5 Email marketing tips for Black Friday 2021

It feels like seasonal sales start earlier, last longer, and offer bigger discounts each year.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are no different. In fact, Black Friday shoppers spent a total of $14 billion online in 2020. Plus, online spending is set to increase by 20% in 2021 – so it’s time to craft your Black Friday email marketing campaigns and get yourself a slice of that pie!

Some say that content is King, but when it comes to driving Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, email marketing comes out on top. So, you’ll want to read on to discover our 5 email marketing tips for Black Friday 2021…

1. Build your email subscriber list in advance

Preparing your email marketing strategy for Black Friday is undoubtedly stressful, however, preparation is key. Whatever you do, don’t leave it to the last minute!

Some ecommerce businesses make more sales in November than in 2-3 months combined, so it can be a really valuable time for your business. 

Prior to the chaos of Black Friday/Cyber Monday, you should be aiming to grow your email subscriber list with quality leads. You can encourage sign ups through engaging content like quizzes, mini-games, and loyalty programs. 

Having a growing email subscriber list is one thing, but the data you collect is another entirely. The data you collect from your email subscribers can be used to send targeted and personalised content for Black Friday – more on that next.

2. Get personal

When it comes to email marketing – how can you stand out in your client’s inbox when they’re being bombarded with dozens of emails? 

Well, one way of standing out from the crowd is getting personal. Research tells us that personalised email marketing outperforms mass email marketing, plus customers want personal and relevant emails.

Not only is personalised email marketing effective, there are lots of ways you can do it, such as…

Customised cross-selling

Cross-selling is a bread and butter tactic when it comes to marketing, and for good reason.

You can cross-sell to customers by showing them products based on what they’ve previously browsed or purchased. Not only does this help showcase more of your fantastic products, it is genuinely helpful for your customers to see relevant products.

Segment your subscribers

Another effective personalisation tactic is segmenting your email subscribers based on their demographic and behaviour.

Just think – does it make sense to send the exact same email to your subscribers that have yet to purchase something, and your VIP subscribers? Probably not.

Those audiences have distinct behaviours that set them apart, so your email marketing should reflect the differences in your customers’ needs.

This tactic requires a lot of effort (fresh copy and assets for each audience, yikes!), but has a high reward.

3. Play on FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out)

Everyone hates that feeling of missing out, especially missing out on a great deal! When creating your email marketing campaigns, consider creating a sense of urgency around your Black Friday offers to provoke that FOMO feeling.

This can help drive open and click-through-rates if you use wording like:

“Be quick, we’re selling out fast” or “Black Friday sale ends in 24 hours”

Just be sure to avoid misleading your subscribers for the sake of higher open rates. High open rates don’t mean much if your subscribers don’t convert.

4. How many emails to send

Chances are, your subscribers’ inbox will be full of tempting Black Friday deals. So, your odds of standing out are better if you send multiple Black Friday emails.

Sending just one email on Black Friday simply won’t cut it.

We recommend having an email strategy that involves sending emails on the lead up to Black Friday, during the event, and a reminder that the sale is ending.

Letting your subscribers know about your Black Friday sale in advance will encourage them to browse your shop and add items to their wishlist for later.

During the Black Friday promotion, you should also be sending your subscribers emails to let them know what the deals are, how to claim them, and when the sale ends. 

Finally, we suggest sending a couple reminder emails that act as countdowns. This encourages subscribers to act fast so they don’t miss out.

5. Reduce spam rate

Don’t let all your hard work and preparation go to waste in the form of the dreaded spam/junk folder. Luckily for you, we have gathered some best practices when it comes to avoiding those pesky spam triggers.

Subject line capitalisation

When you read something that’s been written in capital letters, IT FEELS LIKE SOMEONE IS SHOUTING AT YOU, right? Well, this can be really off-putting and is unlikely to have the desired effect. It’s also a big red flag for spam filters, so avoid capitalisation in the subject line.

Trigger words

You know when someone tells you what they’re selling definitely isn’t a scam, so it makes you think it definitely is a scam… Well, similarly, there are certain trigger words that have negative connotations and when used, will land your email straight into the spam folder.

Examples of trigger words that are sure to set off your subscribers’ spam filter include: “free”, “trial”, “access”, “sample”. 

Humble use of images

Although images and graphics can be great for visually enhancing your email newsletter, too many might be to the detriment of your subscribers receiving it in their inbox, instead of their spam folder.

When it comes to using images in your email marketing, it is best to employ a humble approach. Use them tactically, and only when they add value.

If you do decide to include images, be sure that they are optimised to reduce their file size. It’s no fun staring at an email with a half-loaded image taking seemingly years to load.

 

So, there you have it – 5 email marketing tips for your Black Friday campaign. We hope you found these tips helpful and wish you luck in the upcoming Black Friday madness!