Retail's biggest weekend of the year is back on the agenda!
Cake Agency | Shopify Plus Partner
The only eCommerce consultancy founded by retailers for retailers ??
eCommerce brands want to put their customers at the heart of what they do and BF/CM should be no different. Here are some of our key tips to have a successful campaign and keep your customers loyal.
It's that time of the year again, retail’s biggest weekend is back on our agenda! It may only be August but the earlier the better with Black Friday/Cyber Monday planning.?
We have split the event into 5 key steps:?GET READY, BE CREATIVE, BUILD-UP, BIG DAY?and?AFTERLIFE.
eCommerce brands want to put their customers at the heart of what they do and BF/CM should be no different. Here are some of our key tips to have a successful campaign and keep your customers loyal.
Get?your store?ready?for Black Friday & Cyber Monday…
Ensure your BF/CM campaign has the best chance of success by preparing your app or website for a?big?influx in traffic. Reviewing your store in advance allows you to outline opportunities for improvement and gives you the time to implement changes before the big event. An increase in conversion rate could save you a lot of media spend in November and keep the customers coming back once the promotion ends.
Some tips for what to look at to ensure your customers have a seamless experience:
Build up?your audiences before the event
If paid media is a large part of your marketing mix you may find that costs on key platforms increase over Black Friday and Christmas by up to 25%. We recommend warming up audiences before November at a lower cost and introducing them to your brand.
Focus on top of funnel objectives such as traffic and video views, and retargeting users who engage with this content during BF/CM. Platforms will find it easier to locate these users and they will be more inclined to spend with you during BF/CM if they are already aware and invested in your brand.
Another key objective before BF/CM is lead generation, yes, lead generation! Ask users to join your database so they can receive all your BF/CM email campaigns with bonus points if you gain their consent for SMS marketing too.
Be creative?with your messaging
Standing out on BF/CM is no easy task, with most major retailers opting for some level of Black Friday promotion. However, sticking true to your brand values is crucial in making sure your message lands with your audience.?
If you are not normally an offer-driven brand then think about what you could offer to customers that will bring value to them during this season. For instance, a free gift rather than a % discount or free next-day delivery.
Review past purchase data to see what incentive could work best for your audience. 49% of shoppers think their shopping experience would be better if retailers offered promotions or deals specific to past purchases. If you have a loyalty program you can choose to reward your customers with extra points during the BF/CM season or open up additional benefits in a hidden tier for a limited time only. Your existing customers are more valuable than new customers, so how can you reward them further?
Make?the big event?as automated as possible
Create a Black Friday theme with all components that will ensure you are communicating your proposition as efficiently and as engagingly as possible. A few examples of customisations to your theme:
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You can then launch your theme once your promotion starts - if you are on Shopify Plus you can take advantage of Launchpad to automate your markdowns for your BF/CM sale - no need to stay up until midnight to do this.
Update your email?flows so customers can be reminded of Black Friday based on their behaviour. For instance, use your abandon cart email flow to drive urgency and scarcity.
How to keep customers loyal in the?afterlife?of Black Friday & Cyber Monday?
As if the BFCM period isn’t hectic enough, the real hard work starts when the sales end. Discount shoppers can be fickle. For 64% of retailers, shoppers acquired during BF/CM have a?lower lifetime value?than those obtained at other times of the year.?
So how do you turn these bargain-hungry shoppers into loyal customers that will provide long-term value? You need to find ways to show new customers that it's worth paying full price to stay connected to your brand.?
Use your loyalty program to tell your new customers that you value them (and not just their BF/CM purchase). Take a look at?LoyaltyLion’s top post-BFCM retention tactics below:
Offer your new shoppers points for creating an account, clearly communicate the perks of your loyalty program, and tell them how many points they’ve missed out on by not becoming a member.
To encourage your new customers to become repeat purchasers, include points balances within post-purchase emails so they're aware of the points they’ve acquired. This will motivate them to return to shop with you sooner as they’ll want to redeem the rewards they’ve earned, and start collecting more points.?
2. Encourage customers to level up
Keep your holiday shoppers hooked by placing them in tiers within your loyalty program.?
74%?of customers are motivated to be loyal to a brand by feeling that they’re working towards a goal or reward. With something to aspire towards, they’ll be more likely to return to shop with you.
3. Get a headstart on growing next year’s customer base?
Who said your loyalty program just had to be a retention channel? Use your loyalty program to incentivise loyalty members to refer your store to a friend or a relative. After all, shoppers acquired through referrals are between 16% and 24% more loyal than non-referred customers.?
Make sure to share the love. Let your customers know they’ll unlock points and rewards for both themselves and the person they refer.
A sophisticated retention strategy will help you get the most from your new customers you’ve acquired during BF/CM. If you use these tactics effectively you will be able to drive store growth long after the holidays have ended.?
Take a look at?LoyaltyLion’s Black Friday Blueprint?to find out how to execute the perfect BF/CM experience for your customers this holiday season.?
Need some last-minute Black Friday support? Get in touch with Cake!