Black Friday is knocking on the door pretty loudly now. Only two weeks remain until the shopping craze begins. It’s a holiday for all customers. But more importantly, it’s a holiday for anyone selling anything.

Now, you might think you don’t have to join in Black Friday (or Cyber Monday), and yeah, practically you don’t. Still, if you want to get your hands on what’s expected to be a 10.8 billion dollar pie, you might want to reconsider your stands. In fact, this is the start of the holiday shopping spree, which experts suggest will reach just shy of 300 billion dollars for the whole season.

Last year, over 166.8 million Americans participated actively in Black Friday, 90.6 of which made their shopping online. Each one of these customers spent 321.41 dollars on average.

These statistics come to show that sleeping through the Black Friday craze is simply a financial disaster. So, regardless of your product or service, you must participate in this glorious celebration of capitalism.

Still, even though just joining in the fun will be enough to boost your sales on that day in particular, if you want to get a more significant piece of the pie, you need to prepare.

Naturally, we are here to help. This is not just done by giving you useful advice on how to prepare your website and marketing campaign.

So, let’s begin.

Do Your Data Analysis Homework

When it first started, the idea behind Black Friday was for stores to sell away everything before they stack their racks with new collections and, of course, Christmas-themed stock. Now, this doesn’t apply to an online business, especially one that offers digital products. Still, everyone expects some kind of promotion during Black Friday. Something more, if you don’t provide one, this can very well tarnish your public image and cost you some clients. At the very least, it will cost you some profits.

Still, you don’t have to give a discount on everything. In fact, you don’t need to give any discounts. Your promotion can be entirely different. However, to know what your offer for Black Friday should be, you must know your customers and their habits. What they like, what they want, and how they behave.

The best way to learn those things is to check and analyze the gathered data from the past few months. This will give you a hint on how to organize your Black Friday campaign.

Of course, you need to know the best sellers, the underperformers, and which pages got the most traffic. But most importantly, you need to understand where your audience drops off from their customer journey. This data will lead you to customize your campaign and maximize its effect.

And while you’re still analyzing data, it’s worth checking out how your competitors are going after Black Friday. It’s unwise to copy their campaign, as they may have different data. Still, it’s wise to check out how they redecorated their websites and get some ideas.

Once you’re done with the analysis, it’s time to figure out the budget.

Scale Your Lead Generation Budget

When it comes to such promotions, organic traffic may boost your numbers, but it definitely won’t bring enough of them. You need an aggressive lead-generation campaign, and this requires additional funds. During Black Friday, the prices of a single ad skyrocket. However, the ROI is usually well worth it. Still, you need to invest in Social media and PPC campaigns.

Now, since everyone will be spending big to attract customers, it’s much wiser to check your stats first and know where to put your money. For example, if your customers most often come from Instagram, this social media will get the biggest chunk of the overall budget. Moreover, you will need to target your audience pretty accurately, so your competition will struggle to outbid you.

So, before you start a PPC campaign, check out the keywords that are most worth your money. Moreover, go for keyphrases that are broad enough but still target people with an intent to buy. For example, if you bid on the keyphrase “LeBron 2024”, people may look for the Lakers shirt you are offering. On the other hand, they may just look for some information. On the other hand, going for “Original LeBron 2024 shirt” decreases the overall reach but significantly increases the chances of showing your website to someone interested in buying.

So, make sure you do your research and be extra generous when allocating a budget for your Black Friday campaigns.

Create Your Black Friday Offer

Once your budget is ready, it’s time to create your offer. Naturally, your offer must be data-driven to maximize your potential. You must consider your product, industry, and other factors influencing your target audience’s decision. For example, if you have one top-rated product, you can offer a “jaw-dropping” discount and add bonuses for other purchases. However, since you don’t have a huge problem selling this product, you may instead offer complimentary products at huge discounts. For instance, if you offer a mobile phone, your Black Friday promotion can include a free case, an extra warranty, or even a free screen protector.

