10 ways to prepare your eCommerce store for Black Friday

Black Friday is just around the corner, and what better time of year to entice customers to buy your products for the upcoming Christmas period. Forget the chaotic scenes of people pushing each other for the last flatscreen TV; nowadays, we are lounging on the sofa at home frantically hitting the refresh button on our screens!

Originating from the USA, Black Friday is the name for the holiday following Thanksgiving and is marked as one of the year's most significant shopping events. The weekend has grown in popularity year on year, meaning that many businesses spread their discounts into a more extended sales period that spans the week before the weekend and can even continue until Christmas. This year, Black Friday falls on the 26th of November, with Cyber Monday following on the 29th.

If you are a small eCommerce business, it is important to develop a sales strategy in advance of the weekend so you can maximise the opportunity for sales. Below, we have compiled a list of 10 tips on how to make the most out of the frantic shopping season!

1) Apply the right discounts

Applying a simple blanket '30% discount' to everything in your store can be tempting, but this can risk reducing your products' apparent worth and losing quality lead sales for quantity. You still want to make a profit!

Instead, keep customers engaged and roll out smaller, specific product sales, limited-time discount codes or flash sales. It is also an excellent way to help shift older stock to make more room for newer products.

2) Make sure your product descriptions sell

Never underestimate the power of words! Use your description space as an opportunity to entice the customer into buying your product. The downside of purchasing anything online is that you can't touch, taste, or smell the item so you need a clear photograph and descriptive language to encourage sales.

It might also be worth installing a chatbot so customers can ask any questions they may have about the products and get answers fast instead of waiting for emails or calls, which could risk them deciding to shop elsewhere!

3) Add order value promotions

We are all familiar with the typical 'Spend £50 to get 10% off your order' promotions that encourage us to spend a little more to claim the deal. These promotions are particularly successful for eCommerce stores because customers ultimately want to feel like they are getting a bargain! Creating a threshold discount opportunity can significantly improve overall profits and help increase your average order value.

4) Offer free shipping

Shipping promotions go hand in hand with an excellent Black Friday deal. Many businesses offer free shipping to encourage customers to checkout a higher value shopping basket. When customers know they are getting a bargain on postage, they don't mind spending that bit more!

Over the years, we've helped many eCommerce businesses save money on their shipping and streamline their sending process. We offer a range of collection and drop-off services from only £1.75 a parcel so your business can benefit from saving money over the busy shopping period and your customers enjoy reliable shipping.

We also integrate with all the major eCommerce platforms so you can book, despatch and manage your deliveries in just a few clicks!

5) Put together subscription boxes

Who doesn't like receiving a little gift in the post each month? Creating bundles of products is a great way for customers to try new items or have their favourite ones delivered without the hassle of reordering.

Subscription boxes are ideal for the run-up to Christmas, especially if the bundles come wrapped and ready to gift. You can offer this service at a lower monthly cost throughout the Black Friday sales to encourage new and existing customers to sign up.

Evri Postable is an excellent service to use for small parcels or packets that can be posted through the letterbox and prices start from only £1.75.

6) Email exclusive discounts to your subscribers

Email marketing is one of the best ways to get customers to visit your website. Make sure your subscriber list is up-to-date and start sending your audience relevant emails about your Black Friday deals and promotions. Perhaps you could even offer your subscribers an exclusive member's discount!

We offer exclusive discounts to our shippers in our regular emails. If you don't want to miss out on our courier offers and competitions, subscribe to our mailing list at the bottom of the blog.

7) Promote your offers on social media

Social media is such an important space to market your business, especially during the Black Friday period. Customers are using social media platforms more than ever to find brands to buy from, so make sure your accounts are kept active.

Short promotional videos teasing stock that will be in the sale or creating an online countdown helps to generate excitement for your brand and improve online engagement.

8) Leverage abandoned carts to sell more

Take advantage of abandoned shopping carts by offering discounts to customers for those products using a retargeting campaign. A customer already liked the item but might need a little encouragement to make the final sale.

Sending a follow-up email with a complimentary discount can help re-engage shoppers who have left products in their cart without completing checkout.

9) Utilise push notifications

Purchases through mobile devices are very common these days so you need to keep this in mind if you want to get the attention of potential customers. Push notifications will help advise customers about any new or last-minute offers.

However, it is important not to bombard customers with notifications as this could have the opposite effect!

We use notifications on our website to alert customers of any new features added to our website, new services, or possible disruptions to shipping. You can check out our latest notifications here.

10) Donate to charity

Businesses can incorporate charity donations within their Black Friday sales by offering to donate a portion of profits. Not only is this a kind gesture, particularly poignant in light of recent years, but many customers seek to purchase from caring and trustworthy brands that give back to important causes.

Your business could incorporate a charitable pledge by creating a banner on their website that lets customers choose from a pre-prepared list of products whereby a portion of sales will be donated to the selected cause.

Well, that should give you a few ideas to play with! Black Friday and Cyber Monday is a great occasion to get involved in and with a few strategies in place, you could see an increase in sales, customer engagement and brand loyalty- it's a win-win!

If you want more information on the extensive range of shipping services we offer, check out our range of couriers and create a free account with us to see all the business features accessible at your fingertips!

At Interparcel, we want all businesses to have access to reliable and affordable parcel delivery services! If you have any questions about how we can help you or the services we offer, give our parcel experts a call, email, or live chat message. Our team are always happy to talk parcels and are available from 8 am - 8 pm Monday to Friday and 9 am - 1 pm on weekends!