Black Friday is the most popular shopping holiday of the year. That also makes it the most competitive holiday of the year. It seems like stores launch their sales earlier and earlier. I even saw a commercial for “Black November Sale.” So what does this mean for your business? Should you jump into the game or sit this one out?
The Pros
Since people are in the shopping mood, you can capitalize on their eagerness to buy by creating a limited time offer. This doesn’t have to be a percentage off. You can also do a gift card with purchase, bonus item, buy one get one free or 50% off, etc.
The need for a Black Friday sale also depends on the type of product you offer. If it’s a giftable item like a homemade good (bath products, jewelry, Christmas decor, etc.) then it’s a no-brainer. Etsy is great for this because having a sale can be the difference maker between someone choosing to buy from you over the listing next to it.
Hosting a sale also give you more control over when a rush of sales come in. If you have to make each individual product, you might want to host an earlier sale to ensure you have enough time to complete the orders. The holidays are busy enough as it is so having control of your schedule is necessary. If you have an automated product, this isn’t as much of a concern unless you expect a surge of customer service requests.
Lastly, the biggest pro is that when done well, you can make Black Friday and Cyber Monday a huge weekend of revenue. That’s always a good thing.
The Cons
In my opinion, the biggest con is that you are entering an extremely competitive time for advertising. Marketing costs go up, cost per click goes up, and your competition is everywhere. Are you ready to go all-in? Are you able to create competitive offers and still be profitable? This isn’t the time to focus on growing your audience as much as it is to market to that existing audience. Hopefully you grow a loyal audience all other times of the year so they are excited to buy when a Black Friday sale pops up.
Another con is that you condition your customers to expect sales from you. This is true for all sales, not just Black Friday. You have to decide if you’re okay with your customers expecting discounts from you. Some companies choose to only do Black Friday sales because it’s expected and no sales other times of the year. The less sales you do year round, the better your Black Friday sale might do. Also be prepared that customers who paid full price for something might be upset when they see a sale.
There’s a considerable amount of risk if you are going to launch a paid advertising campaign because there’s no guarantee that it will work. Try to test early enough so you can launch it on Black Friday with more confidence. When it doubt? Skip the paid ads for this big, pricey holiday and use free marketing like email and social media posts.
The choice is ultimately up to you and what you feel is right for your business. Good luck!