Black Friday, the consumer holiday synonymous with unbeatable sales, has grown tremendously in popularity, with consumers spending an estimated $9.12 billion in 2022. This annual shopping event not only delights shoppers, but also provides businesses with an opportunity to attract new customers and significantly increase sales. their income.
Here are 13 strategies businesses can implement to prepare for Black Friday.
[Read more: How Stores Can Prepare for an Unusual Holiday Season]
See what the big companies are doing
Your business may not be able to imitate Amazon or Target, but studying their promotional strategies can help you come up with additional ideas. How are these companies marketing their Black Friday sales, and what strategies are customers responding to?
For example, in addition to highlighting daily deals, Amazon offers a holiday gift guide for its customers. Offering a gift guide is a great way to draw attention to products your customers may not be aware of.
make a promotion plan
The best way to ensure a successful Black Friday is to start planning your promotions now. Decide what products and services you will promote, where you will promote them, and what types of deals you plan to offer. Having a rough marketing plan will help you decide what to focus on when you're feeling overwhelmed.
[Read more: How to Run a Successful Digital Marketing Campaign]
offer big discounts
If you want to attract new customers this year, you'll need to be proactive about offering deep discounts. Of course, the exact discount will depend on your industry and what your competitors are offering. However, according to a study by CreditDonkey, 43% of customers are willing to use a coupon if it offers at least a 25% discount.
Rethink your point of sale (POS) system
Businesses should accept as many payment options as possible. This means accepting credit cards, debit cards, gift cards, and contactless payments at a minimum.
A point of sale (POS) system like Square allows you to accept all of these payment types in one terminal. You also have the option to email or print receipts, and an analytical dashboard provides insight into your transactions.
[Read more: How to Choose a POS System for Your Small Business]
Please check stock
Supply chain and shipping issues are at an all-time high this year, so be sure to check stock levels before Black Friday arrives. Make sure you're fully stocked with the most popular items so you can make the most of Black Friday.
If you sell products online and through retail stores, you can offer your customers additional incentives to shop in-store. By encouraging in-store shopping, we can move more products and reduce delivery services.
Start hiring additional staff now
If you need additional staff to help out on Black Friday, you should start hiring now to cover your needs. Understand how many additional team members you will need and what it will take to train and prepare them.
Hiring is extremely difficult for many companies, and running a small business may feel like a disadvantage. You may consider offering bonuses to temporary employees who work throughout the holiday season.
Your business may not be able to imitate Amazon or Target, but studying their promotional strategies can help you come up with additional ideas.
make it simple
Finally, while it's always helpful to learn from established retailers, you shouldn't copy their efforts. Figure out one or two sales you want to focus on and put your energy into executing them well.
By keeping your plans simple, you can give your customers a positive experience and avoid unnecessary mistakes. It will also be easier to continue these efforts through Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday.
[Read more: Maximize Your E-Commerce Potential This Cyber Monday]
Create an email marketing campaign
Utilizing email marketing campaigns is a great way to inform your customer base about upcoming Black Friday sales. This approach allows businesses to show appreciation to existing customers while fostering loyalty through personalized, informative, and valuable emails to customers on their mailing list. Using loyalty discounts and special offers in these emails can attract customers and increase customer satisfaction and sales.
Consumers are inundated with email ads during the holiday season, so it's important to stay up-to-date with the latest information. To maximize your readership potential, avoid sending him one email full of information. Instead, spread sales information across multiple emails and stagger send times to establish a sense of urgency and encourage engagement.
Plan your shipment
During Black Friday, shipping companies charge higher rates due to increased volume, but many consumers expect companies to offer free shipping. And businesses that don't may find that consumers shop at competitors to take advantage of lower shipping rates. Therefore, strategically offering free shipping to customers who purchase above a certain threshold can be an effective strategy to earn additional revenue while meeting customer needs.
If free shipping isn't possible, offer a deal to customers who would like to pick up their order in-store. Doing so can lead to additional sales as consumers browse the store during pickup.
Prioritize search engine optimization (SEO)
To improve rankings, gain online attention, and target organic customers, businesses must prioritize SEO. However, it can take some time to see SEO-related results, so the sooner you start, the better.
Observe your landing pages and product pages to find areas for improvement. Tactics to improve your SEO include refreshing your copy and adding search terms to suit your audience, making your website more secure, and improving its speed to handle increased holiday traffic. This includes things like:
Next, take the time to make sure your website accurately lists relevant business information, such as store hours, policies, contact information, and location.
Please check the checkout process
Many consumers quickly abandon their carts when they encounter problems during the checkout process, which can lead to lost revenue. Prepare your business for Black Friday by using a payment provider built into your POS software rather than a payment system connected through an application programming interface. This streamlines customer transactions, ensures a quick and easy checkout experience, and strengthens consumer trust, while gathering valuable consumer data and insights to guide decision-making. It will look like this.
Additionally, using the software's native payment provider means your website won't redirect consumers to a third-party vendor to checkout, which can reduce checkout efficiency and lead to higher cart abandonment rates. There is a gender.
Enhance customer support
The Black Friday shopping season is a great time for businesses to acquire new customers, but with the increase in loyal customers comes additional questions and concerns that require additional resources. In preparation, companies should ensure they have sufficient staff to respond quickly to additional requests. Otherwise, customers are more likely to shop at a competitor who supports them.
In addition to in-store and phone support, we provide support to our customers through a variety of channels, including online support via live chat, email, and social media. Be sure to update the FAQ on your website. This helps answer some consumer questions without additional resources.
[Read more: How to Sign Up for the Small Business Saturday ‘Shop Small’ Map]
Consider using social media
Social media has a huge impact on consumer purchasing decisions, so businesses can benefit from leveraging it. However, without the right know-how, you may end up investing more resources in social media than you think.
To get the most out of social media, try advertising. Target local users by advertising to people in specific locations, such as major zip codes, cities, or states. Dynamic ads are another effective option for remarketing to audiences who have already expressed an interest in a particular product.
You can also make additional sales on social media using services like Instagram Shopping and TikTok Shops, increasing your revenue while gaining new audiences.
This article was originally written by Jamie Johnson.
CO— aims to provide inspiration from leading and respected experts. However, before making any business decisions, you should consult a professional who can advise you based on your personal circumstances.
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