Today, we’re diving into something super important: planning for Black Friday. I know it’s July, but trust me, starting now will save you a lot of stress and set you up for massive success. Let’s get into my checklist to make sure you’re ready to crush it this Black Friday.
Auditing Past Email Campaigns
First things first, let’s talk about auditing. I know it doesn’t sound like the most fun activity, but it’s crucial. By understanding what worked and what didn’t, you can make data-driven decisions this year. Auditing your past email performance is pivotal to know what is going to work for your brand this year. So what are you auditing? For starters, what did you do last year and the year before that? What are the metrics that you got back from those Black Friday sales? Did you do anything different? What type of promotion did you run? Did it receive more click engagement? Did a certain email outperform another? These are the types of questions I am looking for my clients when they ask for help.
I audit to take a better look at benchmarks, such as, open rate, click rate, conversion rate, segmentation, etc. I basically take in a full inventory of past Black Friday/Cyber Monday campaigns, export all the raw data from Klaviyo, and place it into a spreadsheet to rank everything with those questions in mind. That way I can tell what worked and what didn’t so that I can start experimenting now!
What to Audit:
- Metrics: Open rates, click rates, and conversion rates.
- Promotions: Which ones worked? Which didn’t?
- Engagement: Did certain emails get more engagement than others?
- Segmentation: How did segmentation affect your results?
What to Look For:
- Past Campaigns: Review the email campaigns you ran last year and the years before.
- Key Metrics: Focus on open rates, click rates, and conversion rates.
- Promotions: Identify which promotions (e.g., discounts, BOGO deals) generated the most engagement and sales.
Steps to Take:
- Export data from your email marketing platform (e.g., Klaviyo) into a spreadsheet.
- Analyze the performance of each campaign, noting what worked well and what didn’t.
- Set benchmarks and realistic expectations for this year.
Testing New Strategies and Promotions
Summer is the perfect time to get creative. Remember, this isn’t the time for radical changes. You’re not testing your main Black Friday offer just yet. Instead, focus on smaller elements to see what resonates with your audience now.
Things to Test:
- Promotions: Try percentage sales vs. BOGO (Buy One Get One) deals.
- Subject Lines: Play around with different styles and tones.
- Designs: Experiment with new email designs to see what grabs attention.
Reviewing Competitor Tactics
Time to do some friendly snooping. Check out what your competitors did last year. Use sites like milled.com to review their email campaigns. For example, if you’re in the coffee space, maybe Chamberlain Coffee is a big competitor. You can type them in and look at the emails they sent in 2023 and take notes.
Did they change up their offer, do something special with their subject lines, use a GIF at the top or have a lot of extra freebies?
So take notes, like you’re collecting data here to help fuel your strategy. I also like to look at the years prior to see if they are sticking with the same sale each year or changing it up.
What to Look For:
- Offers: Did they stick to the same offer each year?
- Subject Lines: Were there any standout phrases?
- Visuals: Did they use GIFs or special images?
Remember, just because they did something doesn’t mean it worked, but it’s good to gather intel.
Building Trust with Email Providers
If you’ve been blasting your full list without segmentation, it’s time to stop. Build trust with email providers by showing you’re not a spammy brand. Need a repair plan? Check out this article that I wrote for Klaviyo on how I got one of my clients out of a very bad reputation status and domain into what Gmail and Google consider a high-ranking domain.
Steps to Take:
- Clean Your List: Remove inactive subscribers.
- Segment Your Audience: Send relevant content to engaged subscribers.
- Monitor Engagement: Use tools like Google Postmasters to check your domain’s reputation.
This is crucial because, come Black Friday, you’ll be competing for inbox space. Providers will prioritize emails from brands with good reputations.
Prepping Marketing Assets
Don’t wait until the last minute to create your visuals. Start prepping your marketing assets now. I recommend to all my clients not to lean into seasonality. You want to make sure you can use these assets for future promotions. You need to have actual assets and visuals to work with so that you can really wow people when they open your email.
Tips for Visuals:
- Non-Seasonal but Special: Create visuals that stand out but aren’t too seasonal. You want to be able to reuse these assets.
- Quality Over Quantity: Invest in high-quality images that make your emails pop.
- Attention-grabbing: Remember, you have milliseconds to capture attention. Make sure your visuals are engaging and compelling.
Wrapping It Up
Those are my top tips for starting your Black Friday prep in July. Auditing your past campaigns, testing new strategies, snooping on competitors, building trust with email providers, and prepping your assets are all steps that will set you up for success.
By starting your Black Friday prep now, you’re setting yourself up for a record-breaking sales season. Good luck, and happy sending!
