Make this Black Friday and Cyber Monday one of your most successful sales days throughout the year.
Get the most value from Black Friday and Cyber Monday by using these five creator-approved (and affordable) techniques for increasing the sales of your business and to increase customers' orders.
The leaves change colors. The air gets more crisp. The leftover Halloween candy has their new homes in hidden places throughout your office.
If this sounds like the beginning of November in your home, then it's likely that your house is a lot as mine.
However, this month of celebration isn't just great for parades, overeating, and families gatherings.
Also, it has two of the largest retail days of the season all in one weekend.
Because you don'thave to fight the odds in order to make a profit and reach more customers than you have ever. In fact, if you prepare your website and product pages ahead of the time, you'll be able to spend the day on Black Friday like it was designed to:
Then, you can relax, shop on the internet, and debating who should get the leftover pie.
Today, we'll prepare you with practical strategies for getting your products polished for the holiday shopping season and selling more with smart discounts and promotions.
Before we begin to do that, let's take some time to review the details and ensure that we're all on the same page.
What is Black Friday?
In the eyes of Americans, Black Friday is one of the holidays that is so associated with Thanksgiving that they're times simultaneous events -- however there's some disagreement about whether this is a positive thing or not.
What you must be aware of regarding Black Friday:
Black Friday is usually the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States.
Black Friday is one of the parts of Cyber Weekend, the five-day weekend which begins with Thanksgiving and concludes on Cyber Monday.
Black Friday is expected to generate about $17 billion this year. Cyber Monday 2021 is expected to bring in over $11 billion .
And here are the details about Cyber Weekend 2021:
Thursday, November 25, 2021: Thanksgiving
The 26th of November is Friday. 2021: Black Friday
Saturday, November 27, 2021 The Small Business Saturday
Sunday, November 28, 2021 The Cyber Monday Eve
Monday, November 29 2021: Cyber Monday
One thing to be aware of is that, while Black Friday and Cyber Weekend owe their origin to retail stores located in the United States, it's an worldwide celebration. The retailers around the globe see massive upticks in sales and visits.
So whether your customer base will be celebrating Thanksgiving on this Thursday, or is spread across the world, Black Friday is an chance for all.
The online holiday market is expected to hit a record $207 billion in the U.S. between November and December, an increase of 10% over 2020. Cyber Weekend is predicted to contribute 36 billion dollars of these sales.
Altogether, experts predict that the five-day period between Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday will comprise more than 17% of the online holiday revenue in 2021.
What does Black Friday mean for online creators?
Tread carefully, though be aware that not all deals are made equal.
Should you offer Black Friday coupons?
70 percent of American consumers actively sought out promotions as well as coupons during their holiday shopping in 2020.
It's easy to answer the reason -- who would want to spend money they can conserve? And then there's an answer that's not so obvious.
Deal shopping can make people happy.
This is what Dr. Paul J. Zak , professor of economics and neuroeconomics had to say on the results of his research on the psychological and physiological effects of couponing:
"...not just make people who use coupons more relaxed as well as less stressed. They also feel less anxious, however, obtaining coupons -- however difficult as it might be to believe -- is physical evidence that shows it is much more pleasurable than receiving gifts."
The differences weren't only on an emotional basis. In the study, shoppers who got a coupon of $10 received a boost of 38% in oxytocin levels and were 11percent happier than shoppers who didn't get vouchers.
Oxytocin can be referred to as "love hormone" . This is what we think of when we hear the warm-and-fuzzies and, for the participants of Dr. Zak's research, that's the way they felt after they were presented with a gift card.
This is all to say that coupons definitely offer a great deal of value to customers. And it's higher than the average number on how much they can reduce.
On the other hand, you can offer a price which isn't worth it and competitors will be left your mark in post-shopping dust.
When you only offer promos every few months such as Reuven consumers, they are more likely to avail of those deals.
Plus, if you make these promotions available to a select group of customers or for a limited amount in time, then you could leverage the scarcity principle through FOMO (the worry of being left out).
89 percent of Americans say that an offer of exclusivity could make them more inclined to buy from a company, while 48% believe that the exclusive offers will help them buy more quickly.
Or you could arrange your promotions to be staggered and provide exclusive perks for every day. You can also turn your promotion schedule into an individual timer, similar to as Standard and Strange used to do with the descending discount.
If you've finally decided that discounting isn't the best option for your business this year, follow the advice of Everlane 's book , and discuss the reasons the reasons why you will not offer discounts.
Offering a discount may be a bold move to take during the holidays, but it's essential. There's nothing wrong with it, and plenty of brands have lived to tell the tale of not offering discounts.
So, use coupons sparingly and plan them strategically. They're meant to help the profits of your business, however when you're using them all year round, you're just at risk of reducing your margins.
Five strategies to promote the holiday season
With that done we can get to the fun stuff. Here are five sales strategies that you can employ prior to and on Black Friday to make the maximum profit from the highest sales day.
