Are you prepared to transform your Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) sales like never before? You heard it right!
With customers expecting everything at lightning speed and attention spans shrinking, engaging your audience has become more challenging than ever. But what if you had a powerful secret weapon to boost your BFCM sales in 2024—like a detailed BFCM marketing calendar or a BFCM checklist?
As we enter October and November, these power-packed months are gearing up to pave the way for your BFCM success.
But do you know the different ways you can use SMS to generate maximum revenue for this BFCM? If your answer is no, then you are definitely in for a treat!
We’re excited to share with you a customized BFCM campaign calendar to make your BFCM planning a little easier during this peak festive season!
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As the holiday season approaches, Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) becomes the most awaited time of year for eCommerce and D2C brands. It is the time when customers actively look for high-discount offers, rewards & VIP programs and flash sales. And the right BFCM planning to grab your customer's attention can help you turn this festive season's marketing frenzy into skyrocketing sales and loyal customers.
To ensure you have a record-breaking BFCM in 2024, here’s a comprehensive guide packed with BFCM strategies, planning tips, and actionable insights that will help you maximize revenue and customer engagement.
Whether you’re preparing early or need last-minute BFCM prep, these tips are designed to guide you through each stage of your BFCM campaign—from early planning to post-sale retention.
Starting early is crucial for any successful BFCM strategy. By planning well in advance, you give your brand enough time to set up campaigns, test different marketing tactics, and ensure a smooth execution.
1. Build a Detailed BFCM Calendar: A well-organized BFCM calendar is your roadmap to success. Include key BFCM dates for promotions, email sends, social media posts and SMS blasts. Make sure to schedule time-sensitive campaigns like flash sales and exclusive early access offers.
Pro Tip: Your BFCM calendar 2024 should have milestones and a checklist for every month starting from August. Ensure to include warm-up offers, content teasers, and inventory checks in your monthly BFCM checklists.
2. Build Your Subscriber List: The most important task in your August & September BFCM checklist is to start building your subscriber list. Adding new subscribers into your funnel will help you improve your conversions while reaching out to a larger audience.
3. Segment Your Audience for Personalized Offers: Audience segmentation is key to driving conversions during BFCM. Split your audience into segments such as VIP customers, first-time shoppers, and cart abandoners.
Each segment should receive tailored offers that cater to their behavior. You can also send personalized email, SMS & WhatsApp campaigns with customized product bundle deals to these target segments.
Example: VIP customers can get early access to your best BFCM deals, while new customers might receive a welcome discount.
4. Optimize Your Website for Conversions: Prepare your website for a surge in traffic. Website optimization techniques to improve loading speeds make navigation seamless and make your checkout process frictionless. It also lowers cart abandonments and increases conversions for your BFCM sale.
You can also consider adding BFCM banners and gamification pop-ups to promote time-sensitive deals and capture website traffic.
Pro Tip: If you’re running Shopify BFCM campaigns, use Shopify’s built-in features to track conversions, segment audiences, and manage stock levels efficiently.
5. Create Teaser Campaigns: In the weeks leading up to BFCM, create buzz around your upcoming sales. Use teaser emails, social media sneak peeks, and SMS marketing to build anticipation for your BFCM offers.
Pro Tip: Use countdown timers in emails, pop-ups and your website to gamify the experience and create a sense of urgency as BFCM approaches. You can also set up QR codes to divert your store footfalls to your website.
As October starts - BFCM draws closer, and now’s the time to finalize your BFCM promotion strategy. Even if you’ve left some things for the last minute, these tips will help you get your campaigns up and running in no time.
1. Refine Segmentation & List Cleaning: If you haven’t already, refine your customer segments and clean up your email and SMS lists. This will help you create the best BFCM deals for every segment and ensures your promotions are reaching the right people which increases your chances of a high BFCM revenue.
Pro Tip: Use previous shopping behavior to tailor last-minute BFCM offers. For instance, customers who abandoned carts last year could be targeted with a special discount on the same or similar products.
