Around Black Friday, people receive dozens of emails a day. Inboxes are full and almost every subject line is shouting about discounts. So what do people do? They scan quickly, delete a lot and move on. Your email has only a few seconds to persuade.
Those who do things differently stand out. Black Friday falls on 29 November this year, so you still have time to prepare your emails properly. In this article you will read how to stand out without shouting, and how to make sure you still have customers left after the festive season.
Email your best customers early
Give your regular customers access to your offer a day early. It feels exclusive. It rewards people who have already bought from you. And it spreads the load, so your webshop, stock and customer service are not all under pressure on a single day.
For this you use a segment. This is a group of recipients who have something in common, for example that they bought something from you in the past twelve months. Most email platforms can create such a group for you automatically.
Also explain why someone is receiving the email. A sentence such as “You get to look first, because you have bought from us before” works well. It makes the email personal and gives a reason to click straight away.
For early access, consider these groups:
- customers who have bought more than once;
- customers who placed a large order in the past year;
- subscribers who often open your emails and click through;
- people who added a product to their wishlist.
A subject line that says something
The subject line is the first thing someone sees. Many businesses write only “30 percent off” or “Black Friday deals”. That says nothing. Your reader does not know what it is about and scrolls on.
Be specific. Name the product or the situation in which someone needs it. Compare these two lines:
- Weak: “Black Friday: now 30 percent off”
- Stronger: “Your winter coat for those cold mornings, now discounted”
The second line paints a picture. The reader thinks of their own morning rather than a percentage. Specific beats loud.
A few rules of thumb for subject lines:
- Keep it short. On a phone, a long line gets cut off.
- Put the most important word first.
- Avoid capital letters and exclamation marks. They look like spam.
- Make a promise that your email actually delivers on.
Do not forget the preheader. This is the short preview text that appears next to or below the subject line. Use it to complement the subject line, for example with the end date or a benefit. If you do not, the email client often shows a random piece of text from your email.
Not sure which line works better? Test it. In an A/B test, you send two versions to a small part of your list. The version that scores best goes to the rest.
Fewer emails, better emails
It is tempting to send an email every day. There is plenty to announce, after all, and your competitors are doing it too. But five emails in four days often leads to unsubscribes. People get tired of you and start ignoring you.
Two or three well-timed emails with a clear offer usually work better. A simple schedule looks like this:
- Thursday: early access for your best customers.
- Friday: the offer for everyone on your list.
- Sunday: a final reminder, only for those who have not yet bought.
The last point is important. Exclude people who have already bought from the reminder. Nothing irritates people more than a “last chance” for something they have just bought.
A common scenario: an outdoor clothing webshop sends a new email with a new discount every day. After three days, fewer and fewer people open the emails. Some customers unsubscribe and some mark the email as spam. That last one is especially unfortunate, because it can harm the delivery of all your later emails.
Suppose the same shop chooses three emails instead. On Thursday, regular customers get early access. On Friday, the offer for everyone follows. On Sunday, a reminder goes to those who did not buy. You can then expect fewer unsubscribes and a better spread of the workload. That is no guarantee, but there is a good chance your list will stay healthier.
Keep the email itself calm and clear
A strong subject line gets someone to open your email. The email itself has to finish the job. So choose one goal per email and put one clear button at the top. The fewer the choices, the easier the click.
Also pay attention to these points:
- Mobile: many people read email on their phone. Use short text, large buttons and plenty of white space.
- Images: some email clients block them. Make sure the email is clear even without pictures, and add alt text.
- End date: state clearly until when the offer is valid.
- Honesty: do not invent “was” prices that you never charged. Customers notice quickly.
Think about the technical side too. Deliverability is about whether your email lands in the inbox rather than the spam folder. Large providers such as Gmail and Yahoo have applied stricter requirements to bulk senders since the beginning of this year. Make sure your domain is set up correctly (SPF, DKIM and DMARC, three technical checks that show you are the genuine sender) and that people can unsubscribe with one click. Check this before Black Friday, not afterwards.
Clean up your list as well. People who have not opened anything for a year are better excluded. That improves your results and protects your reputation as a sender.
Think about January
Black Friday brings in a lot of new customers. But many of them buy once and you never see them again. So plan the follow-up now, so that they come back in the new year.
A good way to do this is an automated email sequence. This is a series of emails that is sent automatically after someone takes an action, for example a first purchase. You set it up once and it keeps running by itself.
A simple sequence for new customers might include:
- a thank-you email shortly after the order;
- an email with tips on using or looking after the product;
- a request for a review, a few weeks after delivery;
- a personal offer in January that matches what someone bought.
That way, you do not measure the success of Black Friday only by that one day’s revenue. You also look at how many new customers order again afterwards. That is often where the real return lies.
Frequently asked questions
When should I start on my Black Friday emails?
Start preparing now. Create your segments, write your copy and test your emails. You usually send the first message the day before Black Friday, as early access for your best customers. A short announcement a few days earlier is also possible, but not essential.
How many emails are too many?
A good rule of thumb for Black Friday week is two or three emails. The larger your list and the wider your offer, the more room you have, but always keep an eye on the number of unsubscribes. If it rises quickly, you are sending too much.
Do I have to offer a discount to stand out?
No. You can also choose early access, free delivery, a gift with an order or a limited edition. Whatever you offer, be honest and specific. In a busy inbox, that stands out more than a big percentage.
Book a free 30-minute introductory call
Do you want your Black Friday emails to stand out, but are not sure where to begin? Adventio Marketing in Amersfoort is happy to help. We will look at your list, your schedule and your offer, and give you practical tips you can use straight away.
Book a free 30-minute introductory call. You do not need to prepare anything and there is no obligation. Get in touch with us and we will find a time that suits you.
