Black Friday and its sibling, Cyber Monday, are almost here. These two have become the premiere retail days of the year and now more than ever, it’s time for brands to prepare their campaigns. Curious about the best ways to approach campaigns for the biggest retail weekend of the year? Look no further.

Lead with Data

More important than any catchy slogan or meme is data. Does your brand resonate in market? Who are the customers? What do they want? Why do they want it? The foundation of any successful campaign is data analysis and segmentation to reveal the real customer story behind your brand. Figure out who your customers are, understand their behaviors, and build around these data points. 

Last year, despite the surging COVID variants, Black Friday and Cyber Monday broke several online retail records with over $200 billion spent online over the entire holiday season, another $100 billion spent during Cyber Week, and $9 billion spent on Black Friday alone. To put this into perspective, Black Friday sales figures clocked in at $6.2 billion in 2018, $7.4 billion in 2019, and $8.9 billion in 2020.

Although last year was a record-breaking holiday shopping season overall, the average eCommerce conversion rates dropped in 2021 by over 20%, landing just under the 2019 number. Curious about more? A deeper analysis of over two billion eCommerce store sessions every single week showed that the average conversion rate globally for Black Friday in 2021 was 3.2%, compared to 4.5% in 2019. While a 1.2% drop seems insignificant as a number, for marketers, this means brand messages need to speak louder to customers, lest a brand is left behind. The US scored slightly better than the global average, with conversion rates at 3.6% in 2021, vs. 4.3% in 2020. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean we can rest on our laurels. It’s hustle time. 

Be Seen or Be Left Behind

If you’re not first, you’re last, and absolutely no one wants to lose. The weeks before Black Friday and Cyber Monday are all about honing your brand’s perfect message and serving it over and over again. This isn’t the time to scatter-shot a hundred different ads with different messages. This is the time for a solid message and driving it home. Reduce your campaign budgets to focus on only the best-performing ads and maximize spend in those areas. It’s vital for your brand to produce and finalize creative early on and allocate budgets toward success. Is your brand worth shouting about? Prove it in your marketing campaigns. 

Many brands are shifting their Black Friday sales as early as late October, while others begin offering promotions in early November. 75% of retailers surveyed in 2020 said they offered deals before Black Friday, with some lasting several days or weeks. 83% of holiday shoppers stated that they started their holiday shopping earlier than Black Friday, and with the persistent economic uncertainty, it is likely that 2022 will bring in the same.