We printed our Black Friday Cyber Monday report in September realizing the info was just the start.
The tendencies surrounding these main on-line gross sales made sense: Fill up on stock, optimize your buyer expertise, diversify your cost choices, ensure your web site can deal with the visitors, and let web shoppers know that cyber week gross sales are coming properly prematurely.
There’s a lot that goes into the preparation for this large on-line procuring weekend, so in fact, there’s extra assist we will present. This submit will give extra context to the printed report and supply suggestions for the most well-liked instruments that different retailers are utilizing to arrange.
We divided analysis areas into 4 key themes for preparation:
- Stock and operations
- Black Friday advertising methods
- Funds technique
- Website efficiency and cell optimization
We then surveyed clients, companions, and businesses, and gathered inside information about plugin and extension downloads from October to December. Now, we’re able to share these findings with you. Let’s dig in.
Key information from our Black Friday Cyber Monday 2024 survey
Black Friday gross sales and vacation procuring contribute a major quantity of income: 72% of retailers attribute greater than 20% of their annual income to BFCM and the vacations, making preparation extraordinarily necessary. 81% of shops do plan forward for his or her Black Friday Cyber Monday promotions, however the important thing discovering of our analysis is that many would profit from beginning earlier (greater than a month prematurely).
Use this submit to tell your to-do checklist, and get began straight away. There’s rather a lot to cowl.
This information was gathered from WooCommerce shops who’ve opted into sharing their web site information with us — for which we’re all the time grateful. In the event you’d wish to allow information sharing to assist us make WooCommerce higher, go to your admin dashboard, after which choose WooCommerce > Settings > Superior > WooCommerce.com and make sure the checkbox labeled “Allow Utilization Monitoring” is checked (please notice that we don’t observe or retailer private information out of your clients). Learn this web page for extra information on usage tracking.
When the most well-liked extensions put in across the vacation season and forward of Black Friday weekend, the info surfaced 5 overarching classes:
15 Standard extensions and plugins for Black Friday preparation
- Smart Coupons
- Custom Order Status
- Woo Discount Rules
- Advanced Product Fields
- Gift Cards
- Back in Stock Notifications
- WooPayments
- Google Analytics
- Import Export Suite
- Google for WooCommerce
- TikTok for WooCommerce
- Klaviyo
- Jetpack
- Checkout Field Editor
- PDF Invoices & Packing Slips
Now, let’s get into the technique and particulars.
Stocking up on stock for Black Friday Cyber Monday
For many survey respondents, stock preparation for BFCM means rising inventory ranges primarily based on tendencies from this yr and final yr — 26% of shops are engaged on increase their stock.
Anecdotally, that stock enhance is a problem, together with stocking up on the associated delivery provides. Hopefully, you’ve already made some progress on this. If not, we suggest beginning now to unfold the prices out as a lot as potential.
Tento: Financing may also help with Black Friday Cyber Monday and vacation bills
Ordering inventory and provides can add up rapidly, which is why we not too long ago launched a partnership with Tento, a monetary wellness firm serving rising companies. Financing may be helpful for development wants throughout the BFCM and holidays for issues like increase stock, diversifying product choices, promoting and campaigns, hiring further workers, upgrading expertise, or bridging gaps between gross sales and funds.
Present a greater buyer expertise via product alerts, delivery, and return insurance policies
Since stock and operational planning occur on the again finish of an ecommerce enterprise, it may be straightforward to neglect that communication round these items can considerably enhance the client expertise (and result in extra Black Friday gross sales).
To offer your clients the very best procuring expertise this Black Friday season, construct these options into your web site (and take a look at the extension suggestions beneath for this performance):
Add inventory alerts to encourage Black Friday purchases
Create urgency by including a inventory rely to low-stock gadgets. Inventory counts can encourage a sooner buy resolution and forestall the frustration when gadgets unexpectedly exit of inventory. We additionally suggest providing e-mail or textual content alerts when gadgets are restocked, which entice clients to return to make a purchase order.
Supply free delivery to draw clients
Clients love free delivery, a lot that 62% won’t make a purchase without it. If free delivery for everybody isn’t possible, setting a free delivery threshold can improve common order worth, improve whole vacation gross sales, and reduce cart abandonment.
Supply a number of delivery choices
If clients don’t attain your free delivery threshold, it’s necessary to offer them with choices for sooner delivery, or lower-cost however slower delivery. That is particularly useful for vacation customers, who may want quick delivery for last-minute items.
Ship order replace emails
Clients need to know when their orders have shipped, and once they’ll arrive. Internet buyers have come to count on monitoring for all of their purchases. We suggest sending automated standing updates (like fulfilled, shipped, out for supply, and delivered) and monitoring numbers.
