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BFCM Full Customer Lifecycle Playbook

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SmartBug Media BFCM Playbook icon

TVs are 75 percent off, mobile phone prices are slashed in half—and shoppers have to have ‘em. Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) are the biggest shopping events of the year, presenting massive opportunities for e-commerce brands to boost revenue and outshine competitors.

To seize this golden opportunity, you need an omnichannel BFCM marketing strategy. You can use the flywheel model as your guidepost, building momentum to create a loop that attracts, engages, and delights so strangers become customers.

When using the flywheel model to achieve BFCM success, consider adjusting the traditional model to look more like this:

  • Attract and engage
  • Convert and retain
  • Delight
E-commerce Customer Journey Flywheel by Smartbug Media

Each piece moves potential buyers closer to purchasing with your brand using specific tactics to increase your BFCM and holiday ROI.  

Eager to put these tactics in motion for your brand? Consider this your BFCM playbook that will walk you through actionable steps you can use before, during, and after BFCM season to drive sales and retention. Dive into each section for videos, tools, and other resources you can download for later or engage with in real time as you navigate the guide.

Ready to craft your winning BFCM marketing strategy?

Download the Playbook

Chapter 1:  Building the Perfect Offer

We see BFCM offers play out across platforms every year, from high-percentage discounts to BOGOs. But brands can’t simply choose random sales values. You want to draw shoppers in with a BFCM marketing strategy that suits the audience and motivates action.

Craft compelling deals.

When the holiday shopping season hits, customers have two goals: Get the goods and score the best deals. You have your pick of sales values to send these shoppers to your digital front door:

  • Feature limited-time flash sales that create a sense of urgency.
  • Introduce discounted bundles that combine popular products.
  • Deliver tiered discounts for higher-value purchases.
  • Expand access to sale prices with limited-time extensions.

Consider additional options to diversify your tactics.

 Strategies that offer sales values—such as free shipping, early access, and gifts—encourage higher conversion rates and increase average order value. Check out the example below, in which we break down a potential strategy with timelines to inspire your BFCM offers.

Blazy Susan - Limited time deal example
Blazy Susan - Bundles example
Thrive - Tiered Discounts example
Leggari - Extended sales example

🎥 The Power of Planning BFCM Early

Feeling inspired to take action on your campaign strategy? Download our Black Friday Cyber Monday and Holiday Email and SMS Calendar Template to put your marketing campaigns in motion.

Integrate loyalty programs.

How many loyalty accounts and points do you have? If you’ve lost count, your customers are in the same boat—but their eyes will also light up when their loyalty is rewarded with exclusive discounts and perks during the BFCM season. 

Loyalty programs are especially effective for BFCM marketing because they incentivize customers to shop with you instead of another brand. The treasure trove of customer data from such programs helps you deliver relevant and personalized emails. And that personalization has value, making customers feel like they are getting an even bigger discount than they would elsewhere. All of this increases the likelihood of conversion and builds a foundation for a long-lasting relationship.

So what does this look like in action?

Rewards can be incorporated in every stage of the customer journey, across your web pages, emails, and more:

  • Offer early access to sales to show appreciation and drive excitement.
  • Give double loyalty points to encourage repeat purchases.
  • Provide member discounts to strengthen customer loyalty.
Blix - Loyalty example
eighth day - loyalty example
smart coffee - loyalty points example

Need to build your loyalty program? We recommend Stamped to facilitate loyalty programs and reward your customers. Its user-friendly experience allows customers to easily view, earn, and redeem points without hassle, gamifying the shopping experience to make it more exciting. 

Prioritize customer support.

Website not loading, discount codes not applying—although e-commerce provides so many conveniences, it also comes with occasional roadblocks. Don’t leave customers hanging! If they encounter a hiccup during purchase and can’t resolve it, they may bolt for a competitor. But you can plan for the unexpected by implementing world-class customer support:

  • Expand support hours to accommodate increased customer traffic.
  • Assist customers in real time via live and AI chat.
  • Address concerns with an FAQ page.
gorgias live chat example

SmartBug trusts Gorgias to power customer experience and service through the magic of AI. Automate more than 60 percent of your customer support with an AI agent that answers queries quickly and easily and pulls conversations from disparate sources under one roof. Gorgias works across the Shopify, Magento, and WooCommerce ecosystems to support you during BFCM season and any other time.

