3 Simple Black Friday Sale Ideas For Your Small Business
Picture this: it’s the morning after Thanksgiving, and you’re sitting on your couch in your coziest pajamas with a cup of coffee in one hand and your remote in the other.
Your phone dings, notifying you that you just made another Black Friday sale. You do a little happy dance, turn on the TV, and select your first Hallmark movie of the season.
If it seems impossible to host a Black Friday sale without the stress and busyness you’re used to, keep reading.
Because you can run a successful Black Friday sale without being overwhelmed, working through the weekend, or being on your phone 24/7.
Black Friday Sales By The Numbers
First, a quick terminology note: “Cyber 5” refers to the five days from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday.
Cyber 5 sales include:
Thanksgiving,
Black Friday,
Small Business Saturday, and
Cyber Monday
For this blog post, “Black Friday” encompasses all Cyber 5 sales.
If you’re on the fence about hosting a Black Friday sale this year, here is some data to help you decide:
42% of 2022 Cyber Week shoppers shopped online (Queue.it.)
According to Deloitte, 80% of U.S. consumers expected to shop during Cyber Week 2022.
Small Business Saturday spending reached an estimated $17.9 billion, according to a Small Business Consumer Insights survey.
The same survey reported that 72% of shoppers strongly agreed they will continue to “shop small” throughout the holiday season thanks to the impact Small Business Saturday had on their communities.
In 2022, “Black Friday online retail traffic was 3x that of a normal October day.” (Queue.it.)
Of the 66.5 million in-store shoppers surveyed, 77% “indicated they shopped specifically for Small Business Saturday in 2022. (National Retail Federation)
The National Retail Association reports that in 2022, consumers spent an average of $325.44 on holiday-related purchases over Cyber Week (the 5 days from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday).
Black Friday Sales Idea #1: Don’t Host a Sale If You Don’t Want To
You read that right. If you don’t want to host a sale – don’t.
Are you familiar with my “Find Your Minimum” philosophy?
Over my six-year tenure as a marketing strategist and business mentor,
I've consistently emphasized the importance of simple business strategies.
Not once have I insisted a client undertake something they're not excited about.
And I’m definitely not doing that today.
So, if you don’t want to host a Black Friday sale – if the thought brings dread instead of joy – stop reading this and do something that does. (I recommend a vintage Real Housewives episode or a bubble bath.)
And remember: you aren’t any “less” of a business owner if you don’t host a sale.
Got it? Good.
If you want to run a sale, move on to the second idea. ⤵️
Black Friday Sale Idea #2: Modify It
This is a good time to remind you that you are the boss of your business!
If you’d like to host a sale but don’t want to be glued to your phone or computer all weekend, host your sale the week before Black Friday.
There are several advantages to this:
According to The National Retail Federation, 43% of consumers plan to do their holiday shopping before Black Friday.
You’ll beat the rush and get ahead of the competition.
Your sale will likely be over before Thanksgiving, which means you’ll get to bask in your success while you enjoy a stress-free holiday.
Bottom line? Your business, your rules.
Black Friday Sales Idea #3: Automate It
This might be my favorite holiday marketing tip ever. ⬇️
My client Bobbi Mullins recently introduced me to the mindblowing advantages of chatbots – specifically Manychat, which can make marketing during the holiday season much easier.
Chatbots are computer programs that simulate human interactions. In other words, these bots have “conversations” with your potential clients or customers – moving them along their buyer’s journey.
This means you can sit back and let Manychat handle your Black Friday sale (while you handle the Thanksgiving leftovers).
If you’re worried that a Chatbot might be too impersonal, check out Bobbi’s Instagram post that addresses this common concern.
Here’s how you could make Manychat work for you:
Create an Instagram feed post about your sale and ask your followers to comment with a word related to your sale. (Example: “Comment below with the word ‘BLACK FRIDAY’ to get this party started!”)
The comment will trigger ManyChat to get to work. It can DM your commenter a link to purchase the product or service or prompt the follower to answer questions that will get them where they need to go.
There were more than 10 million Chatbot sessions initiated during Cyber Week 2022. 🤯 And on Black Friday, Chatbot messages worldwide surged by almost 60% compared to the previous year, according to Salesforce.
So, it’s clear consumers are familiar with this now-commonplace marketing tool. Why not take advantage of it for your business, too?
If you want an expert to guide you through how to set up your own Manychat automation, reach out to Bobbi!
Final Thoughts
For many business owners, the holiday season is often synonymous with overwhelm and anxiety, but if you’re wondering how to run a stress-free Black Friday sale, remember:
If you don’t want to host a sale, don’t!
Consider running the sale before Black Friday.
Save time by adding automation to your sale, making it easy and stress-free.
And here’s a word to the wise: regardless of how you host your sale, keep it legal! Check out this Instagram post from Michelle, The Trademark Attorney, for tips on making sure your sale stays legally legit.
Lastly, I encourage you to check out the Black Friday masterclass in the Social Squad Society – a membership designed to help you simplify your social media.
This class contains tips, tricks, and strategies to help your next Black Friday sale go off without a hitch!
Not a member? You can learn more about The Social Squad Society here.
And if you have questions about anything mentioned in this post, feel free to reach out. I’m only a DM away!