Black Friday Tips, Trends and Campaign Ideas

With just two months to go until Black Friday on 24th November 2023, will you be running a sale this year? Or would an alternative campaign suit your brand better? Here are three very different approaches for you to consider incorporating into your plans.

Alternative Black Friday

With increasing awareness around consumerism and its environmental impact, growing numbers of businesses are rebelling against the heavily discounted holiday. We’ve seen companies switching off their websites altogether for 24 hours or promoting ‘Green Friday’, encouraging people to boycott the sales and get out in nature, or using it as a platform to promote small businesses or donate to charities.

As hospitality businesses providing relaxing spaces away from the online noise, you are perfectly positioned to offer an alternative message this Black Friday. However, we understand that closing down your website, or donating sales for a day, for many, is not a viable option.

So, if you’d like to offer an opposing message, but still promote your voucher offerings, you could consider running a campaign which centres around encouraging people to choose experiences over ‘things’ this Black Friday. Suggesting that shoppers invest in making memories, through purchasing gift voucher experiences to look forward to, as opposed to fuelling the multinationals selling discounted technology and clothing.

Limited Edition Experiences

After a turbulent 18 months, and a very busy summer, we understand that many hospitality businesses will not want to – or indeed need to – discount this Black Friday. 

In addition, after many months at home and being separated from loved ones, we believe that shoppers this year will be looking out for unique experiences to enjoy with family and friends. 

So instead of running a Black Friday Sale this year, consider offering a selection of limited-edition gift vouchers, positioned as memory-making experiences, and priced at a premium. For example, a Gourmet Dinner with Champagne, a ‘G and Tea’ Afternoon Tea Experience, or a Luxury Overnight Stay.

These should be exclusive one-off experiences with a full 12-month redemption period but only be available to purchase for a short period of time in the lead up to Christmas. You could even use the Gift Voucher Brilliance stock control feature to limit the numbers of vouchers available.

To maximise sales, you’ll need to create a buzz around these limited-edition vouchers, with a countdown to the launch. Get people to sign up to your mailing list or to follow you on social channels in order to be the first to hear about your exclusive vouchers.

The Black Friday Sale

For many of our clients, Black Friday offers the perfect opportunity to sell space for the shoulder months. To fill the quieter months of the year by offering discounted gift vouchers for stays and dining experiences (and even reduced monetary vouchers), which must be redeemed during January and February, for example.

If you are going to run a sale, remember that Black Friday is no longer just about one day, with many businesses launching their sales at least a week ahead of the day itself, and a build-up to sharing your offers is a must.

Let people know that your sale is looming and capture their data so that you maximise your reach when you come to launching.

Broadcast your sale across your marketing channels (remember to utilise your Gift Voucher Brilliance data by downloading marketing opt-ins from the reports section).

Talk to our team about past best-selling vouchers, keep it simple and make the discount clear. 

Keep Cash Flowing

To find out how you can keep cash flowing with a Gift Voucher Brilliance online shop, get in touch with our experts today.