The White Friday is approaching. You will see more and more websites and shops talking about advertising the occasion and it to attract new customers. How can you join the craze and design an effective White Friday campaign that your customers will love? That is something we have tried to explain in this article.
But before we dive into the actual tips, let’s first take a step back and understand what it is all about.
What is White Friday?
For the Middle East, White Friday is equivalent to Black Friday in the US and Internationally. It is a promotional event that takes place in November. The campaign is accompanied by large sales, discounts, and deals from major online and offline retailers. The occasion usually gains extensive media coverage.
While mostly fair to its Western sibling, the White Friday in the Middle East is not a complete copycat. In the US, the day is mainly viewed negatively, full of reports of violence and conflict. Taking a different approach on the matter, the CEO of Souq Ronaldo Mouchawar called it ‘white.’ The color has more positive associations. And since the promotional day falls on Friday — the holy day for any Muslim — it communicates a more positive message. Unlike, Black Friday it also lasts for four days, instead of one.
This year’s White Friday falls on the 29th of November 2019. Over time, man companies in the Middle East will announce the major sales on the day. The commercial holiday helps businesses promote their shops, clear their inventory, and increase their revenue — all desirable outcomes.
While the strategy might be clear for customers — research and find the best deals, purchases the things you have meant to buy for years — things are not as clear for business. Especially smaller companies that do not have the large marketing budgets of international corporations.
So, let’s look through the couple of cool tactics you can use to use the International Day of large sales for your advantage, even if you are just a small business.
1. Strategize
Not all products have been created equal — some products well in the period than some others and that natural. For example, according to the Souq.com, amongst White Friday bestsellers in 2016 have been health and beauty products, fashion, apparel, shoe category.
So, before you work on a campaign, do your homework and determine if your business will enjoy it. Figured it would? Then it’s time to choose the strategy you will use. And while those benefits are great and can be irreplaceable, also make sure you are not losing from the promotions you are organizing.
Remember that the White Friday campaign implies large sales. And you should be marketing it as the biggest sale of the season. Many marketers suggest putting higher discounts on older collections. Instead of selling single items, you can also offer deals on bundles — that way, you will get more money and clear space for new items. There are many types of promotions you can use that are not just a percentage rate, familiar to the many.
2. Plan in advance
You have your strategy already? Then it is time to plan your promotional.
Make sure you have enough time. If you want your sale to be successful, you need to start up promoting it weeks in advance. People need to know that they come to your shop to make the most out of the sale, so give them the opportunity.
Experts suggest starting the broadcasting of your campaign five weeks before. You have many channels to work with:
- Create a social media campaign and advertise the promotion.
- Add a ‘White Friday’ timer to your website
- Design a large banner for the front page
- Email to your subscribers (and ask website visitors to share their email to get a special deal)
- Reach out to media channels
- For brick and mortar shops — use special marketing tricks, create brochures and put them near the counter, announce the event on the widows of your shop, etc
3. Be ready (even if White Friday is not for you)
If you are a small retailer, the White Friday might not have much of a point or appeal to you. While you might not be interested in launching a White Friday campaign, it is better to have your store ready. Even if it is not something you wanted to do, you need to keep in mind that many people are shopping on those days and that is your chance to attract some customers.
White Friday is when everyone is in the buying mode, and that means you can use sales techniques to attract attention. By being ready, you can also increase your chances of being noticed by the customers, and they surely will come back to you later when the sale season is over.
4. Prepare your website
A large percentage And that means that if you have an online shop, it needs to be just as well prepared for the sale season as your brick and mortar shop is.
During White Fridays, the websites get a significant amount of traffic. So if you are an eCommerce business with an ambition to become the best, you need to launch a promotional campaign to convert visitors into buyers.
Even if you are not doing online retail, sill prepares the website for a predicted inflow of traffic is a good idea. Many websites crash during their seasonal sales. You should ensure your website against that minor inconvenience that might lead to severe problems. So, troubleshoot your site in advance to make sure all those problems can be avoided.
Since the use of smartphones does nothing but increases, they also need to make sure that people can access your products and learn more about your promotions using their phones.
5. Reach out to influencers
Ever considered engaging influencers into the promotion of your business? If you did not now, when you are getting for one of the most important sales of the season, might the time.
While most of us automatically think about the larger celebrities with thousands of followers, you have many options to choose from. They need not be global to count. Some smaller Instagram bloggers might help you achieve your goals better than some larger ones. The size of audiences should not be the main metric — engagement and their reach are way more important. Just make sure you do influencer marketing right.
6. Find your way
You need not follow a template for designing your White Friday campaign. First, there is no right or wrong way to go about it. You know your customers best, so follow their interests and behavior before you do anything else.
Offer special, unique deals that they cannot find anywhere else. You can design a campaign special to your loyal customers and send them an additional discount coupon.
If you are an online shop and want to make the most out of the sale season, you can also collaborate with other brick and mortar business. In the Middle East, malls are much more than just shops, and they are still more popular than online shopping. So, many brands collaborate with other businesses to create more memorable campaigns and display their products in ‘the real world.’
Make your promotional activity special. That way, you will be the brand on their mind during (and hopefully after) the promotional activity is over.
Now, you have all it takes to launch a banger White Friday campaign.
In recent years the market in the Middle East has been actively competing with the West. That is why the concept of the White Friday entered the popular culture and has been gaining more and more popularity in recent years.
The White Friday campaign plays an important role in the marketing of a business. Considering its growing popularity and large potential, by looking for creative ways to use the day for your advantage, you can increase your brand awareness and achieve the new highest.
But while it is difficult for a small and middle-size business to compete with larger firms, it is not impossible. The right White Friday campaign might help them reach their marketing goals. And it is always a nice bonus.
So, mark the day on the calendar and start designing your one of a kind White Friday promotional campaign!
