Why you need to plan now for the holiday sales season

Preparing for major shopping events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday is crucial for small businesses. Harry Lowes, director of midmarket ANZ, Meta, explains how to create a solid plan, attract unexpected customers, and optimise your overall strategy for success, this sales season.

The holiday season is fast approaching, and with it comes one of the biggest shopping moments of the year: Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Traditionally a moment for North American businesses and consumers, it’s growing to be more of a moment for us in Australia. Last year, Australians spent $6.36 billion across the Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend, which accounted for more than a quarter of holiday purchases. Christmas used to be the key sales moment, but the buying moment for Black Friday and Cyber Monday will only grow.

What once were long queues outside shopping centres have now, for the most part, moved online. With customers looking for the best deals months ahead on social media and e-commerce sites, it’s a prime opportunity to attract new customers in a moment when they are looking to spend.

I’ve spoken to hundreds of businesses about these sales moments, and many of them have found this as a key driver to grow their business. From many of these conversations, I’ve learned that the key to success is all in your planning and strategy; finding what makes your brand stand out and reaching potential customers at the right time.

Here is how you can have a successful sales season

Step 1: Plan – Laying the foundation for success

Start preparing well ahead of time —for e-commerce and online businesses this would ideally be by the beginning of September—so that your strategy is fully developed and ready to implement when the shopping frenzy begins.

This gives you time to understand what is driving performance and how you can capitalise on opportunities as they emerge during this busy period.

When creating your plan, focus on the essentials:

Budgeting: 57 per cent of holiday shoppers spend more time online during this period. So, it’s important you allocate your dollars to handle the increase in traffic and competition. Remember what is driving your business goals^[1]. While cost-per-mille (CPM) may increase during peak shopping periods, the rise in consumer spending and engagement often leads to a decrease in cost-per-acquisition (CPA), ultimately benefiting your overall return on investment.

Step 2: Experiment – testing the waters

Before things get too busy, a good idea is to try out different ads to see which ones can attract the most attention and engagement. For example, you can look to try different ad formats like short videos, carousel ads, and static images to determine which generates the highest engagement. Short videos, in particular, have become increasingly influential, with 47% of holiday shoppers reporting they are more impacted by them than by longer videos.

In addition, if you are looking for cost-effective ways to create lots of different ads, AI tools such as text and image generation are an amazing asset to utilise. By trying things out early, you’ll be ready for the big shopping days with ads you know your customers will love.

Step 3: Expand – capturing customers’ old and new

During Mega Sales Days, your typical customers might not be who you expect. The variety of shoppers during these events is broad, driven by the appeal of deals and limited-time offers. This is a great opportunity to capture the attention of new demographics, including ‘unexpected’ shoppers who might not fit your traditional customer profile.

One effective way to reach these unexpected shoppers is to use Meta’s Advantage+ shopping campaigns. These campaigns use advanced algorithms that allow you to expand your audience, helping you connect with customers you might not have thought of otherwise. Zala hair extensions are a great example of the kind of success businesses can achieve when using Advantage+. Zala was able to secure 1.5x more purchases when using Advantage+ shopping campaigns, compared to their usual campaign alone.

Step 4: Push – Implementing winning strategies

Now that you’ve had a chance to test different strategies, you can focus on what works best. Take the lessons learned from your testing to improve your top-performing ads and keep adjusting based on the latest data. Using AI can help you consistently create engaging content without stretching your resources too thin. Remember, regularly checking how your ad is doing i.e amount of clicks, sales, and return on investment (how much you’re making versus what you’re spending) is crucial so you can quickly make changes if something isn’t working.

Planning well in advance, experimenting with different strategies and creativity, and being ready to adapt will help you make the very most of the mega sales season and beyond.

^[1]Meta “Seasonal Holidays Study” by YouGov (Meta-commissioned online study of 1,359 holiday shoppers aged 18-64 in Australia), Dec 2023.

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