On the other hand, if you have multiple products, it might be a good idea to give a discount on your most popular product when bundled with another. For example, buying a scarf and a coat will give 20% off their combined price.

Most importantly, your offer must solve a customer problem that usually hinders their urge to purchase your product or service. IKEA, for example, often offers free transportation to its products on Black Friday. They don’t give discounts on the products, but rather on the usual hurdle their clients face when purchasing a massive furniture item.

So, make sure to give your customers what they want. In most cases, if your product is selling well, it’s not the price that hinders the sale. So, find out what it is and add it to your Black Friday offer.

Refurbish Your Website

Before you go ahead with your Black Friday campaign, you need to ensure your website is ready for the task. When you have a big party at the office, you don’t just invite people to mingle around the desks. No. You rearrange the space according to the event. You add some flair and decoration to set the mood. Your approach for Black Friday should be the same. You are inviting customers to your online store with a theme, and your website should reflect it.

First and foremost, you need to clean up. This means you need to get all broken links and problematic pages fixed. Moreover, all outdated content should be updated. Most importantly, make sure to hide all products that are either out of stock or not on promotion. You need the conversation to be around what’s on sale, even if it’s not your crown jewel. Black Friday is about the promotions, so make sure they are front and center. This includes your hero.

Add banners, and decorate your website with flashy discounts and promotions. Furthermore, ensure all product pages are also refurbished and show consistent pricing. During this euphoric moment, your customers should never think twice whether the promotion is real or not.

Finally, consider an express customer journey. Black Friday is usually when people buy impulsively. You don’t need to distract them with authority or social proof if your data shows this is not what converts. So, consider adding a quick lane to the checkout. You don’t want to keep customers longer than they are prepared to stay. For example, you may add a one-click purchase option. Once they finish the purchase, you may offer them the opportunity to browse around further and include additional items in their package.

Up Your Personalization Game

Now, when discussing your website, the promotion will be rather direct. However, the Black Friday marketing campaign is rarely on-page. It usually takes place through other external channels, allowing you to personalize offers intensely.

Now, if you haven’t segmented your audience yet, it’s high time to do so. This will give you a great boost when creating your offer. For example, you can make a generous special offer to loyal customers who have made several purchases over a specific period. This will reinforce their loyalty. Moreover, it will capitalize on their affection and bring more purchases in the future.

You can also go for higher retention by offering a special deal on first-time buyers who purchased in the past 2-3 months. Offering them a complementary product at a discount will certainly trigger a dopamine reaction.

Then there are those who visited your website and showed interest but never finished the purchase. You can attract them with discounts on products that they showed interest in. But also make sure to promote complementary products. Many retailers forget that if someone didn’t buy the product from them, it usually means they bought it from someone else. Thus, diversify your approach and offer something that also complements the original product.

Finally, there is the cold outreach. Black Friday is the perfect time to attract new customers with special offers. However, make sure your loyalty promotions are better. Otherwise, it gives a serious negative implication that you don’t care about your customers after you finish a sale. This is unforgivable for a brand.

A good Black Friday offer is always a personalized offer. So, while you will have one general promotion, it’s wise to offer additional customized promotions to different segments of your audience.

Start Your Email Campaign Early

Speaking of personalized offers, the best place to spread the word is your email list. Naturally, this is the place where you will find most of your regulars. It’s also the perfect spot to segment your audience. So, if you haven’t done it yet, make sure your email list is segmented and ready to go.

Now, many businesses will start right off the top with their promotion. That’s a valid strategy, but not quite as effective in our experience. A far better approach is to start a bit earlier. Make a warmup email. Ask your loyal customers to share what they are looking for on Black Friday. You are going to give them a deal; why not ask them what they want directly? Sure, you can offer them a coupon to use on whatever they want. However, this won’t lead them to your website, and this won’t allow them to browse your products and consider the purchase beforehand. Most importantly, this won’t build anticipation or showcase your personal approach.

You can share that you will soon reveal your discounts for the rest of your list. This will increase your email open rate when your promotion hits their inboxes. More importantly, it will also generate a wave of interest in what you have to offer in advance.

