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Nothing makes marketers excited like children in a candy shop than Black Friday.
Well, you can’t really blame them. Black Friday is the perfect occasion to clear up unwanted stock and benefit from high revenue. In 2022 alone, the holiday accounted for $11.3 billion in sales.
If you’re a marketer hoping to make it big this year, Black Friday email marketing is your best bet. 1 out of 8 people who clicked on a Black Friday email made a purchase - that’s pretty impressive if we must say so ourselves.
This article covers everything you must know to create Black Friday emails that’ll make you filthy rich.
Why Should You Be Sending Black Friday Emails?
Black Friday email marketing is important for several reasons, and it plays a crucial role in the success of your business during this annual shopping event. Here's why you should consider Black Friday email marketing significant:
To maximize sales
Black Friday accounts for billions of dollars in sales every year. Therefore, it's the perfect opportunity for you to capitalize on it by using email marketing to promote special offers, discounts, and deals.
To engage existing customers
It is the perfect time of the year to connect with your existing customer base, including subscribers and previous buyers. Sending targeted Black Friday emails to these individuals will encourage repeat business and foster customer loyalty.
To attract new customers
Black Friday email campaigns can also help attract new customers. You can use email lists to reach potential customers who have expressed interest but haven't made a purchase yet. Attractive deals in Black Friday emails can entice them to make their first purchase.
To build hype and anticipation
You can build anticipation and hype around Black Friday sales by sending teaser emails in advance, countdowns, and sneak peeks at upcoming deals. This will create excitement among your subscribers.
To recover abandoned carts
Many online shoppers abandon their shopping carts before completing a purchase. Black Friday email marketing can include abandoned cart emails with special incentives to encourage shoppers to return and complete their purchases.
To create brand awareness
Consistent Black Friday email marketing helps to keep your brand top of mind with consumers. Even if someone doesn't make a purchase on Black Friday, they may consider your brand in the future.
8 Tips for Killer Black Friday Emails
We know you’re pressed for time, so we’ll get straight to business. The following best practices will ensure your Black Friday emails are anything but mediocre.
1. Start with the subject line.
At a party full of strangers, who will you say hi to? The person who’s smiling or the one who’s frowning? Obviously, the former.
First impressions matter; they always have and always will. The subject lines of your Black Friday emails create the initial impression that determines whether they’re opened or not. In other words, if you want your emails on Black Friday to be successful, you must make their subject lines inviting.
How to write enticing Black Friday subject lines?
- Use numbers. Black Friday is popular because of huge sales, which is why you must highlight the discount being offered.
- Add emojis. Emojis stand out in a sea of black and white text. These emojis are our top picks for Black Friday: 🤑 🖤 ⏳ 🎁 🛒 🏃🏻♂️
- Create urgency. Black Friday is a temporary joy. Use words like limited time, now, and x hours left to entice an impulsive purchase.
Black Friday subject lines up for grabs
It’s finally here! Flat 50% off on Black Friday
You better run 🏃🏻♂️ 30% off till stocks last
A Black Friday sale just for you 🖤
Black Friday sale starts in 3...2...1
T-10 hours for best Black Friday sale ever
Related: 105 Email Subject Line Examples You Need To Copy This Minute
2. Build hype with a teaser campaign.
As a marketer, one human emotion you should be heavily playing on is curiosity. The latter makes your audience anticipate what’s to come ahead and encourages them to discuss the same in their social circles.
You can create curiosity in your Black Friday emails by launching a teaser campaign. It should be subtle enough not to disclose too much information but striking enough to generate excitement.
Follow the below tips for successful Black Friday teaser campaigns:
- Focus on the timing. Launch your email towards the start of November.
- Make it intriguing. Use phrases like ‘something big is coming’ or ‘get ready for the hottest sale in town’ to create anticipation.
- Include a countdown timer. It leads to another valuable human emotion, i.e., FOMO or fear of missing out.
- Invite engagement. Use elements that your audience can physically interact with. It ensures you have their full attention.
3. Focus on design.
141 million Black Friday emails were sent in 2022 alone - imagine standing out in such a crowd. There are high chances that your email will get lost in your audience’s inbox clutter. But there’s one way through which you can avoid this unfortunate scenario - create well-designed Black Friday emails.
A good email design is what’s going to enable you to capture your readers’ attention and convert them. But what do we exactly mean by a well-designed Black Friday email? It should include some or all of the below elements.
Features of well-designed Black Friday emails
Interactive elements
Motion attracts attention in a way that static images can never. Include carousels, rollovers, animated buttons, and gamification features to invite engagement.
Brand colors
While it makes perfect sense to use the color black on Black Friday, you must include your brand colors as well to create a strong recall.
Related: Influence of Colors in Email Marketing: A Complete Guide
Balanced layout
Don’t lean towards heavy text or imagery. Aim for 60% text and 40% graphics to create a clean and harmonious layout.
Responsive design
A great majority of people view emails on their mobiles. Your Black Friday emails should load as intended on all devices.
Related: A Guide to Responsive Emails: Tips, Challenges, & Examples
Vibrant CTA buttons
The Call To Action (CTA) buttons are responsible for converting your audience. They should stand out and compel your readers to click on them.
Urgency Factor
The emails should create a sense of urgency that motivates the readers to act. This is done through countdown timers and urgency-creating content, like limited-time and hurry.
The secret for creating well-designed Black Friday emails
What would you rather be doing; creating irresistible promotions or stressing over design?