#1. Bundle your product to market more
If people take to the streets or the web for that matter -- on Black Friday, they're ready to spend big on their purchases.
It's incredibly easy to make a bundle with . Let's run through it now.
On the dashboard , head to the Products page .
Select the "New item" button at the top right-hand corner. Select the "Bundle" category Then, select a simple but appealing name for your bundle.
Since this is the time for a Black Friday sale, you might want to let customers know that they'll be able to gain access to a rare offer or sale.
Next, select "Create Product".
Under "Products" You'll be able to see the various options of products you can add to your bundle. You can add or take products out of your bundle by toggling "Bundled".
(Note Note: Products in draft form such as pre-launched products, bundles, or bundles themselves can't be added to bundles.)
When you've decided on your price, click "Publish". You can either publish your bundle and offer it for sale right away or, if the bundle isn't ready to sell then you may make it available for pre-launch.
For publishing your bundle immediately Click"Publish. "Publish" dropdown, then complete the process and then publish your bundle.
And just like that, you have a new bundle for your business. Not using yet? Try a no-cost trial now to test out the Bundling of your products, and lots more to see for yourself .
#2. Create niche-ready gift guides
What is it that makes the time that runs between Black Friday and Cyber Monday the most popular time for the sale?
It's less about the days of the week and more about the mission of the shoppers. With the expectation of great savings Many shoppers tackle their shopping lists with a goal.
They're trying to eliminate the most gifts they can to make it easier for the Christmas season.
The sooner you begin, the better, but there's still plenty of time for everyone, even if you get into the game later.
Based on the Deloitte 2020 holiday retail survey The shopping patterns have remained relatively unchanged through the pandemic. About half of people are planning to wrap their Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving and 22% plan to complete their purchases during Cyber Weekend.
Heart-warmingly, there's more than 15% who have plans to get things done throughout December. Even there's no desired results from this Cyber Weekend, you are left with a month to make up the difference.
This also means that your gift guides that you design today can help increase to increase your profits from the holiday season, even after Cyber Weekend is over.
In the case of guidebooks for gifts, bear in mind that you need include more than the products you've created when designing these guides.
Take a look at your potential audience. Do they have children? Are they in a specific area of interest or industry?
For instance, if your offerings are geared towards those who are looking to master how to design and create It's likely that they and their friends -- are drawn to the arts.
Your guide to gifts could be focused on offering creative gifts that fit within the budget, and also talk about your planned Black Friday promotions for relevant products.
You could also develop multiple guides using pricing points similar to what Anthropologie is doing .
Alternatively, you could look at gift guides that cater specifically to the feelings your audience wants to invoke in their gift recipients.
Penguin Random House excels at this by linking their gift guides with the experience that shoppers want to provide for their loved people.
A relaxing afternoon or an evening to cherish? I'm not able to think of any better gifts to give, personally.
Basically, ask yourself:
What can your product and other gifts that they help your customer's social circle?
Then, make that answer the selling factor and reason for your gift guide. And remember that it doesn't need to be a physical product to be useful or be a good seller.
Because while the gift of knowledge doesn't have a price point but the items that give the same -- such as your online course -- have.
Of course, simply having a gift guide doesn't suffice. It is imperative to inform people about that gift guide, and that's where our third strategy excels.
#3. Run a drip campaign about upcoming promotions
Guides to gift giving are an excellent method to generate interest However, they're passive. They're not making leads more active and bring new people into the sales funnel.
In addition to providing users with info on your offerings and scheduled promotional offers in the gift guide, guide users to your landing page with the promise of keeping them up to date with exclusive selling information.
Landing pages capture more email addresses than signup box, pop-ups, and wheel-of-fortune type boxes in total, despite being one of the most ineffective forms of sign-up. This means that landing pages are among the ideal signup methods to increase conversion rates overall. .
For every new sign-up and existing user in your list of email subscribers, launch a pre-Black Friday promotion drip campaign. Think of it as a teaser for what's coming.
If you're not sure, hopefully this brings you some peace: it's a message which others are likely to be interested in and are receptive to during the season of Christmas.
47% of customers prefer email for receiving emails from retail stores, the majority of consumers believe they pay more focus on emails from brands during the holidays.
Email is the place to both tease and delight your subscribers with information about new product launches and special offers.
AVON has. They actually used a popup box over the course of five days by offering users an exclusive peep at new deals and securing almost 4,000 new leads .
Think about how much the list of subscribers could be when they combined it with a landing page. Given that popup boxes like the above only get a sign-up percentage of 3 percent This tactic can be extremely effective even without a landing page for a second source.
AVON isn't alone who uses this strategy. Amazon, whose Black Friday deals start earlier and get bigger every year, often launches drip campaigns that run prior to and through the sales period.
Notice how they included a gift guide as an element of the marketing campaign and also.
