While spring is just rolling in to Southern Africa, the year is slowly turning its thoughts towards celebration and relaxation at the end of the year. Between now and then there’s a few key marketing milestones to consider – and Black Friday (with its cousin Cyber Monday) should be a critical part of that planning!

Here are Zebra 360 Online Marketing’s top tips for your Black Friday marketing efforts this year.

What on Earth is Black Friday?

Black Friday started as a major ‘sales’ day in stores for residents of the United States of America, the day after they celebrate Thanksgiving. Stores took advantage of the fact that the day after Thanksgiving in the USA is a ‘public holiday’ and gave people an opportunity to shop at ridiculous prices.

In turn, Cyber Monday rose as the tech world’s answer to the door-busting antics of Black Friday (because people get serious hurt! Have a search on YouTube – you’ll be shocked!), with a focus specifically on computing and technology. Since its fairly humble beginnings, the phenomenon has spread worldwide – and your brand needs to be in on the excitement!

So, How Do I Get My Slice of the Black Friday Pie?

Firstly, this is definitely an arena where the early bird gets the worm. You need to start planning your Black Friday or Cyber Monday campaigns now – and not wake up at the last minute!

A smart strategy is an early one. Tactics will vary according to your specific industry and product, but think of ways to make clever use of contests, giveaways, email blasts, smart advertising across platforms and the use of discounts and coupons. Remember that the ‘occasion’ is highly associated with receiving goods at severely discounted prices in its native origin of the USA, so you may want to consider a giveaway or contest that aligns you with this region, or at least make your product look particularly appealing to your potential customers on this critical marketing date.

Omnichannel marketing is going to be key here. Make sure everything is co-ordinating smoothly, so customers simply can’t miss out on the opportunity to engage with your brand.

Why a Giveaway? What’s In It For The Brand?

Remember that data is key to your overall marketing success. Giveaways and contests are an undoubtedly good way to gather a lot of data in one.

They’re also eye-catching, pushing your brand to the front of people’s oversaturated awareness. Contests can actually be a fantastic ad alternative, pumping up anticipation, excitement and engagement among your target audience. They also offer a good jumping-off point for other marketing efforts, allowing you to push traffic to other parts of your site or other campaigns you are running. Be it sales or followers you are searching for, a contest might be your best avenue to drive them.

What else can I do to market for Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

Giveaways aside, there’s a ton you can do to boost your brand profile at this time.

  • Irresistible offers drive attention: Low prices are the theme of the day, so let attractive bargains net you even more customers
  • Ensure you are ready: Get your tech team working! Whatever your plans for marketing on Black Friday, make sure your service and advertising channels are ready to launch it smoothly. If people have difficulties accessing your content, they will move on. Plenty of other deals in the black sea, after all.
  • Amp up the engagement: People will be actively seeking special deals at this time, so make sure yours are visible. Smooth email campaigns, clear calls to action and attention catching advertising are key.
  • Target your efforts: Hone in on different demographics. Use user behaviour to establish clear strategies for different people. Don’t try and make an all or one solution.
  • Video is king: A well place video content effort has a great chance of driving traffic, so don’t be afraid to use it.
  • Incentivise your sales: A free gift here and there may make the difference between making a sale or not. Flash sales can also be a great sales driver.
  • Use some targeted PR: Utilise influencers, other pages targeted to your niche and any other helpful platforms to help boost your visibility in this saturated space.

Provided you remain transparent and open through the pitch process, Black Friday can be an amazing sales opportunity for your brand. People know it’s a day where your aim is to drive sales- the key is to create enough interest and visibility that they opt to spend their hard-earned bucks with you rather than your competitors.

Remember that if you need help creating the perfect Black Friday or Cyber Monday marketing strategy for your brand, Zebra 360 Online Marketing is always here to help.