Chapter 2:  Attract and Engage

How many loyalty accounts and cards do you have? If you’ve lost count, your customers are in the same boat—but their eyes will also light up when their loyalty is rewarded with exclusive discounts and perks during the BFCM season. Rewards can be incorporated in every stage of the customer journey, across your web pages, emails, and more:

Personalize your messaging to reignite and retain customers.

Share relevant content with the right customers to establish your brand in the market, convey expertise, and remain top of mind. Strategically re-engaging your contacts well before BFCM is crucial to ensure your brand is first in consumers’ minds when it’s finally time to buy.

Personalizing your messaging can engage loyal customers and capture the attention of dormant ones. Craft your strategy by segmenting customers using zero- and first-party data. Analyze this information to segment your email list based on demographics, purchase history, and browsing behavior to share the right content and appropriate offers.

But remember to pivot slightly based on which bucket the audience falls into. Understand your most engaged customers by accounting for their product page visits, selected preferences, and past purchases, and revive unengaged customers by tailoring campaigns to their past interests.

🎥 Learn how to segment your contacts in Klaviyo.

SmartBug Media partners with Klaviyo to deliver seamless BFCM marketing campaigns and support ROI. Our clients rely on Klaviyo for marketing outreach, using an omnichannel approach that leverages customer data and analytics. Fine-tune your targeting for emails, SMS, or push notifications based on behaviors, psychographics, geographics, and demographics to share time-sensitive sales, product launches, and exclusive offers with the right audience.

Don’t let deliverability keep you from achieving ROI. Email deliverability can ensure your BFCM marketing campaigns arrive in inboxes, not spam folders. Book your email deliverability audit to break through the noise.

Achieve SEO quick wins. 

Search engine optimization (SEO) might seem like a stretch for timely BFCM marketing campaigns, but it can be the missing link during a busy BFCM season when product searches skyrocket and you want to earn visibility over the competition. The little things can get your brand in front of more customers in a flash:

  • Optimize product titles and descriptions with relevant keywords to improve search ranking.
  • Update meta descriptions to entice users with compelling summaries of your BFCM deals.
  • Improve website speed for both user experience and search engine ranking.
  • Include reviews on your product pages to offer compelling social proof.

Can a product page make or break your efforts? Size up the impact of SEO optimization.

Discover the difference an optimized product page can make:

GIF - SEO optimized product page example

Is it SEM or S-E-M? No matter how you say it, Semrush streamlines your SEO. Use it to conduct an audit to make your website search-engine friendly and boost user experience (UX). Semrush can help identify keywords, optimize links, and detect and fix page errors.

Master paid media.

Native or display ads? Cost per click (CPC) or cost per acquisition (CPA)? Paid media gets your foot in the door and should be a part of your foundation of BFCM promotion as customers search for gift ideas and businesses to buy from. Amplify your visibility with a comprehensive paid media strategy that includes researching your audience and assessing your budget, marketing channels, and goals. 

But remember that BFCM campaigns often have different metrics and content than other campaigns throughout the year. This altered nurturing strategy may affect your customer lifetime value. 

Preparation and expectation setting are even more important. When you’re ready to press enable, consider these optimizations: 

  • Target keywords strategically, identifying high-traffic keywords related to BFCM deals in your industry. 
  • Craft compelling ad copy highlighting your discounts and promotions to stand out among competitors.
  • Monitor and adjust bidding strategies in real time to push ROI based on data and emerging trends during the shopping season. 
  • Develop search or display ads to improve exposure across search engines and websites.
  • Create social media ads to reach consumers where they spend their time.

Build a conversion path landing page and email journey to educate and encourage purchases.

Drive your paid media.

Get the most out of your creative and your budget. Download our Paid Media Budget Planner & Calculator to take the guesswork out of paid media planning.

Drive your paid media Video

Chapter 3:  Convert & Retain

Lights, camera, action. How will you get your audience to take action and buy from you instead of the competition during the holidays and beyond? Motivate prospects to move from curiosity to commitment with a winning mix of personalization and targeted tactics to drive conversions.

Craft personalized journeys.

When you understand and cater to the customer lifecycle, your brand’s campaigns can provide value to the right person at the right time and drive revenue during a lightning-fast BFCM season. Consider a few tactics to jumpstart your efforts:

  • Deliver paid ads to connect with consumers.
  • Personalize subject lines and email content to propel higher open rates and click-throughs.
  • Develop targeted landing pages and email flows to highlight BFCM deals.
  • Offer surprises to existing customers, such as early BFCM access.
  • Encourage social sharing to elevate your brand through word-of-mouth.