Finally, unlike the rest of the channels, your email campaigns doesn’t end with Black Friday. About 77% of visitors on Black Friday will abandon their cart. So, give them one last chance to get their item with the same discount or promotion as they could when they abandoned their cart. Send this email on December 4th (the Wednesday after Black Friday). This way, you will capitalize on their regret for any missed opportunities, even if they are not about your product.

Focus On Logistics

If you offer physical products, you need to consider shipping as well. One of the drives behind the Black Friday sale is the dopamine release when you manage to get a great deal. However, this ecstasy can be hindered by delayed shipping, turning the excitement into frustration. Your shipping strategy is a crucial factor in retaining customers. So, offer convenient and timely shipping for all your products. Don’t sell where you can’t reach within a day.

A wise decision would be to strike a deal with your shipping partner and consider paying extra for overnight deliveries. Naturally, you can offer delivery discounts to your customers on purchases over a certain amount. For example, for purchases over $100, the customer gets 50% off their shipping fee. For a $200 purchase – the shipping is on you.

As you can imagine, all of this should be calculated in advance so you can actually win some money in the end, not just provide some great service and end up spending rather than earning.

Spend Big On Customer Support

Speaking of spending, Black Friday is the time of the year when your customer support team should be on their best behavior. They will be swamped and need all the help they can get. This is the time when you will need all hands on deck. So, don’t be stingy and offer generous overtime plus additional days off during less busy seasons.

Hiring additional members just for the holiday rush may sound like a good idea, but you won’t find quality workers that will be OK to start for a month or two without any guarantees for the future. And quality is what you should be aiming for.

So, before the big day, make sure your customer service team is well-trained and reminded about the best practices for customer communication, conflict resolution, and problem-solving.

Focus your efforts on training them to solve the most significant customer pain points like lost packages, dissatisfaction with the purchase, and damaged packages. Have clear policies so your support team can resolve all problems quickly.

Consider Lenient Return Policies

On the same note, impulsive shopping is not that impulsive. Actually, around 87% of customers claim they check the retailer’s return policies before making their purchasing decision. So, even though you want to catch your audience in the heat of the moment, offering them an out at a later point will increase your overall sales. Typically, around 8-10% of customers will return a product. Thus, with a more lenient return policy, you will positively influence 87% of customers while risking losing less than 10% of your income. It’s really a no-brainer.

Moreover, you don’t have to give back the money. You can get creative. For example, you can offer a voucher at the same price. There are some who will actually give a voucher with an additional 10% discount on a subsequent purchase upon return. However, rewarding returns is actually promoting them – something you should avoid.

Most importantly, if the return policy excludes a product, for example, underwear can’t be returned due to hygienic reasons, make sure to note that in your landing or checkout pages.

So, make returns as easy as possible, but at the same time, don’t go overboard with promoting them. Just place your return policies in a visible place, create an FAQ answering all common questions, and prepare your support team to handle any return without making the customer feel guilty. How you will handle the return, naturally, depends on your strategy, product, and industry.

Convert One-Time-Buyers Into Loyal Customers

One of the biggest mistakes a business owner could make is considering Black Friday a one-time sales burst. A wise entrepreneur will take the chance to convert these one-time seasonal customers into loyal, returning customers.

It’s your duty to maintain the still fragile relationship between you and your customers. Create a post-Black Friday plan on how to make customers return for more. Naturally, the first step is to gather as many emails and social media followers as possible. This will open direct channels for communication and, most importantly, for retargeting campaigns.

So, consider how your potential customers will react if you offer them a special deal on Black Friday for a Social Media following or an email subscription. Most won’t mind. However, in some niches, such actions can cause distrust and ultimately be more harmful than good.

Consider Your Employees

Black Friday is the busiest day of the year. It’s like the entire Christmas season bunched into one (or a few) days. So, as you can imagine, you can’t afford your employees to burn out or slack off. This can literally ruin your business.

