d-tags 
Loading...- Black Friday in a Nutshell
- How Much Do Sales Increase During Black Friday?
- How to Prepare Ecommerce for Black Friday?
- But What if You’re Not Doing Black Friday?
- Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy - The Takeaway
Black Friday in a Nutshell
The last three months of the year, called the Golden Quarter, are the most profitable period for most retailers. The sales peaks start before Halloween and end after Christmas or New Year. Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving when many stores offer doorbuster sales and deep discounts. Many customers take advantage of this opportunity to buy electronics, clothing, and holiday gifts.
This year, Black Friday is on November 25th.
What are the best Black Friday marketing ideas for ecommerce businesses and what sales increases can online store owners expect during this time?
How Much Do Sales Increase During Black Friday?
As you may guess, sales during Black Friday can vary greatly from year to year and from store to store, not to mention the industry. However, Google Trends shows that searches for "Black Friday deals" have been steadily increasing over the past few years, so it’s safe to say that this "holiday" is gaining huge popularity. Moreover, when analyzing the interest over time chart in Google Trends, we can see that the Black Friday phrase is the most popular between November 21st and 27th:
According to predictions prepared by blackfriday.com, spending this year is going to be bigger or equal to 2021. There might even be records in October 2022.
However, it’s worth noting that because of high inflation, customers are likely to be more careful about potential purchases. But, this also means that many people are waiting to upgrade their electronics, clothing, and other items to buy them cheaper and save some money on Black Friday.
Just to put you in the picture, according to Forbes, during Thanksgiving and Black Friday in 2021, the total online spending amounted to $14 billion. As you can see, the juice is worth the squeeze.
Take a look at the volumes of Black Friday-related phrases. Impressive, right?
So, how to prepare for this intense season to make it as profitable as possible? As you know, SEO takes time. If you want to attract potential customers in the upcoming months, you should devise your Black Friday ecommerce strategy today.
How to do it? Discover our tips!
How to Prepare Ecommerce for Black Friday?
Since you know that optimizing your website and attracting buyers during this festive season can bring you great benefits, it’s time to discover the 6 best Black Friday marketing ideas for ecommerce!1. Prepare Your Website
A properly optimized website is the cornerstone of every ecommerce, not only in the Golden Quarter. It’s worth mentioning that it’s best to start SEO before you start selling. After all, people need to find you. It’s a list of a few elements you should keep in mind:Responsive and Mobile Web Design
Every year, more of us use mobile devices to shop online. Therefore, it’s crucial to ensure that users can conveniently navigate your website, regardless of the device they choose. If a site isn’t displayed properly and doesn’t adapt to mobile devices, visitors will probably leave it and choose your competitors.Website Loading Time
The recommended page loading time shouldn’t exceed 2 or 3 seconds. It’s one of the most important factors having an impact on user experience. Each subsequent second means a risk of a higher bounce rate. Therefore, it’s crucial to minimize this probability.
Wondering how to decrease page loading time? Check out our article!
Keywords
There is no successful Black Friday ecommerce strategy without the right keywords. Optimize your content for relevant phrases such as:- “Black Friday”
- "deals"
- “discount”
- “special offer”
- "best buy"
UX (User Experience)
Make sure that navigating your website is a pleasure. Pay attention to both usability and visual layer. Check if the page is intuitive and guides users through all the stages of the shopping process. Analyze your offer and ask yourself a few questions. Is the information about discounts visible? Does your discount code work? Try to put yourself in the shoes of potential buyers. Think about what elements are important to them. Maybe you should create a separate landing page or subpage? Make yourself stand out from the crowd. If a countdown timer helps you do that, go ahead! All tricks allowed.
Check Your Hosting and Server
It’s better to be safe than sorry. Verifying this element will help you avoid situations when your website crushes due to increased traffic. Keep your finger on the pulse and minimize potential risks.2. Offer Discounts Earlier
Let customers become acquainted with your offer earlier. Inform them when you plan to start discounts and remind them about it regularly. Make sure that people are going to wait for your products or services. Remember that your ecommerce isn’t the only store that prepares for Black Friday. Be as visible as possible. Advertise your range on social media, benefit from email marketing, and include relevant information in a newsletter. Possibilities are endless.