But don’t forget about the value of data! Download our guide, Using Zero- and First-Party Data to Fuel Your E-Commerce Personalization Strategy, to take personalization to the next level during BFCM.

Blog CTA - Vitauthority Case Study

Increasing a Collagen Supplement Company's Total Email Revenue by 90% with Klaviyo

Using highly segmented flows and AOV-boosting messaging through Klaviyo while expanding post-purchase messaging, SmartBug helped this health and wellness brand create gains in every aspect of their email marketing.

Read the Case Study

Write magnetic promo messages.

Reel in eager BFCM shoppers with messages they can’t ignore. Show your brand’s value through exciting email and SMS content tailored to your audience segments. 

Not sure how to start? Consider what may give your messages that extra “something”:

  • Craft compelling subject lines that pique curiosity and drive opens.
  • Highlight limited-time offers to create a sense of urgency.
  • Add strong calls to action to direct customers to your sale(s).

🎥 Discover the importance of considering time zones for your promo messaging.

Take note of message send times and frequencies during BFCM campaigns to reach customers and preserve relationships. Sending messages based on a proven engagement time for the local recipient's time zone gives customers equal access to deals. You can also adjust your smart sending window to find the right frequency spanning hours, days, or weeks—something that’s safe to shorten during BFCM to create urgency.

Optimize conversion rates.

What percentage of visitors are filling up their carts after they land on your site from a campaign message? To get mathematical, the conversion rate looks like this:

Conversions/Total visitors x 100

The bottom line is that you want to convert as many visitors to customers as possible—especially to kick your sales into high gear during BFCM season. Conversion rate optimization involves making changes on your pages to improve performance, and small changes can have big impacts:

  • Use heatmaps from tools like Lucky Orange and Hotjar to understand traffic and identify website bottlenecks.
  • Run A/B tests on calls to action to improve the performance of elements such as colors, buttons, and imagery.
  • Enhance the user experience with simple navigation and speedy load times.
  • Create unique website pop-ups with tools like JustUno.
  • Check site speed on your Shopify, WooCommerce, or Magento platform.

🔎 Small changes can make a big difference.

Is your website hosted on Shopify? Complete the Self-Guided Shopify Store Audit to inform your conversion rate optimization strategy. Small changes can make a big difference.

Shopify Audit GIF

Create thematic and conversion-focused landing pages.

Move users closer to purchase with dedicated landing pages built to support your BFCM promotions. These pages connect to your original message through compelling copy and a form users complete to obtain information about your product or deal.

To drive BFCM conversions, landing pages must be attention-grabbing and capture users’ undivided attention. Equip yourself with key best practices to accomplish your goals:

  • Remove site navigation to limit distractions and give visitors the option to convert or leave.
  • Incorporate quality imagery such as hero images and product photos to increase engagement and showcase your offer.
  • Craft simple copy with a clear headline, value prop, and product details that keeps important information above the fold so users see everything and can fill out your form.

Optimize for mobile to simplify navigation and cater to on-the-go shoppers and the influx of cross-device browsing.

Hot tip! Do you ever look at reviews to inform buying decisions? So do your customers! Consider adding multimedia product reviews to landing pages and other marketing channels to help users visualize your products in their lives. SmartBug clients have had success using Okendo and Klaviyo reviews to develop social proof and boost conversions.

liquid death - Okendo review platform example

Chapter 4:  Delight

Once you’ve made a sale, your job isn’t done. In fact, you’re opening the door to creating lasting relationships—if you play your cards right. Delight customers and boost retention beyond BFCM season by communicating effectively and continuing to provide value.

Offer a seamless post-purchase experience.

This doesn’t mean sending more promotional content immediately after your BFCM marketing. Instead, think about what your customers might need from you after they check out. With this in mind, you may consider these options: 

  • Send timely order confirmations with clear delivery timelines to keep customers informed and your brand top of mind.
  • Clarify return policies and streamline returns and exchanges to maintain trust and learn about customers.
  • Provide one-on-one support for customers who experienced late deliveries or received damaged products.

