Black Friday, a term that once meant different things in different places has evolved to mean one thing globally; the largest sales event of the year. Some even refer to it as “the super bowl of the retail industry”. It is now an e-commerce game.
Although the term uses ‘Friday’, the event has now become a weekend event, starting on Friday after Thanksgiving and running through the weekend. 2020’s black Friday is set to officially begin on the 27th of November. Black Friday covers the sales industry (offline and online). In this article, however, we will be telling you how you can prepare for the biggest sales in the coming black Fridays as an online store.
Things you must do before the event begins:
Set your goals:
What exactly are you aiming to achieve in this year’s Black Friday? More than a hundred sales? Increased inflow of potential customers? More email leads? If the answers to the above are in the affirmative, you are reading the right article. Clearly outlined goals make it easier for you to achieve your projected sales.
Set your budget:
For Black Friday, you have to be prepared to give freebies and mouth-watering deals. Also, two of the most important tools you can use to drive traffic to your site are ads and newsletters. Therefore, your budget should make provisions for freebies and adequate publicity.
Get your website ready:
The last thing a hyped-up black Friday shopper wants to see is a crashed site. No shopper wants to see “we’re sorry, hold on a sec”, or “we need a moment”. Because of the spike in traffic that is likely to happen, your site might begin to perform poorly. You need to plan early against this.
Some sellers begin their sales way earlier than the big Friday. Be sure you have an intuitive user interface, a seamless checkout experience offering multiple payment methods and a high level of mobile functionality.
Once you’re sure you have all of the above checked out, you can get down to working on making sure you make the most sales in this event. Here are a few tips to help you do just that.
Work on the advertisement in advance:
You need to optimize your email strategy, ads placement and social media to be all about the deals, new products, gifts, etc that you have in store for black Friday. Make your emails frequent enough without spamming, and be sure to use a unique, catchy topic. Remember, other businesses will be doing the same. Also, put outposts on your social media so that your followers can stay up to date. Be as fun and innovative as possible to help build up the excitement.
Gifts:
You could give out gifts, even with the minimum purchase, to encourage people to shop from you. The gift should be relevant to your niche, inexpensive and eligible for free/ inexpensive shipping. However, since you’re not running a charity, be sure that the costs for these gifts are covered in the products being bought. You have to protect your margin.
Free shipping:
According to an online poll, 88% of consumers say they’re more likely to shop online with free shipping. If you choose to incorporate this in your black Friday sales, remember to also protect your margin.
Limited-time window deals:
You can benefit from creating a sense of urgency with temporary sales. You can also try to do different deals every hour. It keeps customers on their toes and makes them revisit the site every hour to check for the next deal. That way, you keep their attention. Be sure to use eye-catching banners to grab their attention. A countdown timer can also be used to increase the sense of urgency.
Extend deals: As we mentioned earlier, most people begin to shop for holiday gifts and the likes before the actual start of black Friday. If you can, start promoting deals before the event. Some people may have changed their minds and want to now buy a particular item because of the discount. Utilize cyber Monday by extending your deals till then. Also, send out targeted emails to people that may have abandoned their cart as a reminder.
Track your success:
Monitor your performance and gather valuable insights against next year’s sales. Don’t forget that you also need to put in the work to turn new customers into loyal customers. Stick with continued email marketing, engagement on social media, and keep offering attracting deals at other times of the year.
If you have difficulty in keeping up with the groundwork required to have a successful Black Friday sales, do not fret. Give us a call at Lead Web Praxis Media Limited and we will provide you with the needed guidance or put in the groundwork for you.