With the Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday promotional period just around the corner from 24-27 November this year, many small business owners are turning their minds to how they can best capitalise on this busy period leading into the Christmas holiday sales season. Small Business Saturday is a particularly important opportunity for local and independent businesses to stand out and shine, and there are a range of effective digital marketing strategies small business owners can utilise to make the most of this time of year to lock in meaningful growth.
First and foremost, it is essential to optimise your website for strong engagement and conversions now, so can feel confident in how you present your business to potential customers online. To help with your preparations, our guide below sets out the key elements of digital marketing to impor high-performing websites, promotion ideas to inspire value-added customer focused offers, and some important considerations for the planning and execution stage of your marketing campaign.
Optimise Your Website for Digital Marketing Success
Effectively tapping into the increased organic search traffic to your website is a fantastic opportunity to build your brand awareness and expand your existing customer base. Website designers for small businesses recommend you make sure that you optimise your website for customer engagement and conversions during this busy period by checking that the following pieces of good user experience jigsaw pieces are in place:
Home page is clear and visually appealing. Create a positive first impression for new or returning visitors with your offers, unique value proposition and product or service benefits clearly articulated.
Website content is relevant and tailored to your target audience. Product or service pages include all relevant information potential customers want to have at hand to make a decision about making a purchase or progressing to a discovery call. Well-written content shows an understanding of the problem your ideal customer wishes to solve, including their aims and objectives. It effectively addresses any hesitations or objectives that may prevent them from taking action, and highlights the transformation they can expect to experience by purchasing your product or service.
Potential customers understand your offer and have confidence that you are a real business. The website includes an About page that introduces you and your team, and explains how your business stands out from competitors through your values, mission and processes. A Contact page allows visitors to easily connect with you.
Website navigation is intuitive and easy. Optimise your website by including clear headings and menus to ensure easy navigation and good user experience. Menu items are focused and ordered logically with the most important pages and information prioritised. Corporate pages are excluded from the main navigation to reduce clutter and distraction (e.g. policies or terms and conditions) and are only included in the website footer.
Calls to action are clear and relevant. It is obvious to visitors what next steps they should take to complete a purchase or connect with you to find out whether a service is right for them. The time-sensitive nature or scarcity of attractive promotional offers are clearly stated to encourage visitors to make a purchase decision, in a way that feels natural and authentic for your business.
Website includes social proof. Customer reviews, user-generated content, trust icons and/or links to social networks are prominently displayed to build trust with new visitors to your site. Relevant qualifications, awards and certificates that speak to your expertise and authority in your business niche are highlighted in your web copy.
SEO digital marketing strategies are in place and your website is designed to be responsive. The website incorporates a range of SEO strategies to ensure your business enjoys a high level of visibility online. All web pages display well and are easily viewed on mobile phones and tablets, so customers can engage with your business at a time and place that suits them.
Website speed is optimised for excellent user experience. Website pages load quickly and can cope with the higher volume of traffic during busy times, to help increase conversion rates and SEO rankings, and reduce customer frustration and ‘bounce’ rates.
Need more ideas on small business website opportunities to drive growth? Read on here for our guide to the top 10 web design opportunities small businesses often miss (but can really help you stand out among your competition).
Identify and Implement Black Friday Specific Digital Marketing Promotions
Participating in Black Friday and holiday promotional activities has become an integral feature of business calendars everywhere, and is no longer exclusive to the big retail players – with many consumers actively seeking out small businesses for bespoke holiday purchases.
Capitalise on your smaller scale to engage with customers in a way that larger competitors cannot through a customised approach to digital marketing. This could mean highlighting your unique product or service offering; community-focused credentials; delivering excellent, personalised customer service; or dispatching lovingly gift-wrapped parcels with notes to delight and surprise the recipient.
While traditionally associated with promotions utilised by product-based retail businesses, those in the service industry can also effectively participate in this season by developing tailored and engaging marketing offers that hone in on the needs of their target audience. If this is you, consider offering exclusive access to a valuable resource, condensed version of a service offering, or membership in your VIP or loyalty program.
Popular promotion ideas that can be tailored to your audience and increase sales or support other digital marketing objectives can include:
- Gift guides tailored to help your customers find the perfect gift (for themselves or a loved one), for sharing on your website or via social media
- Discounts on products or services during a certain promotion period (for example, certain percentage discount, buy one get one, or spend and save)
- Gifts with a qualifying purchase for orders over a certain amount or for a limited number of orders
- Free shipping for purchases over a certain order amount (to increase average order values) or for a limited time (to build urgency)
- Bundling products or services that complement one another
- Entry into a competition to win a desirable product or service
- Access to a bonus coaching, audit or accountability sessions that offer valuable information
- Exclusive use of resources such as a guide, planner, template, spreadsheet or checklist that will help your target audience solve a problem or save time
- Limited time access to individual or group support sessions
Not all small businesses will feel that offering a monetary discount or incentive will be relevant with their brand values. However, this does not mean that as a business owner you can’t run a promotion that is aligned with your purpose and mission. This could include offering to donate a portion of sales or products to those in need, or donating your time and services to a worthy cause. Or you could collaborate with other like-minded businesses to bring your local community together for an inspiring shared event, either in-store or online.
Ensure Your Offer and Objectives Align with Your Digital Marketing Strategy
Keep your Black Friday and holiday promotions simple and focused so they are easy to communicate to your audience. Ensure your promotions are aligned with your overarching business priorities and objectives, whether this is increasing your sales, building your website traffic or converting leads to customers. Remember that not all businesses will choose to have revenue-based goals and may instead focus on brand awareness, customer engagement or building a community.
Above all, when working on your digital marketing strategy, digital strategy consultants advise that it is important that you stay true to your brand. A recent study shows that the vast majority of shoppers say that they value authenticity in deciding which brands they support, and that it is important for brands to provide them with a personalised experience. Focusing on delivering a tailored, relevant and personalised engagement will be richly rewarded by consumers who are increasingly interested in a more holistic shopping experience.
Grow Your Email List as Part of Your Digital Marketing Plan and Treat Your Subscribers Like VIPs
Leading into Black Friday is an excellent time to focus on small businesses to focus on growing their email list as part of a comprehensive digital marketing plan. Build your email list by encouraging your target audience to sign up to access exclusive promotional offers. Show your love and appreciation for your email subscribers by rewarding them with early access to offers and promotions, or even more generous offers.
Get Your Timing Right and Have Appropriate Support in Place
Plan your promotion and digital marketing campaign early. Don’t be afraid to launch your offer in early November to stay top of mind and get the first bite of the cherry at securing orders and bookings in a busy marketplace. Make sure that you have a clear plan, effective systems and processes in place, and the right business supports (hello, Virtual Assistants) for a successful season.
Final Reflections
In order to take advantage of the opportunities during this busy period, now is a good time to check that you have the key foundation blocks in place for a successful digital marketing campaign, including a website that is working at optimal performance.
Applying the above digital marketing strategies will be integral in enhancing your online presence and feeling confident and ready for this busy time of the year. As always, once the season has passed for another year, setting time aside to reflect on what went well and what could be further improved will provide valuable insight and information for future campaigns.
Like to know more? Book a discovery call today to find out how Summer Days Digital, a digital marketing agency for small business, can help set you up for success. Choose from a range of digital marketing packages, including custom website design and powerful strategic SEO options, customised to meet you where you are now and help grow your business to the next level.
