It’s that time of year again, the Black Friday Mega Sales Events are almost here. And while the global pandemic has certainly altered our shopping and consuming habits over the past couple of years, this years holiday shopping season in shaping up to be as near back-to-normal as we can get while the world is not quite back-to-normal.
So tailoring a Black Friday marketing campaign to meet the needs of your customers while dealing with the challenges of your business will be a little trickier this year. Here are a few tips to help you navigate this brave new world.
1. Create a compelling offer
The key to success for any marketing campaign is creating an offer that compels your potential clients into action. For this Holiday season, the offer needs to be tailored to meet your customer’s needs where they are. Reduced prices and free shipping may not appeal to individuals who are worried about their next paychecks – but having an opportunity to buy reduced cost gift cards for everyday essentials may be just the ticket. Creating opportunities to help others while doing their holiday shopping may invoke both the “thanks” and the “giving” spirit of the holiday season. Tailor what your business offers with what your customers need most for the biggest bang in your Black Friday deals.
2. Address regional pains
For example, it would be counterproductive to offer deep discounts on products that may have been negatively impacted by the supply chain crunch. Neither does it make sense to offer in-person discount coupons/codes/etc. where shopping opportunities are limited by crowd sizes, quarantine requirements or to demographics of individuals who are not comfortable shopping in person. Be ready to tailor your offerings for your entire customer base and to possibly adjust should situations on the ground alter.
3. Have clear call to action
Marketing campaigns should have a clear and compelling call to offer. Buy now to receive a reduced price. Register today to receive a coupon. Buy in this time frame to get free shipping. Sign up here to save throughout the year. Whatever you are offering the customer should be clearly spelled out along with the action you expect them to take.
4. Limit time offers
Fear of Missing Out (or FOMO) can be one of the biggest motivating factors for potential shoppers. One of the most successful marketing campaigns I have seen had a running clock on the banner. The discounts offered decreased as the time ticked down (i.e the buy for 50% off now reduced to only 40% off after an hour, etc.) By offering deals for a limited time period you are spurring your clients to take advantage of your offers before time literally runs out.
5. Gather info to use throughout the rest of the year
Your business may not have a Holiday application at all, but that doesn’t mean you can’t leverage the event to garnish something almost as valuable as sales – information. Digital downloads with helpful tips to reduce holiday stress, access to an ongoing newsletter covering your niche subject matter, or promises of future discounts can be enough to encourage your target audience to opt into receiving future communications from your business allowing you to target this audience multiple times throughout the year.
