
Our list of the top five ways to ready for Black Friday:
1. Measuring, measure, measure.
There are countless things you need to test before Black Friday. Test your marketing message, your sales offer, your sales capacity, your website functionality, your delivery and customer service. Don't wait until Thursday or Friday to find out you can't handle the volume that comes from the holiday season, or that your offer wasn't good enough to attract attention...
2. Don’t rely on your customers to point out issues.
Here is the stat: 95% of customers do not complain about issues when making a purchase. They just don't return. However, in a survey 45% said they would purchase again if the issue was resolved to their satisfaction. Don't just handle complaints, aggressively test your customer service and make sure every customer leaves happy.
3. Test the limits of your website.
Do you sell, list prices, or make announcements on your website? We probably don't have to tell you that more and more people are shopping, comparing prices, and buying online. Up to 45% of people check prices online before making a purchase. You need to make sure your site can handle the volume, function correctly, and is updated with the Black Friday offers and current marketing messages.
4. Take time to role play.
Before Black Friday hits, you need to test, re-test and role play for all possible scenarios... It sounds cheesy, but it works. Playing the part of your customers helps you see things from their perspective, and helps your staff prepare for possible troubleshooting. Test your buying experience, customer service, product performance and website functionality. It may look good to you, but does it fulfill the needs of your customers?
5. Have a back-up plan in place.
We all know Murphy's Law: if something can go wrong, it probably will. Especially during the holiday rush and Black Friday, when your staff and business system is being pushed to the limit something will go wrong. Make sure you have your back up plan in place. What happens if sales are low? What happens at record highs? What happens if your staff gets the flu? What happens if your supplier can't get you enough product? Who do you call if you website crashes? You will need a back-up plan and you will be happy you have one.
In conclusion, use the Boy Scout motto:
Be Prepared for Black Friday by doing the things on this list.
Ad Trends Advertising, Inc. can help you set up and test the perfect marketing plan for the holiday season, as well as help you sell online, but time is running out. With less than a month left, now is the time to take action and get those ads ready for Black Friday!