6 Last-Minute Tips for a Successful BFCM

As the holiday season rapidly approaches, so does one of the most anticipated shopping events of the year: Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM). For many ecommerce brands and retailers, this is a make-or-break moment that can significantly impact their bottom line.

But whether you finished prepping for the busiest shopping season months ago, or are still in the thick of it now, there’s no doubt you are feeling the pressure. So how can you ensure you’re making the most out of this highly anticipated shopping event – and finishing out the year strong?

To help you reach your goals this cyber weekend, we’ve compiled 6 last-minute tips from our top tech partners.

Keep reading for easy ways to optimize the online shopping journey and capture more revenue this holiday season.

6-Last Minute Tips from Our Tech Partners

#1 Recycle Your User-Generated Content (UGC)

Stamped.io suggests instead of creating new BFCM-specific assets, recycle your user-generated content (UGC) to save on costs and time. This might mean sharing customers’ photos on social media or including your best reviews in a BFCM promo email.

Reviews give customers the confidence they need to make their first purchase and are often more effective at driving sales than a typical marketing campaign. 

If you’re short on reviews, offer incentives like discounts and loyalty points to generate more review responses before the holiday season.

#2 Offer Pre-Paid Subscriptions

If you sell replenishable products, subscriptions are quick and easy to implement, and an effective driver of predictable revenue and customer retention, according to Yotpo. Consider offering pre-paid subscriptions for BFCM and the holiday season, which remove friction from the process of gifting a recurring order. 

And, ensure that your subscription provider integrates well with your other retention marketing tools — for example, offer loyalty points for a subscription, or set up SMS or email flows suggesting a subscription when someone leaves a good review on an eligible product. 

#3 Add QR Codes to Your Packaging 

Most Black Friday / Cyber Monday sales happen in retail and marketplaces, where brands likely have no clue who is buying and no way to follow up after. Brij recommends combatting this is by adding a QR code on your packaging, inserts, necks, or in-store displays. 

With every scan, brands can convert those anonymous buyers to owned audiences, reclaiming 1st party data and driving customer lifetime value.

Whether you choose to connect shoppers to product education, engaging content, or one-tap reorder and subscription opt-in, use this opportunity to pair with a strong offer and clear call-to-action that encourages repeat purchases.

#4 Create An Upsell Opportunity After Checkout

As a way to capture additional revenue without adding any unnecessary friction, AfterShip suggests adding a one-click upsell (OCU) page as an added upsell opportunity.

An OCU sits between your checkout and thank you pages, presenting shoppers that completed a purchase with relevant offers or related items without altering your existing checkout process. 

You can use this chance to serve up limited-time offers on related items based on purchase history. Their payment information is then pre-filled, making it genuinely ‘one click.’ 

#5 Curate Personalized Pop Ups On-Site

Justuno recommends curating personalized pop ups with your most impactful holiday messaging–from shipping deadlines to limited time offers and even user-generated content. 

By placing pop ups at key shopping touch points, like add to cart actions, cart abandonment, and return visits, you’re creating an engaging experience that ensures more time spent on-site and can impact the decision making process. 

Make sure your messaging and offers are not complicated. Instead, aim to be competitive and present pop ups with timed and persona driven offers. The ultimate goal is to help shoppers find the right product or service–and get them to checkout.

#6 Optimize Your Retargeting Campaigns

As you head into the busy shopping season, take the time to optimize your retargeting campaigns. Optimizing retargeting campaigns–commonly used to re-engage store and cart abandoners–can go a long way toward improving performance during the holiday season.

AdRoll suggests considering the following strategies:

1. Properly segment your audience based on behavior, interest, and/or actions.
2. Cap the frequency of ads to prevent ad fatigue.
3. Optimize your ad creative by testing everything, from ad formats to headlines to CTAs.
4. Use conversion tracking to help you make informed decisions.
5. Implement burn pixels to exclude shoppers who have already purchased.
6. Use dynamic ads to display products based on the shoppers’ browsing history.

You can also find more retargeting tips in AdRoll’s 2023 holiday guide.

The Final Stretch

For ecommerce brands and retailers, this pivotal shopping event represents a significant opportunity to bolster year-end performance. The pressure is undeniable, but embracing these quick and easy tactics in the final stretch will help you make the most of the busiest shopping season. 

» Looking for more ways to ensure a win this Black Friday–and beyond? We got you!

Join us on November 14th for a power-packed live webinar on 10 Priorities to Finish 2023 Strong that will set you on the path to year-end success!