The Small Biz Survival Guide to Black Friday & Cyber Monday
The leaves are changing, the air is turning crisp, and businesses and consumers alike are eagerly anticipating the upcoming busy season of gift-giving. Amongst all the shopping frenzy, two events have the highest priority in the small biz world: Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM). While these days have long been associated with midnight lines and in-person chaos, the digital age has ushered in a new tradition of online shopping extravaganzas.
Many businesses get a huge portion of their sales on these very two dates, so it’s key to be prepared. Online shopping has become a habit for most people, and many consumers wait to make purchases around the holidays in hopes of scoring good deals and holiday specials.
While it can be easy to get overwhelmed this time of year (as both a person and especially as a small biz founder), I’m here to help you survive the holiday season and soar into 2024. We’ll go over how to prepare for BFCM, digital marketing tips during this busy time, and how you can measure results for an even more successful BFCM in the future. Let’s dive in!
Planning your Black Friday Cyber Monday Campaigns
As I’ve emphasized time and time again, it all starts with a solid plan. Instead of rushing to put things together in the fall, you should start thinking about your BFCM strategy in Q2 of the year. Yup, you read that correctly. To stand out during these high-stakes shopping dates, your preparation should start months in advance, giving you enough time to create compelling content, allocate proper resources, and decrease the chances of any last-minute emergencies.
If you’re not sure where to start, a great place to begin is by first outlining your goals and objectives for the holiday season. Are you trying to increase sales, grow your brand’s community, or boost your brand’s awareness? The answer is probably a mix of two or more of these, so your campaigns will require proper collateral to keep you focused.
Once you outline your goals, sketch out a roadmap for your campaign. It sometimes helps to work backward from the event date so you can better determine how long it’ll take for you and your team to build, develop, and launch the campaign materials.
Remember to also take into consideration the budget for your holiday campaigns, adding in things like forecasted ad spends and promotional offers. You want to consider how big of a discount you can offer your consumers without losing capital.
Bonus tip: Always have a backup plan. If links don’t work, promo codes don’t go through, or items sell out quickly, be prepared to deal with any challenges and give your consumers a smooth experience. If you’re lost in last-minute planning, don’t panic! I’m here to help. Fill out the form to get started.
After you’ve dedicated the time and space to your BFCM strategy, it’s time to drill into the details of your campaigns and how you’re going to execute them, which brings me to the next section: digital marketing tips to help your brand stand out.
Standing out during the Black Friday Cyber Monday rush
As you’re preparing for the BFCM rush, you’ve probably accounted for all the usual digital marketing strategies: emails, social media, ads, mobile optimization, and SEO-friendly copy. While that’s all impressive, and I hate to be the one to break it to you, so have all the other organized brands out there. So how do you stand out and leave an impact on your audience when thousands of others are also vying for their attention?
Focus on compelling design. BFCM graphics are often about flashy sales and promotions, so gear your efforts towards amazing design in lieu of long, wordy messaging.
Personalized outreach. Think about reaching out to a handful of your most engaged customers and offering them a special VIP discount ahead of the sales! This will help you and your brand stand out amidst all the automated messages usually sent.
Social proof. Let your consumers’ satisfaction speak for itself by using testimonials, reviews, and UGC in your marketing materials. You can even consider running a contest or giveaway within your brand’s community to gather materials to use for your campaigns!
Standing out in the digital marketing landscape is tricky – especially during busy times like BFCM. Remember to focus on your brand’s unique value proposition, emphasize your values, and stay authentic in your materials.
Black Friday Cyber Monday: Tracking Metrics
Are you reusing the same strategy for BFCM over and over again year-to-year? Well, you might be missing out on key opportunities to boost your brand’s presence and increase sales. In fact, you should probably be monitoring metrics in real-time as the campaigns unfold. This way, you’ll quickly be able to tell what’s working and what’s not – and what might be landing in your consumers’ spam folders.
Besides keeping your finger on the pulse of your BFCM strategies as they play out, you should also take time after the holiday season to take a deep dive into the metrics and what they reveal about your campaign strategy.
Some things you should be measuring include the following: conversion rates, click-through rates, cart abandonment rates, traffic sources, and customer acquisition cost. You can even consider sending out a post-BFCM survey to see what materials or promotions resonated with your community.
Data is a key part of measuring the success of any digital marketing campaign – and this is especially true during the holiday season. Analyze what you can improve upon, what you’d like to keep, and what should go for next year.
Conclusion
Black Friday Cyber Monday can be an overwhelming and stressful time for many small businesses. By planning extra early, strategizing on ways to stand out from your competition, and reflecting on what your data shows, you can create a BFCM strategy that will get better with each year. From one founder to another, I’m here for you and I’m rooting for you!
If you’d like an extra set of eyes on your materials or strategy, I’ve been working on holiday campaigns with businesses for years and can help you take yours to the next level. Fill out the form to get started today.