2. Prepare Teaser Campaigns and Flash Sales: Last-minute BFCM tips include running flash sales exclusive to your subscribers. Announce these via email and SMS campaigns and multiple channels for better engagement. Flash BFCM sales create a sense of urgency and are perfect for selling excess inventory or promoting seasonal items.
3. Optimize Mobile Shopping Experience: A significant portion of your BFCM traffic will come from mobile devices. Ensure your website is mobile-optimized, and consider offering mobile-exclusive deals to encourage quick purchases.
Pro Tip: Simplify the checkout process for mobile shoppers by enabling options like one-click purchases or guest checkout.
4. Fine-Tune Your Shipping Strategy: With increased orders, your BFCM shipping must be flawless. Offer discounted or free shipping and provide accurate delivery timelines. If possible, offer express or fast shipping to entice last-minute shoppers.
Pro Tip: Add a "cut-off date" for guaranteed delivery before the holidays to create urgency.
The moment has arrived! Your black friday, cyber monday strategy is in full swing, and it's time to execute your campaigns flawlessly. These final-stage tips will ensure your brand stands out amid the competition.
1. Run Interactive Contests and Giveaways: Engagement during BFCM is key. Run interactive contests on social media or email to keep your customers involved.
For Example: offer a prize or BFCM discount for participants who share their purchases or spread the word about your sale.
2. Leverage FOMO (Fear of Missing Out): Use BFCM banners and pop-ups to create urgency with limited-time offers. Messages like "Hurry, only 5 left!" or "Limited time only!" can push customers to make faster purchasing decisions.
Pro Tip: Offer time-sensitive deals like "BFCM: Deal of the Day" or "Black Friday Flash Sales" to create urgency.
3. Use Cart Recovery Strategies: Abandoned carts are common during BFCM, but you can still recover those lost sales. Set up automated cart recovery emails and SMS messages to remind customers to complete their purchases. Offer an additional discount or free shipping as an incentive to close the sale.
Example: "You left something in your cart! Complete your purchase within the next 24 hours and get 10% off!"
4. Run Cross-Selling Campaigns: Maximize order value by recommending complementary products during checkout. For example, suggest accessories or related products that customers can add to their carts at a discounted price.
Pro Tip: Use personalized recommendations to highlight and upsell top trending products based on the customer’s past purchases.
BFCM weekend may be over, but your work is far from done. Now is the time to focus on retaining the new customers you gained and driving repeat sales. Your BFCM report should highlight key learnings, but these strategies will help maintain your brand’s visibility.
1. Send a Thank-You Campaign: Send out a heartfelt thank-you message to all your BFCM shoppers. Include a small incentive like a discount code for future purchases, encouraging them to come back and shop again.
2. Launch a VIP Program: Reward your best BFCM customers by offering them exclusive perks such as early access to sales, VIP discounts, a membership rewards program, or first dibs on new product launches.
Pro Tip: Promote a "VIP Access Pass" for next year’s BFCM, giving loyal customers something to look forward to.
3. Request Feedback and Reviews: Post-BFCM is a great time to gather feedback. Send post-purchase emails & SMS to encourage customers to leave reviews on your site, share their purchases on social media, and give insights into their shopping experience. This can boost your social proof for future sales.
4. Start Holiday Promotions: BFCM may be the biggest sale of the year, but the holiday season is far from over. Keep the momentum going by rolling out holiday promotions and gift guides throughout December. Cross-sell products based on customer preferences to maximize your BFCM results.
Pro Tip: Send out reminders to check their holiday gift lists and offer free gift-wrapping or extended returns to sweeten the deal.
Planning and executing a successful BFCM ecommerce strategy takes time, effort, and creativity, but the rewards are worth it. From early BFCM calendar planning to post-BFCM retention, these tips and strategies will help you create one of the most successful Black Friday campaigns your brand has ever seen.
Need more help crafting your BFCM campaign? Use our BFCM Marketing Playbook to create a full-proof campaign. Follow the strategies mentioned and make 2024 your best BFCM yet!