Black Friday Strategies for Digital Success

October 28, 2019

The month of November begins later this week, the official countdown to Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season begins! Black Friday is a major deal seeking opportunity for consumers across North America. In fact, a recent study found that 42% believe Black Friday is a great opportunity to buy gifts for the holidays. The event doesn’t occur until Friday November 29^th this year, meaning there will be a shorter holiday shopping season. This is a major reason why many retailers are offering deals this far in advance of the actual date, reports Tom’s Guide. Furthermore, consumers are encouraged to wait on purchasing since prices will continue to be cut as the weeks forge onward.

In the following, we want to provide you with tactical recommendations to get the most out of your digital advertising strategy this Black Friday and throughout the entire Holiday season.

Win Black Friday Placements & Save Money Using Automatic Bid Optimization with AI

When a digital campaign runs on Artificial Intelligence (AI), the algorithm controls the bids as opposed to having the advertiser manually control the bid amount (fixed bid). The algorithm analyzes which sites are most effective in real-time. It then optimizes towards factors such as creative, geography, demographics and other (targeting) tactics.

By examining historical learnings, the algorithm looks to obtain inventory at the most efficient price. This eliminates the advertiser’s need to decipher the ideal CPM to win a bid. Campaign performance increases 10-15% when using Artificial Intelligence.

Know Your Audience and Grab Any Opportunity to Connect on Interests

Behavioral targeting (as opposed to contextual, which we spoke about in our last post) allows you to connect with users based on  interests and other demographic factors. Acuity Platform allows you to build Live Audiences that reflect the end consumer. We identified seven main “moments-based” profiles that resonate for customers looking to connect with holiday shoppers. These are created using a variety of data sets that flow through the Acuity Platform. Get in touch to start connecting with these consumers online at any point during your holiday promotions.

Pay Special Attention to Timing and Budget Pacing

To get consumers into the holiday spirit, advertisers use the month of October to create endemic content. The first half of November is the time to surge and amplify that content before you driving to deals and offers. Then, in December remind consumers and re-engage them. Finally, follow up with a ‘last minute purchase’ boost to close out the season.

Maximize Engagement by Reconnecting with Users Who’ve Engaged with Your Ad

Retargeting is going to be critical to the ‘reminder’ and ‘last-minute’ purchase stages of promotion! Don’t forget you can deliver sequential messaging using retargeting, meaning you can drive users down a consumer journey with your display and/or video messaging.

You’re Canadian eh?! Is Black Friday Important for you?

We didn’t forget about you Canada! Black Friday and the holiday season aren’t just for our friends south of the border. Research by Google and Ipsos found that 22% of Canadians consider themselves “last-minute shoppers,” meaning they make most of their purchases during the last week of the Holidays. 13% are Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend “deal seekers.” A further 26% consider themselves “early birds,” and the lions share, 39%, are “everygreen buyers” spreading shopping throughout the holiday season.

48% of Canadians said they always do research before they buy to ensure they make the right choice. 56% said “they weren’t certain where they wanted to buy or had multiple retailers in mind when they started shopping.” Overall, there is plenty of opportunity to engage Canadians starting now with your holiday promotions.

Regardless of where you’re at in your seasonal promotions strategy, we can help you improve your digital efforts. Get in touch to figure out how you can get digital working for you.