Supply an prolonged return window for the vacations
For areas that take part in Black Friday weekend, it may be an enormous vacation procuring occasion. The one drawback? If the present doesn’t land, it may be outdoors of normal return home windows. Give your clients peace of thoughts by extending your return coverage via the calendar new yr: 45 days ought to do the trick.
WooCommerce Print Invoices and Packing Lists by SkyVerge
Generate invoices, packing slips, and decide lists on your WooCommerce orders to assist streamline your success course of after the Black Friday and cyber week rush.
WooCommerce Order Status Manager by SkyVerge
Create, edit, and delete fully customized order statuses and combine them seamlessly into your order administration move to make your clients’ on-line procuring expertise the most effective it may be.
Back In Stock Notifications by Woo
Notify clients when your merchandise are restocked, particularly in the event that they weren’t capable of buy as a part of your Black Friday offers.
Pick List by Consortia AS
Grasp order success, allow QR and barcode scanning for seamless selecting, packing, and monitoring.
Split Orders by Vibe Company
Break up orders so you may course of and ship every half individually if wanted.
Custom Stock Status by Addify
Show customized inventory statuses to speak exact details about your inventory availability and maintain Black Friday clients knowledgeable when merchandise are about to promote out.
Advanced Notifications by Woo
Simply arrange new order and inventory e-mail notifications for a number of recipients of your selecting.
WooCommerce Shipping by Woo
Print USPS and DHL labels proper out of your WooCommerce dashboard and immediately save on delivery. WooCommerce Transport is free to make use of.
Table Rate Shipping by Woo
Superior, versatile delivery with the flexibility to outline a number of delivery charges primarily based on location, value, weight, delivery class, or merchandise rely.
Check out our full list of shipping providers.
Product Bundles by Woo
Supply customized product bundles, bulk low cost packages, and assembled merchandise.
Product Recommendations by Woo
Supply smarter upsells, cross-sells, and “incessantly purchased collectively” suggestions that enhance gross sales. Measure their influence throughout your Black Friday sale with in-depth analytics.
Amazon for WooCommerce by CedCommerce
Join, sync, and optimize your listings on Amazon from WooCommerce. Rank excessive and showcase your merchandise on the world’s largest ecommerce platform.
PayHelm: Export, Reports, & Analytics for WooCommerce by PayHelm
Analyze your clients, merchandise, taxes, stock, visitors, marketplaces, channels, and advertising campaigns to higher perceive retailer efficiency and shopper shopping for patterns.
Jetpack by Jetpack
Safety, efficiency, and advertising instruments made for WooCommerce shops by the WordPress consultants. Get began with primary safety and velocity instruments without spending a dime to maintain your ecommerce enterprise up and operating throughout the complete vacation season.
Wordfence by Wordfence
A complete suite of security measures powered by analysis and an organization devoted 100% to WordPress safety.
Google Analytics for WooCommerce by Woo
Perceive — and appeal to — clients and improve income with the world’s main analytics platform, built-in with WooCommerce without spending a dime.
Smart Search & Product Filter by Searchanise
The Searchanise extension is an all-in-one search and filter resolution to enhance your retailer’s conversion price.
This might sound apparent, however isn’t really easy to realize: Ensure vacation customers find out about your Black Friday sale! It may be laborious to seize clients’ consideration once you’re competing with each on-line retailer and platform, so the important thing to a profitable Black Friday advertising technique is to take an omnichannel method.
Make use of each avenue: e-mail advertising and SMS, natural and paid social media advertising, and Google Adverts will all be useful throughout your Black Friday promotions. Inform potential clients about upcoming offers, supply unique reductions to e-mail subscribers, and supply early entry in alternate for SMS signups.
Lastly, don’t neglect about search engine marketing! Search engine marketing must be a year-round initiative to assist your online business rank greater in search outcomes on your target market. That is particularly helpful for brand spanking new clients who’re looking for an merchandise however don’t have any particular on-line retailers in thoughts. Paid advertisements can even are available in hand right here and assist your merchandise get discovered by your target market.
October is the time to launch a warm-up marketing campaign and construct your e-mail checklist. In November, tease your Black Friday promotions all the way in which till the top of Cyber Monday — and launch your Black Friday marketing campaign not less than 20 days prematurely. Then, observe up in December with vacation content material and promotions.
Personalization must be central to your e-mail advertising technique
A complete Black Friday advertising marketing campaign contains customized affords — particularly on your most loyal clients.
