Megan Totka
Love it or hate it, Black Friday is a popular shopping day for many consumers.The 24 hours following Thanksgiving have a palpable energy in the retail world. Black Friday got its name because it is the day that retailers drive revenues out of the red and into the black. Traditionally, it’s considered the biggest sales day of the year.
As a small business owner, it is natural to sit back and watch this energy unfold with awe and admiration. You would also love to get your customers in your store so that they can spend their entire holiday budget (even if it means waking up at the wee hours of the morning). You would also love bring your revenues from red to black.
Although the attention is on large retail chains, there are a few lessons your small business can learn from all the madness.
Black Friday Deals
Like Thanksgiving, Black Friday falls on the same day each year—the day after Thanksgiving. The day after Thanksgiving is the official start of the holiday shopping season. It’s the time when consumers spend, spend, spend. To encourage all that spending to happen in-store, businesses offer Black Friday deals.
The well-timed sales and marketing campaigns are not an accident.
As a small business, your company can do the same. Get to know your audience and determine when they will buy. For example, if you market to businesses, target your audience at the end of the fiscal year when companies plan their annual spending.
Top Picks of the Season
Before Black Friday rolls around, you’ll hear buzz about the most anticipated and top selling gifts of the season. These top picks are analyzed and offered to entice customers into the store so that they can get their hands on the hottest new items.
People want an “in.” By creating your own top lists and articles outlining the most popular items that you sell, you create demand. You inspire people to want to purchase before you sell out.
Doorbuster Madness
Most retailers offer Black Friday deals. So how do they attract their customers to their store before all of the money has been spent at a competitor? With doorbuster sales.
If you’re in business, you have competition. To lure customers to your store over your competitor’s, you need an irresistible offer.
Retailers work hard to create loyal customers. They think of the lifetime value of a buyer, instead of the value of a single transaction. Although they might not make a large profit on the first sale, they begin the process of creating loyal customers for the long run.
When customer loyalty – and trust – is built over time, it takes quite an enticing offer to lure them away. Your goal is to put that offer on the table to lure them in, and then keep them by delivering doorbuster wow factor all year round.
Customer Service is Paramount
Throughout all of the hustle and bustle this time of year, the best way retailers create loyal, long-term customers is with exceptional customer service. Your customers have a lot going on already. By offering exceptional customer service during a hectic, stressful shopping season, you win.
To provide the best customer service, trying using an easy data analysis tool. DataHero integrates with companies like Zendesk to turn your customer service efforts into sales and Shopify to process those sales. With data analysis in DataHero, you can easily recognize trends, analyze customer needs, and move from the red into the black—no matter the size of your company.
Irresistible Black Friday-esque deals may bring the business in, but customer service is what brings them back. If your company’s customer service stands out from the competitors, you could find your business in the black all year round.
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