Moreover, it might be a good idea to invest in advertisements and paid campaigns. Getting to know your recipients and targeting messages accordingly can be a recipe for success during this time of the year. However, remember that Google Ads rates will probably be higher than usual.
Do you need help with advertising your products during Black Friday? Try our Google Ads services and leave it to us!
Also, if you want to prepare your website, it’s a great idea to create dedicated Black Friday landing pages, using fixed URLs. If you had such pages the previous year and then you deleted them, you should check if there are any backlinks leading to them (maybe people shared your offer?). If so, redirect them to the current landing pages.
When the season and Black Week is over, simply hide these pages in the menu, but don’t delete them. They’ll be ready for the next year.
3. Stand Out from the Crowd
Looking for effective Black Friday ideas for ecommerce? Choose eye-catching CTAs, intriguing keywords, attractive contests, and graphics. During the Black Friday season, the competition is so big that your activities can’t be run-of-the-mill. Offer attractive discounts, but make sure that your store can afford them. After all, you want to gain, not lose, right? Keep in mind that a 10% discount won’t allow you to conquer the online world. Therefore, prepare your game plan well in advance and analyze the offers of your market rivals to make sure that you can outdo them.
4. Be Prepared
You should carefully analyze your Black Friday ecommerce strategy to prepare your business for this hectic period and avoid potential mishaps. Be ready for more orders, make sure that there are enough products in stock, and take care of customer service. Think about your website, employees, and suppliers. Is your team big enough to face up to the challenge? Are you able to offer efficient shipment? Can your server handle the load? It’s worth thinking about these and other issues to avoid unpleasant surprises close to Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Take advantage of the upcoming period to create and maintain a positive brand image and it’ll surely pay off in the future. Remember that the first impression matters. Make sure that people who come across your website associate it positively.5. Go for Cross-Selling and Up-Selling
Take the bull by the horns and maximize your profits thanks to cross-selling and up-selling. Believe us, the upcoming festive season is perfect for that. Help customers buy products that create a coherent whole. Inspire them, show them fashionable outfits, or great house decor. If your store offers everything potential buyers are looking for, they won’t have to check elsewhere. [caption id="attachment_58578" align="aligncenter" width="1292"]
Source: Zalando.uk[/caption]
6. Take Care of Regular Customers and Acquire New Ones
Don’t forget about regular customers. They’re equally important as attracting new ones. Offer them special discounts or extra incentives. Take care of your PR to ensure that buyers don’t choose your market rivals instead. Show your recipients that you value and appreciate loyal customers. At the same time, give new customers a reason to come back to your store. Inspire their trust and don’t end promotional activities just after Black Friday. Try to attract the same buyers for longer. How? Don’t let them forget about you, monitor abandoned shopping carts, expand your remarketing lists, encourage people to sign up for your newsletter, or inform them about upcoming holiday offers. Notify users that they can also count on you during the festive season. If your customer service meets their expectations, they’ll certainly come back to your store.But What if You’re not Doing Black Friday?
You don’t plan to fight for customers during the Black Friday season? It’s not the end of the world. There are many tips and practices that can help you boost sales and attract buyers throughout the year. When planning any promotional activities, you should still think about your long-term ecommerce strategy. After all, your rivals will probably take advantage of the upcoming season. What can you do to keep up with them?Post-Black Friday Marketing
When the Golden Quarter is finally over, it’s time to move on to the next stage of your ecommerce strategy. The post-Black Friday period can be a great opportunity to focus on your regular customers. Why don’t you offer them attractive incentives such as loyalty programs or discounts for the next purchase? You can also use this time to analyze your online store and check what needs to be improved. This can be helpful in preparing your business for the next big challenge – Christmas.
Moreover, don’t forget about potential new customers. If they’re interested in your products, they may need a little nudge. Use effective marketing campaigns to bring them back to your store.
Last but not least, it’s a good idea to start preparing for the next Black Friday as early as possible. After all, the success of your ecommerce business also depends on being one step ahead of the competition.
