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If shopping is like a sport, Black Friday is the ultimate showdown. You’d best get your Black Friday marketing strategies ready. You’re not alone – every business will have their own Black Friday marketing campaign, so here are some ways to make your business stand apart from the crowd.
Skip the early morning madness.
Instead of forcing your customers to get up while it’s still dark out, invite them to hit snooze. It doesn’t make sense to try and compete with big stores for early-morning deals, so save your special sales and promotions for later in the day – noon and later. You can still open at your regular time, but there’s no need for you and your staff to be on dawn patrol.
Be sure to let your customers know about your sale well ahead of time both in store and online. Posters, status updates, Instagram sneak-peeks of sale items or even a Twitter countdown will help build a sense of excitement.
Offer gift cards.
Gift cards remain a hugely popular holiday gift — consumer group Choice estimates $2.5 billion is spent a year on gift cards in Australia. .
Gift cards are also great for business. Customers of Square sellers spend 600 percent more on gift cards in December than any other time of the year, according to our findings. They also encourage overspending – a 2016 study by First Data found that 75 percent of American consumers with gift cards spent an average of $27.74 USD more than the amount on the card.
All of this goes to show how important it is to have your gift cards ready to go — and on prominent display — before Black Friday hits. Once you get your Square Gift Cards, read our tips on how to sell a ton of them this holiday season.
Find your hook.
When creating Black Friday marketing campaigns, think specific and unique. What can your business offer that’s better than the competition? If your shop stocks a lot of limited-edition, local or handmade items, for example, focus your promotions around those. Whatever you choose to be your marketing focus, get the word out to your customers and get them excited to pay your store a visit on the day.
Team up with other small businesses.
If can be tough to make your voice heard over the advertising blitz of corporate chains around the holidays. Partner with other small businesses in your neighbourhood and focus your efforts on a common goal: attracting shoppers. This can include everything from planning a joint shopping event to splitting the cost of an advertising campaign. The greater the number of participating businesses, the more tempting your promotion is for shoppers.
Make it a party.
To entice customers into your store, make Black Friday shopping an event. Put on music, serve snacks and drinks or even host special demonstrations to make your store feel more festive. As with other Black Friday marketing strategies, email your customers and take to social media to get the word out about your event and any sales you’re offering.
Give back.
Organise Black Friday marketing campaigns that make a positive difference. In addition to helping your community, it can be good for your business. According to a study 77% percent of consumers are likely to spend more with a brand demonstrating community responsibility.
Team up with a local food bank or shelter and offer customers a discount or free gift with purchase when they donate a non-perishable food item or gently used clothing. Promote your fundraising efforts on social media with a designated hashtag and spread the message by inviting your fans to tag their friends in the post.
Bundle products together.
Another great Black Friday marketing idea is to bundle products together instead of selling them individually. Not only do gifts packs make great presents, they’re also a great way to upsell customers to a slightly higher price point. You could even offer a discount if customers buy three related items.
Reward your social media fans.
Growing your social media engagement is a must-do in today’s marketing landscape. Sharing great content does the heavy lifting here, but if you want to give your social media accounts an extra boost this holiday season, try incentivising your customers with special discounts.
Starting on Black Friday, offer a special deal every day throughout the holiday shopping season, like 25% off sweaters one day or 15% off shoes the next. Post a discount code for customers to mention at checkout. Don’t forget to include the hashtag #Blackfriday (and preferably another one that’s unique to your business) for Twitter and Instagram.
Offer specific exclusive discounts.
Black Friday marketing strategies often involve discounts, but how about offering special discounts to students, locals (this is a popular strategy for venues like theatres) or other local business owners?
Offer an incentive to spend.
Give customers reason to spend, or spend again. Try giving them 10% vouchers with their receipt, to be redeemed the next time they spend in store within a certain period. Or, as Black Friday is all about gearing up for Christmas, give customers deals that can be applied to their gift shopping in the weeks to come.
Stay open late.
We already talked about not opening up shop early on Black Friday. However, it could make sense to stay open late for people avoiding the day’s madness. If you switch up your hours as one of your Black Friday marketing strategies, be sure to let your customers know in one of your marketing emails, on social media and on your website.
Go the extra mile.
Offer something special as part of your Black Friday marketing campaigns. That could mean offering free gift wrapping or a free greeting card with every purchase above a certain amount. Think about what would delight your customers and be of value during this busy time of year. For example, giving out helium balloons to customers’ children, or offering a more generous return policy.
Keep the queues moving.
When you find yourselves with a Black Friday rush on your hands, make sure you’re keeping the queues running and your not turning away any customers. Having a portable payments solution like Square means you can accept all major credit cards, and even get your team out taking payments on the shop floor.