Designing emails is hard, even more so when profitable opportunities like Black Friday are on the line. If you want to create stunning Black Friday emails with minimal effort, then you must use Unlayer’s Black Friday email templates.
They come with readymade, professional designs that can easily be altered using the drag and drop editor. Plus, they are responsive, white-labeled, and personalizable.
Black Friday Email Templates That Convert Crazy
4. Keep your copy clear and concise.
You can’t forget email copy when talking about design - they go hand in hand like Nutella and croissants. It must engage your audience while at the same time, persuade them to perform your desired action.
When writing content for Black Friday emails, remember the acronym BLACK.
B for Bold.
Black Friday is anything but subtle. The words you choose should be as bold as the event in discussion. Opt for words like guaranteed, secure, genuine, best, and unmatchable to appear confident.
L for Limited.
Keep the words limited in number when crafting Black Friday email content. Your audience is not going to read long paragraphs of text. Just write enough content that can convince them to purchase.
A for Action-oriented.
Use words that encourage your audience to act. Some of these words include: begin, buy, discover, find, grab, improve, and save.
C for Convincing.
The overall tone of your Black Friday copy should be persuasive instead of informative. Remember, your aim is to make the maximum number of sales, not to tell a story.
K for Keywords.
Keywords in SEO are the words used by searchers. When writing content for Black Friday emails, write in the language your audience speaks. The emails will appear more relatable then.
5. Be extra extra generous.
People love Black Friday because of the amazing sales that come their way. Since they like a value for their buck, they’ll reward your brand even more if you’re extra generous with the price reductions. In other words, offer an early bird discount.
54% of people start their holiday shopping way before Black Friday even starts. Hence, you should benefit from this opportunity and generate sales at a time when your audience is in the right mindset to purchase.
6. Offer the right promotions.
To make your Black Friday emails truly stand out amongst your competitors, you have to make an offer your prospects can’t resist. But you also must take into account your company’s profitability - you can’t go broke while offering heavy discounts.
What’s the solution? Offer only the right promotions. When planning your Black Friday email campaign, ask your audience what they really want. Is it free delivery? Buy one get one free offer? Lucky draws? Or heavy price reductions?
You can do this by conducting focus groups or sending out survey emails.
7. Send multiple emails.
The biggest email marketing mistake you can make on Black Friday is sending only one email. To benefit from the true potential of Black Friday email marketing, send multiple emails.
Ideally, you should be sending the following emails:
Teaser email
An email sent to build curiosity and anticipation amongst subscribers of the amazing Black Friday sale ahead.
Time to send: 1st week of November.
Sneak peek email
An email that gives a greater hint of your Black Friday promotions while keeping the curiosity alive. The purpose of this email is to build on the anticipation.
Time to send: 2nd week of November
Early bird email
An email that provides an early promotion to generate more sales.
Time to send: 3rd week of November
Countdown email
An email that features a countdown timer that indicates when the Black Friday sale will begin.
Time to send: 3-5 days before Black Friday
Promotional email
The main Black Friday email featuring your promotions.
Time to send: On Black Friday morning
Another promotional email
A differently designed email offering the same promotions. This is sent as a reminder for those who have either missed your email or haven’t made a purchase yet.
Time to send: On Black Friday night
Extended email
An email sent before Cyber Monday to provide a sale extension for generating any additional revenue.
Time to send: The Saturday that follows Black Friday
8. Integrate with other marketing channels.
Black Friday emails will only work if integrated with other marketing channels, like social and print media.
The truth is that the number of scams today is higher than ever before. People are apprehensive about trusting new brands or whenever too good of an offer is being pitched. People often resort to social media or social proof to determine whether your brand is worth their money or not.
The following tips will ensure other marketing channels support your Black Friday emails:
- Feature one hashtag across all social media channels and emails so prospects can easily search for it.
- Share testimonials received from social media or your website on the emails you send.
- Include social media handles in your email’s footer.
Black Friday Emails: Inspiration You Need
Now that you know all the insider tips and tricks for creating Black Friday emails, it’s time for some good old inspiration. The following companies have nailed their Black Friday emails.
Article
We love the animated GIF that highlights what Article is all about - good quality furniture. The minimal text leaves the fluff and features only their amazing promotions.
Game
The gaming hub has used the trustee countdown timer to build anticipation for its upcoming Black Friday sale. We love how the CTA buttons stand out against the black background.
Carhartt
Carhartt has announced the launch of its Black Friday weekend with a cool animation. The side-by-side CTA buttons ensure the different segments of their audience are redirected to their relevant web pages.
Onsen
We love how this email isn’t black like most Black Friday emails are. The simplistic design, along with actionable words, makes this email one of our favorites.
Templates for Irresistible Black Friday Emails
We wanted to make things super easy for you, which is why we’ve gone through the hassle of sifting through different templates to choose those guaranteed to create an impact. You can thank us later.
Black Friday Email Template #1
Why do we love it?
- Harmonious color palette of black, yellow, and white
- Stackable CTA buttons
- Well-balanced layout
Black Friday Email Template #2
Why do we love it?
- Attractive header
- CTA buttons that stand out
- Simplistic design
Black Friday Email Template #3
Why do we love it?
- Countdown timer
- Bold typography
- Scannable email layout
Wrap Up
Congrats, you’re on your way to create high-performing Black Friday emails. Make sure to follow the above tips and templates for emails that’ll complete all your sales targets.