Amazon announced their largest year to date in the decade of 2020 however, while there's a lot of very legitimate arguments about them as a company, it's clear that the Black Friday strategy is definitely one to copy.
When should you copy it, most experts recommend starting your campaign about a month in advance in the fall, prior to the time of Halloween.
Also, they suggest making your offers explicit -- don't just say that you'll giving them a discount. Instead, inform them what you'll be discounting -- while remaining true to your brand style.
In the end, 60percent of shoppers have said that they'd buy from an email that offers a discount and free shipping. Because online courses (and other digital products) are all the timefree shipping directly to the buyer's email inbox, including a discount teaser to your email is sure to help.
The main point of this strategy is that, over all it is important to get acquainted with who you're sending emails to. What are their intentions and motives behind being on your list?
"We have best practices and guidelines," explains Nate Wright of Small Biz Triage who has designed hundreds of Black Friday drip campaigns for clients "But at the end of the day you must do the work before the timeframe to determine what your subscribers want."
If they signed up from your landing page, you already have a strong starting place -- they want the special offers no one else is getting.
This is exactly what you should give them.
We'll now discuss ways to increase the average value of your clients' orders. worth.
#4. Upsell and cross-sell your products
Upselling is when a business advises customers to purchase a more advanced or feature-rich version of a item at the time of checkout.
In the case of example, when customers choose a flower bouquet purchased from ProFlowers can choose to have the choice of buying the bouquet by itself or choose a more expensive arrangement and vase.
However it is where you suggest customers buy similar or complimentary products to their cart.
Apple the company that recommended three additional items to a client when they added a MacBook to their shopping cart is a perfect example of this.
Cross-selling and upselling are two ways to increase sales. the most significant benefit is that you can increase customers' average order values while they've already got their purses open and ready to make a purchase.
For maximum upselling and cross-selling effects, consider offering the possibility of a small discount when purchasing an upgraded product or a related one and seeing what happens.
You can make upsells for your product within a matter of minutes.
On your Products page select the item you would like to sell cross-sells or upsells on, then hit "Edit".
Go to the "Pricing" tab. Scroll down until you see the "Upsells" block.
Select "New upsell", then select those products that you would like to show during the checkout process and if you want to offer a discount.
If you choose to offer discount pricing, decide if you'd like to provide an amount or percentage-based discount. Then, decide what kind of price you'd like to provide.
Click "Create". The upsell will be displayed when a user attempts to buy your basic product.
You're now set to maximize your upselling and cross-selling opportunities.
In the meantime, let's celebrate today by giving a gift which keeps on giving to your customers andyour profits.
#5. Make the option of a payment plan
Although consumers are enthralled by shopping during the holiday season however, the fear of overspending budgets can hang on their shoulders.
74% of American adults reported that they had to occasionally pass over an item or choose alternatives that are more affordable for their holiday shopping because of their budget.
Learn how you can create payments plans for your products with .
On your Product page , pick the product you wish to create the payment option for, then click "Edit".
Select the "Pricing" tab and then choose "One-time or monthly installments".
Pay-per-month plans are available whatever length you want, though most creators prefer to stay between two to six months.
You can also determine the amount you will add a monthly fee to offer the payment plan or if you would like clients who are on plan payments to pay exactly the same amount as customers who made a one-time payment.
As per my plan I'm planning to charge extra per month for the benefit of making installments.
Pay-per-click plans allow you to spread the cost of your sales over a period of time, but they can frequently be the most important element in deciding whether a customer is making a purchase or avoiding your merchandise.
And given the spirit of generosity and good cheer that runs through the holidays offering your clients the extra time to pay will surely be worthwhile.
Get your turkeys into the same row
It's a month that holds special significance in the entrepreneur's heart and the online consumer's budget. Here's what you need to be aware of to get the most out of your sales:
Black Friday may have started in the United States, but it's an international trend.
The word phenomenon is the correct word. The period between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday could comprise 17% of all revenues from online sales during the holiday season in the coming year.
Do you want to make more sales on your products? Make more sales simultaneously with bundles of product. Many are already shopping for major deals during Black Friday, and makes bundles a breeze.
It's the time to give gifts this means that it's the time for buying gifts. Make it easier for your visitors by creating relevant guidebooks for gifts to the special people they love. The better, if these guides include your products and upcoming promotions.
Create a landing page on which to get your list of email subscribers and run a special drip-marketing campaign during the months that lead up to Black Friday. Make your promotions simple and make sure that people are excited for your upcoming holiday promotions.
Incorporate cross-selling and upselling into your payment process to increase the many customers enjoys during the holiday.
Offer a payment plan so customers who are feeling some financial burden can still afford the things that can bring their Christmas bright and bright.
Certain, these guidelines can help you increase your sales , but it won't hurt your profit margin But what's more important?
You'll get that last piece of Christmas pie, and then some time to take it all in, and if there's nothing to be grateful for then what is.