Black Friday is the one night of the year where people are willing to wait in two- and three-hour-plus lines for any sort of great deal. While this holiday is generally more profitable for larger stores, it doesn’t mean smaller businesses can’t also get customers through the door.

Black Friday can be a great way to start garnering more year-round loyalty, but there are steps that need to be taken beforehand to ensure this is the case.

Strategic Marketing

The Internet is a great resource for Black Friday advertising. Customers look to online ads for the best Black Friday deals in order to plan their night accordingly. So, it would, of course, be advantageous of you to put some money toward advertising on different social media platforms to reach this audience. Advertising specifically for Black Friday on your website is crucial. Make it known to your website visitors that you intend to participate and promote the products you will be selling.

Web Promotion Design

To catch customers’ attention as soon as they land on your website, make it as easy and evident as possible that you are participating in Black Friday. Use color psychology — more specifically, red banners — to attract customers to your home page and indicate price cuts. Also make sure your website is as straightforward as possible. If customers can’t navigate it, they are more likely to leave and never return. So, before launching your website, ask professionals and people in your inner circle to critique it and offer feedback, so any bugs can be fixed beforehand. In addition, make sure the website can handle increased holiday traffic as crashes tend to deter customers.

Refund Policies & Procedures

When it comes to return policies, make sure you’re using this as a tool to make more money — not just to appease customers. Provide enough time for customers to accurately assess your product, but don’t allow them to sit on it and depreciate its value. If a customer decides to return something, use that as an opportunity to further your business. This can be done by providing great customer service that they’ll remember the next time they think of purchasing from you. In addition, you can suggest another product altogether that could alleviate the issues they had with their previous purchase.

Early Purchasing Incentives

Offering deals before your competitors is a great way to keep customers interested in your business. Amazon does this by way of a countdown to Black Friday on their website, with visitors earning different savings each day leading up to the mega event. Providing these “savings sneak peaks” will give new customers an incentive to pay attention to you and provide repeat business. After all, the more times customers visit your store or website, the greater the probability that they will return throughout the year.

Participating in Black Friday can seem intimidating, particularly with the competition that faces you. But the more you prepare, the more loyal customers you’ll get in the end.

Do you need help growing your business? Click here to check out the website design and marketing communications packages from The Sherwood Group. We can help you capture new business and achieve your business goals.

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This article is published by Will Sherwood | The Sherwood Group |Website Design | Graphic Design | Marketing Communications: The Sherwood Group has over 30 years of experience working with all sorts of companies, small and large. Our clients range from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 firms, in nearly every business sector, from across the street to around the world (and yes, even Europe, China, and South America). Our goal is to create advertising,  graphic design, website design, and marketing communication that still looks fresh and relevant 10-15 years later. Our mission is to stir your imagination and leave your competition shaken and wondering,  Now what do we do?”  We are located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

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