• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, September 5, 2023

It may be almost too late to plan a Cyber Week email campaign. But you must give it a try, given that some brands are generating close to 10% of their annual revenue during that period, according to 2023 Black Friday And Beyond: Strategies to Boost Your Revenue, a study by Wunderkind. 

Black Friday dominates that weekend, and has since 2020 when it began outperforming Cyber Monday. 

But you needn’t wait until Cyber Week to get your messaging out. Instead, “consider starting your Black Friday marketing as early as October to prime your customers for holiday sales,” the study states. “Start driving conversions as soon as possible.” 

What should you try to do with your messaging?

Reports say that consumers are investing in higher-ticket items this year. So make it easy for them by creating “a seamless experience using onsite product recommendations and tailored ads,” the study advises.

For instance, J.McLaughlin turned its product feed into a revenue stream by using catalog modules. 

Then there is the issue of channels. With 54% of U.S. consumers finding out about brand deals via email, the study urges firms to focus on owned channels such as email and text. 

Diane von Furstenberg did this, and is now enjoying 20% growth YoY, the study says. This kind of result can be achieved by leveraging first-party data to identify website visitors. 

In addition, jewelry firm Pamela Love used automated email and text to deliver storytelling at scale. 

Email was flat in 2022 YoY, and was down from 2020. But text increased. 

Then there is the increasing dominance of mobile to consider. Mobile is now driving 53% of conversions -- 8% more than desktops, compared to a 49%-48% split in favor of mobile in 2021. That was the first year mobile stepped into the lead. 

So again, make it easy for customers to check out on their phones. The first task is to design your website and emails so that they are mobile-friendly.  

In addition, the study urges you to create a three-click journey: “Tailored message offering a discount, encouraging the consumer to check out an item similar to a previous purchase > They view the product and apply their Black Friday discount code > Check out.”

Also, you should:

• Send shoppers abandoned cart texts 
• Meet consumers where they are. 
• Use MMS messaging to engage with customers, including static images, gifs and videos. 

The study offers these predictions (and recommendations) for the 2023 holiday season: 

• Black Friday will continue to outperform the rest of Cyber Week, so start your holiday messaging early. 
• Average order value is likely to increase, so take the chance to upsell and interest customers in higher-ticket items.