As one of the biggest shopping days in the UK, Black Friday is sure to cause a rush of shoppers to both online and high-street stores offering huge discounts and one-off deals. In fact, Brits plan to spend an estimated £4.8 billion on Black Friday and Cyber Monday purchases this year (according to Finder.com) which despite a drop from previous years, due to the financial strains of the pandemic, this is still a huge opportunity for businesses to boost their sales.
Social media plays a huge part in driving visitors to online stores for Black Friday. So it’s essential to make sure your channels are prepped in advance for promoting special offers, as well as being ready to respond to an influx of customer service requests. Here are nine tips to help you to smash it this Black Friday weekend.
1. Prepare your social media profiles
According to eMarketer, Facebook drives the most referrals to eCommerce sites. But Instagram and Pinterest are the most contextually relevant and influence buyers the most.
However, if you’re trying to reach a young audience, using TikTok for your eCommerce marketing could also be key. Then there’s Snapchat and Twitter. They can also play a role in driving online sales, but aren’t as influential. So when you’re preparing your social plan for Black Friday, prioritise the channels which can make the most impact for your audience.
Make sure to also factor in your brand’s personal performance on each one. Update your profile pictures, cover photos and shopping links to highlight your Black Friday sale. Think about who uses each channel and push the content which will appeal to them most. Over on Instagram, consider using shoppable posts to drive sales from directly within the platform.
2. Ensure you can respond quickly to messages
Your Black Friday social media strategy isn’t just about pushing promotions. It’s also about customer service. And it’s extremely important to get this right.
Black Friday is one of the busiest shopping days of the year, so be prepared for an influx of messages, comments and posts asking all sorts of product questions. If you don’t respond in a timely manner, you’ll start getting complaints and questions on your promotional posts. This helps you provide great service, promote trust and nurture interaction with your followers. After all, social media is about being social!
Don’t overdo it too. Shoppers can quickly become immune to a stream of so-called limited-time offers. Moderation is the key to success here. Test a few calls-to-action and see what works for you instead of bombarding your audience with constant sales pitches.
3. Create a buzz around your offers
Start posting about Black Friday early to generate some excitement about your upcoming promotions.
Use hashtags like #BlackFriday and #CyberMonday to make your deals visible to a wider audience. Or, if you have a strong social following, consider inventing your own custom hashtag.
Post countdowns, sneak peeks and slowly reveal your top deals to build anticipation. If you intend to donate any of your profits to charity or plan to add free gifts to packages, share the details. You should also ask your followers what products they’d like to see reduced, as this kind of interaction is key to making sure they check back in on Black Friday.
Build a sense of urgency around your offers by using phrases like ‘while supplies last’ and ‘for a limited time’. But only use them in posts about your juiciest deals, so followers will be ready to bag them the moment they go on sale.
4. Use all the resources at your disposal
Take the time to look at your past performance and social metrics. Ask yourself what performed best in the past. What channels are most popular? What kind of content drums up engagement? Am I attracting the right audience? You could also conduct some A/B tests to definitively find out what posts work best.
To make sure you have plenty of interesting content to share, you can also go through past posts and user-generated content. Share the best bits with a Black Friday twist – let followers know this is their chance to bag products at a reduced price.
5. Plan and schedule content in advance
While this may be an obvious one, do not wait until the last moment.
As Black Friday approaches, store owners will have an endless to-do list. So organise your social posts and ads way in advance. This will enable you to publish consistent and creative social content no matter how busy it gets. Use social media software like Sendible or Hootsuite to schedule posts, and schedule your ads in Ads Manager.
6. Create exclusive posts for social
Creating exclusive content for social media gives people a reason to follow you. Otherwise, they may miss out.
Post sneak peeks, exclusive deals and behind the scenes snapshots as you prepare for Black Friday. Because social media is all about two-way communication, you can also share posts and polls looking for feedback and opinions.
Social media is ideal for promoting lifestyle-oriented products like clothing and beauty. So, in the lead up to Black Friday, share stylish gift guides which will get people thinking about their holiday shopping in advance. This is a great way to turn casual browsers into Black Friday buyers.
Use your gift guides to highlight products that complement each other. You might want to use social media influencers to help boost product visibility and sales.
7. Appeal to locals
Shoppers are searching for local businesses more than ever! According to Facebook data from last year, clicks on searches for local businesses increased globally by 23%.
If you run a small business, showcase your local pride. Or, if your store is bigger, highlight activity in local branches. You should post about products you source from local suppliers or community causes that you support.
If you offer click and collect options, make sure to let your followers know about that too.
8. Up the stakes on the day
To drive awareness of your Black Friday deals, consider running a social media competition. As your fans like, share and comment to enter, word of your sale will spread far and wide.
Some giveaway ideas include gift cards, popular products, and festive party packs. But try to get creative and come up with something unique to your brand.
9. Make social media the gift that keeps on giving
Black Friday is the first big buying event of the holiday season. So make sure you take advantage of the influx in visitors and social media engagement.
As well as focusing on sales, use this opportunity to gain new followers, email sign ups and reviews. Offering giveaways, coupons and exclusive discounts may help you do this.
Building up these long term connections will help you turn one-off buyers into loyal customers. So you should see an increase in repeat sales for the rest of the holiday season – and even into the new year.
Happy Black Friday!
This will be another big Black Friday for eCommerce sellers, so make the most of it with social media, email marketing and advertising. But make sure you stay true to your brand while doing it. Don’t be afraid to make jokes or go against the grain, because social media followers are more likely to engage with an authentic brand. Good luck!
