With Black Friday just around the corner, it’s a pivotal time to pin down your digital marketing strategy to boost sales and entice new customers to your website. Black Friday season is always an exciting opportunity to get in those pre-Christmas offers, when companies worldwide benefit from one of the biggest buying weekends of the year.
Originally an American trend, Black Friday has swept the UK and presents a great window to increase sales and your online presence. Last year alone, £9.42billion was spent over Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with 61.49% of that accounted for online. So how do you reel in clients and ensure that your marketing strategy is on point and ready to go live? Our top five tips will help.
1. Promote exclusive Black Friday products and services
Firstly it’s key to consider what will make you stand out from your competitors. What are you doing differently to your usual services and products that would make people want to hit that “buy now” button?
Is there an exclusive product or service you can release exclusively for the Black Friday weekend or a one-time-only package deal? Consumers would feel more inclined to buy due to the limited edition factor.
2. Use email marketing to your advantage
If you’ve got a database of clients’ email addresses, send out a newsletter informing your loyal customers of what they can look forward to for Black Friday. Providing a discount for the weekend is also a beneficial way for sales to come through.
Email marketing is always a great way to showcase your latest ranges and shout about the exciting upcoming online events and deals. Plus, it makes them aware that you offer special Black Friday deals. It’s an inexpensive yet effective tool to keep tabs on how well your email marketing is performing.
3. Give a percentage of profits to a charity
Supporting charity always brings a feel-good factor for companies and customers alike. By donating a percentage of your profits from Black Friday weekend, you fund a worthwhile cause close to your heart, and customers will also be more enticed to purchase goods from you to do their bit for charity.
You can promote this on your website and social media and request that the charity in question does the same to share the news of the collaboration. This increases your reach to a new market and showcases positive PR for your online presence.
4. Think about investing in paid-for adverts
With all this effort going into building a strong marketing strategy for Black Friday, why not try paid-for adverts online? This works a treat on social media platforms such as Facebook or pay-per-click on search engines. An experienced agency such as Brace can construct the perfect campaign for you.
We work to your budget, the market you want to reach and the products you want to push for the season. You want to stand out online so this is a great chance to get noticed by new customers. Also, think out of the box for the overall look of the adverts. Everyone will be posting the same theme and idea so try out something inventive that will make people look twice and remember the company.
5. Do a test run to ensure that the site is working fully
Finally, make sure that your website can handle the increased visits you’re set to experience during Black Friday weekend. Broken links, bugs and missing delivery information can put people off and if your site isn’t functioning properly or loading slowly, and they’ll simply go elsewhere.
Test your website as if you were an external customer visiting for the first time. Does it look trustworthy and secure so that people feel comfortable handing over their details? Does it look welcoming and easy to shop around when looking for products and prices? What is the checkout experience like? Is it simple and straight forward? These steps make all the difference.
For companies and shops, Black Friday is one of the most important marketing events of the year. These suggestions are a great way to generate more sales and bring in customers who will return to you in the future. By trying out our tips you’ll be fully prepared for the weekend and this will set you up nicely ahead of Christmas. For more advice and guidance on how to improve your online presence during Black Friday, speak to Brace to see how we can assist.
