If you own an e-commerce business or working in the e-comm industry, you know that Black Friday/Cyber Monday is going to be one of the most important dates in your sales calendar. Historically, this trend has been increasing every single year and e-comm sales have grown significantly on Black Friday/Cyber Monday. 

This year, 2020, has been especially significant for the e-commerce industry due to the pandemic caused by Covid-19. The fact that the vast majority of people with purchasing power is spending more time at home influenced an increase in online sales. We are now witnessing an exponential growth of e-commerce businesses like never before! 

Taking all factors into consideration, we are safe to presume that Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales are going to be one of the best opportunities for you. And we want to make sure that you capitalize not just on increasing your sales but setting yourself up for success in the long run.

To do that, you’ll need to consider three things when setting up your campaigns and optimizing your campaign strategy: 

1. Real-time data tracking
2. The lifetime value of your customers
3. Urgency

Campaign Optimization Strategy 1 | Real-Time Data Tracking

Presuming that you’ve previously set up your analytics correctly, during Black Friday/Cyber Monday, you’ll want to follow your data closely. Here’s why:

There is a high chance that at some point you’re going to start noticing diminishing returns. They will happen because you’ll max out on the ideal target customers that you have. You only have so many!

Friday and Saturday will probably be astonishing, and you’ll have a great CPA. But don’t relax too much. Trends show that after you’ve maxed out on your ideal target customers, your CPA will slowly increase, and at some point, it’s just not going to be profitable anymore. You do not want this to happen on Cyber Monday! This day should be the culmination of the entire weekend.

Solution

This is where real-time data tracking comes into play. In order to optimize and get the most value out of your ad campaigns, you’ll need to pay close attention to the:

• Customer segments,
• Product segments,
• Acquisition channels,
• Type of devices, etc.

Have your team of data analysts segment the data instead of looking at your CPA as a high-level number. The number itself won’t tell you much, other than you should react right away if you want to reach your sales target.

There is no reason for you to make decisions based on averages and overall data. Answer the questions like: “What is the CPA on

• Mobile devices,
• This age group,
• Campaign “D”,
• Product “A”,
• Desktop?

This way, you’ll be able to turn off campaigns that are not profitable right away and focus your attention on the customer segments and acquisition channels that are performing the best. In return, you’ll get the most out of the resources that you’re investing during these sales days.

Campaign Optimization Strategy 2 | The Lifetime Value of Your Customers

We at ConversionAdvocates are passionate about spreading the word of long-term goals. Even though Black Friday/Cyber Monday are great days to finally reach those magical KPIs – don’t focus 100% on short-term sales. This is too good of an opportunity to waste it on a one-time spike in sales. 

Solution

It’s easy to say: “Think long-term.” But what does it actually mean? 

In the term of customers, especially during BFCM days when you’ll have a lot of potential new customers and lead, you’ll first need to answer these questions:

1. Who are my customers?
2. What kind of relationship can I have with them?
3. What will they gain from this relationship?
4. How will this relationship impact my online business?
5. Can I leverage this relationship?

Instead of looking at your customers as nameless users, you’re trying to convince on this one weekend to buy a product on discount from you, try to find ways to initiate a relationship with them. This will open your eyes to numerous opportunities that will help you grow your business.

This way of thinking will relieve you of that BFCM stress. You don’t have to chase a huge sales spike that will crumble down the next day. This sales weekend could be a great opportunity for you to introduce your product to the new potential customers, capture their attention, and start nurturing a relationship with them. They will convert at some point – when they’re ready. And they will not forget you! 

Change your BFCM philosophy. Don’t look at how many sales you can get, but how many relationships can you build. Click To Tweet

Campaign Optimization Strategy 3 | Urgency 

During the BFCM days, you’re going to be competing for your customers’ attention with numerous competitors. Your target market will be flooded by countless offers, and they’ll all be great! The trick is to stand out.

Solution

This is where two things will come into play:

1. Your in-depth understanding of your target market and buyer persona
2. Creating a truly exclusive offer that will solve their No. 1 problem

The short-life concept of BFCMmmakes it clear that your offer has a time limit (but make sure you underline it). But, the majority of users are aware that there are other sales weekends and come December – another big sales cycle. Also – your competition is offering the exact same thing, so why should they choose you over them?

This BFCM weekend you’ll really want to add some extra value that will make your customers go: “OMG, this is so incredible! I can’t pass on this offer. I need to have it NOW!”

Play the surprise card. Use your ad campaigns to give them something extra. Something they didn’t even know they needed until you’ve presented it to them. 

Some Final Thoughts

The answer to the question: “When should we start preparing for the Black Friday/Cyber Monday?” is very simple. You should have been preparing for the BFCM weekend since last BFCM weekend. 

If you’ve been:

• Continuously optimizing and testing different offer packaging,
• Tracking your analytics,
• Segmenting your audience 
• Analyzing how does which segment work

You’ll be more than fine.

But if you didn’t – this weekend will be the best opportunity you ever had to make strong foundations for the upcoming Christmas sales cycle and every sale to come.

Do your best to test as many options as possible, capture as many new potential customers as you can, segment them, and finally nurture the relationship with them. If you play your cards right and do the campaign optimization properly, these users will become loyal customers that will help you grow your business exponentially. 

Have some questions?