Our Chief Evangelist Mikko Rekola was asked to gather up a Black Friday and Cyber Monday guide with a fresh pack of ideas. This led to a viral LinkedIn article hitting more than 5,000 views within a day. Therefore, we thought to make something special for our dear Ellis users. In this article you will find the ultimate tips for BCFM 2024 along with quick instructions how to execute them with Ellis.
1. Include Second-Life Items in Your Black Week Offering
The climate crisis has shifted consumer sentiment, with many expressing mixed feelings about Black Week and similar sales events. A smart way to address this is by including second-life or refurbished items in your campaigns.
If your brand already has these items in stock, it’s an easy addition. If not, we’ve helped merchants create such campaigns by partnering with second-life service providers and marketplaces. Remember, giving a second-life gift is no longer limited to cars and expensive electronics—it’s relevant across industries.
Execute with Ellis:
Tag second-life items properly in Shopify. If you use a specific product tag, you can leverage this in your analytics. For example, you can compare customers who purchased new items, second-life items, and those who bought both. Later, this data can be used as a segmentation rule in the segmentation tool. A prime use case is creating target audiences of customers who have purchased used items and have a high CLV estimate.
2. Add Gift Cards to Your Black Week Campaigns
Gift cards are a no-brainer for most Shopify merchants, but their appeal has grown over the years. Consumers now see gift cards as a sustainable option, allowing recipients to choose their preferred items and purchase them when needed.
From a merchant’s perspective, gift cards offer upfront cash flow, and many aren’t fully redeemed, making them highly profitable. Incorporating gift cards into your campaigns can also boost customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Execute with Ellis:
Leverage the prebuilt advanced gift card analytics in Ellis. Navigate to the Sales tab and select gift cards to track detailed gift card sales and redemption patterns. This feature is especially useful during campaigns where gift cards play a central role in your sales strategy.
3. Leverage Old Data on Seasonal Buyers and Gift Shoppers
Surprisingly, many merchants underutilize their existing customer data for seasonal campaigns. Shopify provides excellent insights, and for long-term users, these data points are invaluable.
For those using loyalty or membership programs like Yotpo or Inveterate, you can analyze how campaign shoppers behave after discount-driven events. Start with Shopify’s analytics or take it a step further with tools like Ellis by Woolman, which supercharges data analysis and includes sales from Shopify POS.
Execute with Ellis:
Maximize the power of the customer segmentation tool. Create a new segment aligned with your strategy. For example, select customers who shopped during your Black Friday campaign last year or two years ago. Add additional filters, such as a minimum average order value or order frequency, to fine-tune the segment. Save the audiences for easy comparisons and export them for use in paid marketing or other channels.
4. Let SMS Be Your Guiding Star
SMS marketing is still underutilized in many European markets but offers incredible potential. If you act now, there’s time to activate this channel before Black Friday.
For example, one of our clients launched SMS campaigns just a week before Black Friday last year and gathered over 1,000 contacts in that short time. SMS became their best-converting channel—not just for Black Friday but for the entire holiday season.
Execute with Ellis:
Ensure UTM parameters are activated for your SMS campaigns. Add comprehensive UTM details beyond the default source and medium parameters. Once configured, track SMS performance in the Marketing & Traffic tab under the web traffic dashboard. You can conveniently compare SMS performance with other channels like email or paid marketing.
5. Capture Sales Over an Extended Time Window
Not all consumers will convert during Black Week, particularly in verticals where recent sales have been sluggish. Smart merchants plan follow-up campaigns throughout December to target those who interacted but didn’t convert.
For instance, special weekend discounts during December can help convert lukewarm leads into buyers. This strategy ensures you maximize sales potential beyond the core Black Friday/Cyber Monday window.
Execute with Ellis:
Clearly document the start and end dates of your Black Week campaign. Once it’s over, analyze results, focusing on both direct and indirect conversions. Use Ellis segmentation tool and filter e.g. with BFCM time period, discount codes, or products. For active traffic that didn’t convert, create specific audiences for paid social campaigns and marketing automation. Additionally, new email or SMS subscribers can be targeted with exclusive December offers.
Start taking full advantage of your BFCM data
Are you aiming to bust your BFCM targets with the power of data but something is blocking you? We believe that utilizing data should be easy, fast and accessible for all eCommerce teams. Have a chat with us and will help you making data actionable.