To avoid this, you need to motivate them properly. Now, additional vacation days, free lunch, pizza party, and beer Friday sound great, but the biggest motivator is money. So, create a comprehensive and fair bonus system with clear goals. Nothing motivates people quite as much as taking a piece of the pie.

Figure Out Your Relevant KPIs

On the same note, you need to find your benchmarks and assess your goals. Analyzing your data and industry-specific statistics, you must create relevant KPIs. Those will indicate whether your campaign worked as intended. Create conservative, realistic, and optimistic KPIs, with each one leading to a post-Black Friday reaction. For example, if you’re under the benchmark, you need to analyze where things went wrong and promptly fix the bugs for the Christmas sales. On the other hand, if the optimistic scenario comes to fruition, you can give your employees additional bonuses. You can also increase the benchmark for the Christmas sales and double down on what brought you this success.

It’s all about evaluating your results and taking the appropriate actions to further your success. However, you need relevant and measurable metrics to help you assess your success. Google Analytics will be your best friend in this endeavor, though you can also add other tools to the mix.

Stress Test Your Website

Once the marketing part is done, it’s time to prepare your online store. In a physical store, you will organize your boxes in the storage space, making everything easily reachable. Then, you will drill your employees on different scenarios to ensure they are ready for the day.

Online, the preparation is a bit easier, though that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t prepare. On the contrary, you should stress test your website to see how it will handle the expected traffic surges.

Now, hiring an outside professional to do the test is a great idea. However, it’s up to you if you lack the budget for external help. Thankfully, there are enough tools to help you with this task. Whether you use Apache JMeter, Gatling BlazeMeter, or Loader.io, it’s up to you. All of these tools will simulate traffic surges and evaluate your website’s performance under various loads. Needless to say, these things should be done during your business’s most quiet time. Otherwise, it can simply crash.

Next, it’s wise to identify common user paths and see if there are any possible optimizations.

Also, test different scenarios – sudden traffic spikes, prolonged higher load, pushing the servers to their breaking point, and others.

After the test is done, analyze the results and take the appropriate action to fix the problems.

Create Plan B

Regardless of your preparation, things can go wrong. Thus, having a contingency plan is a must for Black Friday. It’s, without a doubt, the most important day of the year for commercial websites, so you can’t afford to take any chances.

So, consider all potential issues that can occur. It doesn’t have to be your fault as well. Think about mitigating third-party failures. For example, what if your payment gateway malfunctions or goes offline? In this case, creating a second or even a third payment option is a great idea. You can still display only one option on your website if you have preferences, but you should definitely have at least two others ready to go at a moment’s notice.

When it comes to inventory, make sure you have different scenarios for different problems. For example, if your most popular product goes out of stock, you can create a waitlist where customers can buy the product at the current price, and you can deliver it at a later date.

Finally, have a plan B for any technical issues that may occur.

Mitigate Technical Issues

If there is one thing you can count on on Black Friday, it’s massive online traffic. So, you must prepare yourself accordingly. Ensure your website is optimized for speed by compressing images, enabling browser caching, and minimizing JavaScript. A faster website improves user experience and reduces the risk of customers abandoning their carts due to slow load times. In fact, websites that load in just one second have 300% more conversions than those loading for 5 seconds. Moreover, about 70% of users are adamant that website speed affects their purchasing decisions. Most importantly, a recent study showed that every second delay in page load time costs you a 7% reduction in revenue.

Needless to say, Black Friday is the single day of the year when your website faces its biggest challenge. So, to mitigate all technical issues, you need to ensure your website infrastructure is ready for the challenge.

If you are already a HostArmada client, you have nothing to worry about. We offer the best cloud hosting products on the market, and website speed, security, and stability are our main focus (as they should be yours as well). Our cloud-based infrastructure allows for generous buffer zones, covering almost all traffic surges. Moreover, we pride ourselves on our robust security, and due to our cloud technology, overloading a server, leading to website downtime, is practically impossible.

So, if you’re wondering how to mitigate all infrastructural problems, don’t worry. That’s our job. Yours is to go to our plans and secure the best hosting provider on the market before Black Friday.