If you’re the owner of an e-commerce business, you likely started planning months ago for the biggest sale of the year: Black Friday/Cyber Monday. Introduced to the UK from the US in 2010, Black Friday sales arrive shortly after US thanksgiving celebrations in November of each year and have become one of, if not the, busiest sales periods. 

It’s a time when consumers are ready and willing to spend ahead of Christmas; a time for them to grab a bargain and finish (or start) their Christmas shopping. This year, shoppers are estimated to spend a record amount during the Black Friday weekend in the UK. For this reason, it has become one of the most important times of the year for both high street retailers and ecommerce businesses. 

With Black Friday looming on the horizon, London Lash Pro – an industry-leading ecommerce business supplying eyelash extensions to professional lash technicians – offer their top tips on some of the best ways your ecommerce brand can prepare in advance.

1. Make sure your website is user friendly

This is absolutely crucial – not only during sales periods, but all year round. However, when a sale like Black Friday is approaching, you want to really make sure your website is as easy to navigate as possible, both on desktop and mobile. 

User experience can be the difference between a loyal, repeat customer and someone who immediately clicks off your website and shops elsewhere. Particularly at a time like Black Friday when customers are aware that products may quickly be running out of stock, they simply don’t have the time to waste on a slow, glitchy website, when a competitor may offer a smooth, stress-free alternative. 

To test your website’s accessibility, it’s a good idea to have your employees actually go through the checkout process themselves, making notes as they go on any areas for improvement. Do products add to the cart properly? What is page speed like? Are any website banners glitching or obstructing the customer from clicking onto different products and pages? Is your menu easy to navigate? These are all things you need to consider. 

*Top tip: Don’t neglect your website’s mobile-friendliness. According to Perficient, 68.1% of all website visits in 2020 came from mobile devices – it’s becoming increasingly important to make sure your website is easy to access via mobile devices. 

2. Offer a range of payment methods

‘Buy now, pay later payment options from the likes of Klarna and Clearscore have become popular additions to online shops – and this is for good reason. Data shows that BNPL methods increase average order value and can significantly boost conversion rates. 

This is one clear way to stay ahead of the competition – make sure you offer a variety of payment methods to suit all customers. 

3. Boost product reviews 

One great way to encourage customers to shop with you this Black Friday is if you ensure your products have plenty of glowing reviews. Of course, gaining reviews from customers can be difficult – they lead busy lives and it’s well known that people who have had bad experiences are more likely to leave a review to air their grievances than those who have had great experiences are to post a positive review. 

There are, however, ways to encourage your customers to review your products. An example would be to offer an exclusive discount to those who review their recent purchase – this provides your customer with an incentive to go to the trouble of writing a review. Honest feedback is a great way to inspire customers to shop with you this Black Friday. 

4. Influencer campaigns

Influencer campaigns are an incredible way to get your brand out there and generate both traffic and sales. You could run a specific Black Friday campaign, collaborating with either (or both) micro and macro influencers to boost your brand to their followers – which you should of course make sure consists of your target audience. 

It’s important to make sure you work with quality influencers who are genuinely aligned with your brand – customers see straight through inauthentic influencer marketing campaigns. Work with influencers who are respected within your specific niche/industry and you can be sure to generate a buzz prior to your Black Friday sale. 

5. Boost your newsletter subscribers 

To really reach your audience this Black Friday and cut through the noise, you want to be sure you have built up a solid base of newsletter subscribers in advance of the sale. Email marketing is a fantastic way to boost traffic and conversions – with almost 50% of the world using emails on a daily basis, you shouldn’t underestimate the power they can have. 

One tried and tested way to entice customers to subscribe to your newsletters is by offering exclusive discounts for subscribers. 

So there it is – our top five tips to launch a successful Black Friday campaign as an ecommerce business. 

Ecommerce Business Prepare for Black Friday

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