Jamal Miller, Senior Director of Product Advertising and marketing at Mailchimp, shared that, “the secret this vacation season is personalization. Entrepreneurs and small companies are utilizing instruments like segmentation, automation, and AI to construct loyalty, drive conversions, and inspire repeat purchases. It’s not about sending e-mail advertising blasts anymore — it’s about refining communications to be as tailor-made to clients’ wants as potential.”
That is your busiest and most necessary time of yr. And with good motive: your income objectives are highest, and so is the chance to seize new clients. Final yr, the highest 100 performers on the Mailchimp platform noticed a 325% spike of their every day order worth in the course of the Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) weekend in comparison with their common every day order worth. And 65% of orders that Mailchimp clients with linked shops acquired had been from new clients.
— Jamal Miller, Senior Director of Product Advertising and marketing, Mailchimp
They famous that customized affords in your Black Friday campaigns will stand out from the lots of of different emails that your clients will obtain. And this doesn’t simply imply dropping their first title in a greeting: Use your buyer and web site information to recommend products primarily based on previous orders or buyer demographics.
Get forward by assessing what information you have got now, and what you’ll must construct your greatest Black Friday e-mail advertising technique. Then, ask for that information via account creation, product evaluations, or awarding particular reductions for e-mail and SMS signups.
Check out this post for more on Black Friday email marketing strategies.
Use social media advertising to assist your Black Friday marketing campaign and construct belief along with your viewers
We suggest constructing in your natural social technique with promoting — on plenty of social platforms. For Black Friday Cyber Monday, and the vacations TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest are nice locations to focus your consideration. Every of those extensions permit for product catalog syncing, so you may make the most of natural product tagging and automated updates.
Share constant messaging and imagery throughout all platforms for a real omnichannel expertise — and to let clients know that you simply imply what you submit. Talk your Black Friday gross sales forward of time, and promote signing up on your e-mail checklist in alternate for early sale entry or insider reductions.
Buying engaged and constant clients now will assist your Black Friday advertising campaigns attain extra individuals later. Submit high-quality photos and media with conversation-style captions — ask engaged clients for his or her enter, about their habits or preferences, and get to know them. By asking clients to take part within the feedback part (and fascinating with them again) they’ll really feel extra intently linked along with your model.
Model new to advertisements? Meet Blaze
Blaze is the promoting platform constructed by our friends at Automattic and designed to advertise your merchandise to over 100 million customers throughout Tumblr and WordPress. Whether or not you’re a newbie or a professional, organising advert campaigns is quick and easy. You’ll be capable to customise your advert picture, copy, and viewers concentrating on, all inside the intuitive Blaze interface.
Sync your WooCommerce product feed with Google
Do you know you can sync your Woo retailer instantly with Google Purchasing? Google for WooCommerce is free to put in and affords a product sync function that permits your merchandise to indicate up in search outcomes and on different Google platforms.
As soon as your merchandise are synced, you should utilize Google Efficiency Max advertisements to showcase merchandise throughout Google surfaces together with Purchasing, Search, YouTube and extra — all to high-intent clients which might be an excellent match for your online business. That is precisely what Woo customer DOMMA did, and it helped them grow 350% in a single yr.
Google additionally helps you study extra about your clients with insights from conversion monitoring, automated tagging, and simply adjustable campaigns.
Diversify your channels
Google for WooCommerce by Woo
Promote your merchandise and Black Friday offers throughout Google — from Search to YouTube and past. Attain the correct clients to profit from your peak season.
TikTok by TikTok for Enterprise
Sync your catalog, create TikTok advertisements to showcase Black Friday offers and promote your merchandise, and set up the TikTok Pixel and Occasions API for focused promotions.
Mailchimp for WooCommerce by Mailchimp
Improve visitors, drive repeat purchases from loyal clients, and ship customized SMS and e-mail advertising campaigns utilizing Mailchimp’s AI advertising instruments.
Klaviyo for WooCommerce by Klaviyo
Develop sooner and extra effectively with customized e-mail, SMS, superior analytics, and product evaluations. Powered by your personal buyer information.
AutomateWoo by Woo
Highly effective advertising automation for WooCommerce — providing you a while again in the course of the busy Black Friday interval. AutomateWoo has the instruments it’s worthwhile to develop your retailer and earn more money.
Bolster your web site content material
Smart Coupons by StoreApps
Enhance gross sales and loyalty with present playing cards, reductions, BOGO offers, retailer credit, free items, and extra.
Trustpilot Reviews by Trustpilot
Gather and showcase verified evaluations that customers belief — useful for encouraging buy choices from new clients.
