urgency of grabbing your deals.
🧲 Extra tip: Be a customer magnet
In other words, retain your existing customers and court new ones to build a solid and loyal customer base. Here are some tips for attracting customers on BFCM:
- Offer discounts on their next purchase as soon as they check out.
- Invite them to your loyalty/membership programs.
- Provide excellent customer experience by improving your customer support strategy.
And, of course, don’t forget to bring your A-game to BFCM to complete the equation for maximum profit.
