Boosting ecommerce sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday: Marketing channels, tips, and hacks

The importance of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales

Black Friday and Cyber Monday account for one of the biggest sales seasons every year. Also, this is the season when Christmas shopping begins. In the U.S. alone, the holiday season sales amounted to $964.4 billion last year, with a growth of 3.8% from the previous year.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are both shopping events that originated in the U.S. Black Friday has traditionally been for physical shopping and Cyber Monday for ecommerce shopping.

But over the last few years, both events have been associated with various forms of sales at all kinds of businesses. The popularity of these events has also increased so much that businesses in other countries are also adopting Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, adding their own twists. 

When are Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year?

Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving in the US. Cyber Monday is the Monday following Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

In 2024, Thanksgiving falls on November 28th. Therefore, Black Friday falls on November 29th, and Cyber Monday falls on December 2nd.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday ecommerce marketing 

An increasing number of ecommerce businesses are taking a multichannel marketing approach to major campaigns. Since Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales are more about providing great discounts and making profits through high volume, businesses face a huge amount of pressure to increase sales in order to make up for lost revenue.

The case is no different for ecommerce businesses eyeing the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale days. The right kind of offers and marketing can attract new customers, increase customer loyalty, boost brand recognition, and contribute to the bottom line.

Channels to consider for Black Friday and Cyber Monday marketing as an ecommerce seller

• Blogs

• Email marketing

• Influencer marketing

• Newspapers/magazine advertising

• Paid advertising

• Review sites

• SMS marketing

• Videocasts

• Websites

Multichannel marketing helps you reach your target audience through their desired communication channels, effectively convey benefits or offers, reinforce messaging, and increase sales. Let's go over some of the key digital channels you have to ace to win this holiday season.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday SMS marketing 

With open rates of over 95%, SMS marketing is a cornerstone of digital marketing channels. As an ecommerce business, the faster you can reach your customers, the easier it is to make the sale. SMS is one of the channels that gives you fast reach.

What's not to like about text messages? They're simple, easy to create and send, and have high returns. When you're running limited-time deals, it's easier to notify customers and get engagement via SMS messages than via other digital channels. 

But remember, you can't send text messages until your customers opt-in to receive them. So start building your list before you begin planning your SMS campaigns.

Pro tip: Segment messages according to your audience's demography, interests, and purchase history. Schedule your texts to provide notice ahead of and during peak shopping hours to maximize reach. Use short and strong CTAs like Shop now, Get your discount, and Use this coupon code with your website links.  

Black Friday and Cyber Monday WhatsApp marketing

With three billion unique active users across the world in 2024, WhatsApp is a powerful tool for seasonal marketing campaigns.

It's like SMS marketing in that it helps you reach customers quickly and easily—but it does more: You can use eye-catching images, catalogs, videos, and emojis to pack a stronger punch. You can also have one-on-one conversations, resolve customers' issues, and build stronger customer relationships through WhatsApp. 

If you decide to do WhatsApp marketing for Black Friday and Cyber Monday this season, make sure to set up your WhatsApp business account, get customer opt-in for WhatsApp broadcasts, and learn WhatsApp's features to streamline communication and maximize engagement.

Pro tip: Use engaging visuals, provide exclusive discounts or early access to sales for your WhatsApp subscribers, and leverage WhatsApp analytics to measure and optimize your campaigns for maximum effectiveness.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday email marketing

Automation capabilities? Check. Personalization techniques? Check. Ability to send as short or long a message as you want? Check. Dynamic content? Check. Viewable across different device types? Check. Cost-effective? Check.

As an ecommerce seller, email is one of the best channels you can market through for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It enables you to create a sense of exclusivity by tailoring your message to your customer's personal information and recommending products they specifically would like to buy. 

Since you can send elaborate emails for the same cost as simple, text-based ones, you can pepper your emails with customer testimonials, social links, pictures of items from abandoned carts, personalized product recommendations, links to different product categories, and more. The possibilities are endless with email marketing, making it many marketers' favorite channel. 

Pro tip: Consider offering post-sale incentives, like coupons for future purchases, or discounts for sharing referral codes with friends and family. Create workflows for different email options and let your email marketing software automatically send the next email based on the user's response or actions in regards to previous emails.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday social media marketing

While SMS, WhatsApp, and email are the best channels for communicating with your existing customers/subscribers, social media marketing (both organic and paid) is a great way to bring in new customers. Social media marketing helps spread the word about your business and reach new target markets.

You don't have to worry about getting spam-reported or blocked when you post too much for the holiday season, as you're the one who owns your social channels. You can hold giveaways, run targeted ads, show demos, post product reviews, collaborate with influencers, offer behind-the-scenes glimpses of your business, give exclusive discounts in exchange for opting in to receive messages and emails... The possibilities are endless with social media, and you're only limited by your own creativity (and your brand guidelines). 

You can post content in multiple formats, such as images, videos, stories, reels, carousels, and polls, on different social media platforms.

Pro tip: Interactions with your audiences through other channels are mostly one-on-one and not visible to others, whereas your interactions via social media—such as comment threads and replies—can be visible to everyone. Addressing customer issues promptly will therefore improve your brand's image and increase sales.

Hacks to increase Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales

1. Understand last year's sales trends.

2. Look at general consumer trends.

3. Produce attractive marketing collateral.

4. Start promotions early.

5. Send personalized offers to existing customers.

6. Create hype even before the sale starts.

7. Use countdown timers to create a sense of urgency.

8. Place emphasis on the limited sale period.

9. Provide discount codes and coupons.

10. Give membership benefits.

11. Grant exclusive VIP access.

12. Minimize abandoned carts with follow-ups.

13. Bundle related products.

14. Provide free shipping/delivery.

15. Use re-targeting advertisements to close sales.

16. Continue post-sale re-targeting for the next sales season.

Closing thoughts

Massive discounts from ecommerce businesses are one of the best things about the holiday season. Consumers get great deals on goods, and sellers achieve record sales—so it's a win-win season for buyers and sellers alike.

With increased internet penetration, advancements in logistics, and competitive pricing, many ecommerce businesses are expanding their market potential and getting a global reach. To beat this tough competition means you have to sling every arrow in your quiver and reach your customers through every possible channel. By gaining a deep understanding of your customers and using an effective combination of marketing channels, you can position your ecommerce business for definitive success this upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday season.

Looking for an efficient software tool to help you do your marketing for this holiday season? Not sure which Zoho product will best serve your needs? Find out using the link below.

Zoho Campaigns vs. Zoho Marketing Automation