Yoast SEO Premium for WooCommerce by Yoast
Optimize your posts and merchandise on your desired key phrases extra simply. Yoast search engine marketing can acknowledge associated key phrases, phrases, synonyms, and completely different phrase types to allow you to write extra naturally.
Spend money on your Black Friday advertising technique
Affiliate for WooCommerce by StoreApps
Run your personal associates program as a part of your Black Friday advertising marketing campaign. Observe referrals, gross sales and commissions; make payouts, create fee plans and campaigns multi function place.
Google Tag Manager for WooCommerce Pro by Tag Concierge
Improve information high quality and unify occasions monitoring throughout all channels with this premium Google Tag Supervisor integration.
Blaze for WooCommerce by Automattic
Promote your merchandise, providers, and Black Friday offers to over 100 million customers throughout Tumblr and WordPress blogs with Blaze for WooCommerce.
AdRoll for WooCommerce Stores by AdRoll
Join your WooCommerce retailer to AdRoll and run show, social media, and e-mail advertising campaigns — all on one platform.
Google, Facebook, Retargeting all-in-one Marketing by Kliken
Promote your Black Friday Cyber Monday offers to potential clients with retargeting. Achieve most publicity on your Black Friday advertising and a larger return on promoting spend.
Now’s the time to verify your retailer affords specific and different cost strategies to take away checkout friction and improve conversion. Use WooPayments so as to add Apple Pay and Google Pay specific checkout, which can be appreciated by these doing their Black Friday procuring on cell gadgets.
With a high-volume procuring season, it should profit Black Friday customers and ecommerce companies alike to introduce a purchase now, pay later or installment choice. WooPayments contains Affirm, Afterpay, and Klarna as BNPL and installment choices on your retailer. Including PayPal and PayPal Pay Later also can assist improve your conversion charges.
Affirm: Purchase now, pay later will increase common order worth by 60%
A 2024 survey from Affirm discovered that BNPL choices considerably elevated common order values. “Shoppers are more and more looking for extra clear and versatile cost choices, particularly in the course of the busy vacation procuring season,” mentioned Erika White, VP of Advertising and marketing and Communications at Affirm. “Our current survey discovered that just about 1 in 2 customers say the supply of interest-free affords at checkout will have an effect on their buying choices.”
With vacation procuring beginning earlier and earlier every year, it’s vital for retailers to concentrate on ensuring that their checkout experiences are as pleasant as their services and products. That’s why Affirm is proud to work with WooCommerce and produce larger selection and suppleness to its community of companions.
— Erika White, VP of Advertising and marketing and Communications, Affirm
Surprisingly, solely 11% of ecommerce shops provided purchase now, pay later to Black Friday customers in 2023, and solely 22% provided specific checkout. Each choices assist on-line retailers serve a broader viewers and meet buyer expectations for a easy checkout expertise.
Methods to audit your cost technique cut up
Earlier than including new cost strategies to your retailer, test which choices your clients use essentially the most, and which strategies you don’t presently supply. When making your selection, contemplate buyer areas, platform processing charges, and platform evaluations and reliability.
Anticipate tax wants earlier than it’s a must to: Understanding gross sales tax nexus
Taxes differ from location to location, so this could be a powerful one to handle for ecommerce companies. Avalara recommends keeping track of just a few issues: elevated gross sales in non-nexus areas, new cross-border gross sales, promoting new merchandise, and promoting in new channels.
“Gross sales tax nexus is the connection between a vendor and a location that requires the vendor to register then gather and remit gross sales tax in that location. Accurately figuring out whether or not financial nexus has been created in a given location isn’t any small effort. However it could’t be missed — not even in the course of the busy vacation season.”
— Oliver St. George, Senior Accomplice Advertising and marketing Supervisor, Avalara
Tax or financial nexus varies from state to state and nation to nation. Within the EU, if you happen to attain nexus in a single nation, you’ll have reached nexus in each member of the EU.
WooPayments by Woo
The one cost resolution totally built-in with WooCommerce. Settle for credit score and debit playing cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and native cost choices with no setup or month-to-month charges.
PayPal Payments by Woo
PayPal’s model recognition helps give clients the boldness to purchase. PayPal’s all-in-one checkout resolution permits you to supply PayPal, Venmo (US), Pay Later at no further value, credit score and debit playing cards, country-specific cost choices, and extra.
Amazon Pay by Amazon Pay
Allow a well-known, quick checkout for lots of of thousands and thousands of energetic Amazon clients globally.
Avalara AvaTax by Avalara
Automate tax compliance on your WooCommerce retailer. From gross sales tax calculation and tax returns to exempt gross sales and extra.
WooCommerce Tax by Woo
Routinely calculate how a lot gross sales tax must be collected for WooCommerce orders — by metropolis, nation, or state — at checkout.