Your post-purchase timeline might look a bit like this:

arrow pointing down
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline Confirmation Icon
1

Order Confirmed

As soon as a customer completes their purchase, send an order confirmation email. This message confirms the purchase, outlines any loyalty points earned, and informs them of the expected delivery timeline.
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline Shipped Icon
2

Shipped

Quickly send a shipping confirmation email to keep your customer excited. Include the order status, expected delivery date, and tracking number, so they can easily follow their package’s journey.
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline Delivered Icon
3

Delivered

Notify customers via SMS or push notification when their product arrives. This is crucial for high-value or perishable items to prevent spoilage or theft, enhancing their excitement and reinforcing your brand’s reliability.
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline Unboxing Icon
4

Unboxing

Your customer has their product in hand and is ready to experience it. Encourage them to share their unboxing moments, enhancing engagement and brand connection.
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline How was it icon
5

How Was It?

After allowing time for product use, follow up with customers to gather feedback on their product experience. Encourage reviews, offer referral incentives, or suggest complementary products to enhance their journey and keep your brand top of mind.
BFCM Playbook - Post Purchase Timeline Back in the loop icon
6

Back in the Loop

With the purchase complete and feedback gathered, re-engage customers with targeted marketing campaigns. Nurture them for repeat purchases with tailored promotions and updates.

Integrate loyalty program rewards.

Freebies? Discounts? Nothing beats brand perks, and you can satisfy customer cravings during and after BFCM. If a customer is new to you, invite them to continue the relationship by joining your loyalty program. And for those who’ve remained loyal over time, you can offer special exclusives. Think about what might excite these customers: 

  • Award loyalty points for purchases made during BFCM.
  • Share post-purchase discounts to encourage repeat business.
  • Add a referral program to incentivize customer advocacy.

SmartBug’s research shows that loyalty rewards move the needle to drive repeat purchases. As many as 68 percent of shoppers are moved to purchase during BFCM when they can rack up—and cash in on—loyalty points, while 78 percent of happy customers are willing to refer brands to loved ones (and a few extra loyalty points for doing so can seal the deal).

Share personalized post-sale communications.

Customers want to know they’re important to you and expect personalized messages. You have your pick of email flows to send throughout the entire customer journey, from cart abandonment to purchase confirmations. But a few select tactics help personalize post-sale communications in informative and engaging ways:

  • Send personalized “thank you" cross-sell emails with recommendations based on purchase and browsing history.
  • Request product reviews or even share reviews you’ve received in an email to encourage customer engagement and purchase.

🎥 Enhance the Post-Purchase Journey with Wonderment

Try for yourself! Wonderment amplifies your post-sales strategy. Create custom branded tracking pages and real-time shipping notifications to delight customers, eliminate confusion over order status, and even integrate an upsell or two.

Chapter 5:  Craft Your Own BFCM Marketing Success

The competition for eyeballs and dollars is fierce during BFCM season, but with a little planning, you can reach the entire customer lifecycle at the right time and with the right tactics. Remember to use the flywheel model as your North Star to understand customers inside and out. By following this strategy playbook and optimizing your BFCM marketing strategy to align with the customer journey, your brand can bag just as big of a haul as shoppers during the holiday season.

Consider when you need an agency.

Don’t have the bandwidth or expertise to execute a robust BFCM marketing strategy? SmartBug communicates on behalf of your brand to showcase the value of your products.

We work with you to define your strategy and execute campaigns and optimizations using expertise across email, SMS, web development, design, and paid media.

Get in touch with our e-commerce experts to plan your BFCM marketing strategy and plant the seeds for a successful holiday sales season.

 

Grab Your BFCM Playbook

Complete the form to download and take the playbook with you as a PDF.

E-Commerce Tools For the Full Customer Lifecycle

Every tech stack looks different because every business is different. Below, you'll find a toolbox filled with our go-to picks, the very tools we use with clients to craft winning omnichannel experiences. See how they fit together to support your customer's journey at every touchpoint.

In a nutshell:

Automate email and SMS marketing with personalized messages to boost sales, brand loyalty, and data-driven decisions.

In a nutshell:

Combine reviews, loyalty programs, and easy integrations to boost e-commerce trust, customer engagement, and growth.

In a nutshell:
 
An all-in-one e-commerce helpdesk that integrates with your online store, centralizing communication channels and turning inquiries into sales.

In a nutshell:

Leverages AI and visitor data to personalize website messaging and product recommendations, maximizing conversions.

In a nutshell:

Capture and showcase customer-generated content including product ratings & reviews, photos & videos, and Q&A.

In a nutshell:

Elevate the post-purchase experience through proactive shipping notifications and branded tracking pages.

Supercharge your BFCM strategy and stay ahead of the competition—work with us!

two coworkers wearing SmartBug t-shirts posing