Affirm Payments by Woo
Purchase now, pay later for your online business — however smarter. Improve conversions and AOV by providing customers versatile cost plans from Affirm. Additionally obtainable inside WooPayments.
Klarna by Klarna
Develop your online business with elevated gross sales and enhanced procuring experiences at no additional prices. Additionally obtainable inside WooPayments.
Check out (pun intended) our full list of payment options here.
Afterpay by Afterpay
Afterpay permits clients to buy merchandise and select to pay in 4 installments over six weeks or pay month-to-month (US solely). Additionally obtainable inside WooPayments.
Sezzle for WooCommerce by Sezzle
Sezzle is an alternate cost platform that will increase gross sales and basket sizes by enabling your clients to purchase now and pay later with interest-free installment plans.
We requested our Woo Company Companions about typical Black Friday Cyber Monday preparation actions, they usually shared constant solutions: Retailer house owners search assist with distinctive technical modifications, person expertise updates, integrations, customized workflows, and web site velocity.
Of these surveyed, 85.7% of businesses put together their purchasers’ shops by optimizing web site velocity, adopted by including cost strategies, and customizing checkout.
Different common Black Friday preparation requests embody lead era, touchdown web page creation, and bug fixes — with requests for assist usually coming in a single to a few months prematurely. That mentioned, earlier is all the time higher, to offer your company sufficient time to make and regulate modifications to suit your wants.
Looking for advanced support? Check out our certified Woo Agency Partners.
There are many efficiency areas that retailer house owners ought to take note of, with a number of businesses mentioning code audits, stress checks, historic information evaluations, person expertise audits, plugin consolidation, and safety assessments.
Neuralab emphasised the significance of beginning early, noting that finances and time constraints can impede much-needed enhancements. Kanuka Digital echoes this sentiment, sharing that they first carry out code audits for web site well being, velocity, and stability, earlier than addressing considerations and making their suggestions.
Guarantee sufficient internet hosting to fulfill vacation retailer visitors surges
Inverse Paradox helps their purchasers be certain that they preserve internet hosting stability in the course of the holidays, which notoriously embody fluctuations in visitors — particularly round gross sales like Black Friday Cyber Monday.
Optimize for cell and omnichannel
With cell procuring on the rise, CoSpark famous that web site velocity optimization wants to make sure quick load instances, user-friendly interactions, and a seamless expertise between on-line shops, bodily areas, and social media platforms.
Improve web site velocity and navigation for a greater procuring expertise
Buyer expectations are excessive: Sleeping Giant Studios has launched new UIs on cell to enhance person expertise and create more practical buyer journeys — which subsequently improve conversion charges.
Leverage analytics and AI for personalization
Use AI to supply customized suggestions and improve buyer engagement — which additionally means ensuring that your information flows seamlessly between your retailer and its built-in methods. Sparklabs México has famous a rise in information wants amongst their purchasers for higher analytics implementation.
Spend money on cybersecurity to guard your online business and clients
Implement robust safety measures to guard buyer information and construct belief — and never only for Black Friday. Like web site efficiency, safety is an ongoing effort that must be constantly monitored.
Combine and automate what you may
Sleeping Giant Studios helps their purchasers streamline operations by integrating with buyer relationship administration (CRM) platforms, enterprise useful resource planning (ERP) methods, and automating as many workflows as potential.
Be strategic along with your investments
Concentrate on leveraging current sources and be conservative with new investments. Each Inverse Paradox and Kanuka Digital famous that their purchasers’ investments are extra conservative round new options and performance, as a substitute specializing in bettering their present
Be proactive about web site upkeep
Take a proactive method to Black Friday Cyber Monday to make sure optimum efficiency throughout peak procuring intervals. Steady monitoring, frequent backups, and software program updates all play their position in a worthwhile vacation procuring season.
Pause your web site edits early to cut back mishaps
Virtina works forward with purchasers to proactively audit and suggest modifications — after which they enact a code freeze beginning November 1st. CoSpark recommends having a upkeep plan in place all through the vacation season.
It’s rather a lot — we all know. However assistance is all the time obtainable with WordPress and WooCommerce. The Woo Community is useful and an inspiring useful resource, whereas extra devoted assist might be discovered with our licensed Woo Agency Partners throughout a plethora of wants.
Vanessa has spent her profession writing useful issues for individuals throughout the tech area. Exterior of labor, she enjoys coaching for triathlon, rotating via hobbies, and exploring new locations each city and pure. She has two fluffy cats, maintains just a few succulents, and has far too many books on her TBR shelf.
