Black Friday 2022: how to combine newsletter and SMS campaign for a successful promotion

Black Friday 2022 is fast approaching. Before you plan to promote your offers, bear in mind that caution has replaced impulsiveness in consumer behaviour. Fortunately, you have plenty of time to prepare an SMS and email marketing campaign that will help you educate your customers in advance so that they take advantage of your offers at the right time.

The context of Black Friday 2022

The socio-political context of recent years, marked by pandemics, war and economic hardship, has put consumers on high alert. EY’s latest Future Consumer Index global survey shows that 79% of consumers have financial worries, 66% want to get the most value for their money, and 35% are worried that they can’t afford more than their basic needs. A similar survey conducted by EY Romania in 2022 confirms the erosion of Romanians’ purchasing power and their focus on quality (65%) versus price (37%).

Therefore, for Black Friday 2022, it is advisable to talk to customers at length about the benefits of the products and services offered. Find out below how to create a multistep email marketing campaign that creates awareness and curiosity before the offer is sent. To streamline your efforts, we advise you to combine the Black Friday newsletter with an attractive SMS marketing campaign that reinforces the message and brings customers to the site at the right time. 

• Black Friday 2022 in figures
• Effectiveness of Black Friday SMS and email marketing campaigns
• Example of a Black Friday 2022 SMS and email marketing campaign
• How to set up your email marketing and SMS campaign

Black Friday 2022, in figures

Globally, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, also known as Cyber Week, mark one of the most profitable periods for online businesses. In 2021, Salesforce reported total global sales of $275 billion, up 2% from 2020. Discounts offered by retailers during Cyber Week averaged 26%, down 8% from the previous year.

In Romania, total sales increased by 19% in 2021 compared to 2020, although the number of orders was down almost 3%. The average shopping basket was 452 lei, 22% higher in 2021 than the previous year, an Extended analysis shows. 

For Black Friday 2022, amid shopper caution and general price increases, retailers will need to be more creative in promoting offers. In addition to cutting prices, businesses need to demonstrate the value of the products and services they offer and position themselves as trusted brands. Therefore, it is a good idea to plan your email marketing and SMS campaign as soon as possible, to combine useful information with commercial offers and to take into account new buyer behaviours and needs in your communication.

Effectiveness of Black Friday SMS and email marketing campaigns

Black Friday email marketing campaigns have an average open rate of 12%, a click-through rate of 1.3% and a conversion rate of 8.8%, according to Data Axle. The same source shows that messages highlighting price reductions have a 14.8% higher conversion rate. The conversion rate can be increased by using SMS campaigns, which have an open rate of up to 95% in the first 3 minutes after receipt, according to Business2community. Research also shows that 75% of consumers prefer to receive offers via SMS.

Advantages of using newsletters in conjunction with SMS campaigns:

• The more communication channels you use to deliver the same message, the more likely it is to be received and remembered. 
• Email marketing helps you to achieve several business objectives, including awareness and gaining trust, and is one of the most effective methods of lead nurturing. 
• Newsletters allow you to communicate widely, with longer texts, product photos, call to action buttons, useful links etc. In today’s context, it is even more important to accompany offers with benefit lists and as much useful information as possible.
• Having a very high open rate, SMS campaigns help you to spark curiosity or provide a timely reminder with a short, easy-to-read text accompanied by a link. 
• When email marketing and SMS campaigns are sent from the same platform, you have built-in insights into user behaviour that help you create subscriber segments, automation and personalised messages. 

Example of Black Friday 2022 email marketing and SMS campaign

Let’s see a practical example of how you can combine the two communication methods for an effective Black Friday 2022 promotional campaign. 

1. One or more educational newsletters, sent in the weeks before the campaign, that increase trust in your brand. For example, if you sell fashion products, you can inform about the trends for autumn-winter 2022, invite influencers to recommend your favourite products or create outfit suggestions for different occasions. 

2. Teaser Black Friday 2022 campaign a few days in advance: a newsletter announcing the date of the campaign and giving hints about the products that will be on offer. This email is a new opportunity to talk about the benefits and features that differentiate you from the competition. 

3. A loyalty email, inviting subscribers to register on the website and add their favourite products to their favourites list, so they can order them quickly and easily after the campaign starts. 

4. Reminder Black Friday 2022 campaign, shortly before the start of the offers. Add a timer to the newsletter to increase engagement. Here’s how easy it is to do this using the NewsMAN drag & drop editor:

5. Newsletter and SMS announcing the start of the discount campaign. Choose one or more popular products to promote via email and phone message, so as to spark curiosity and bring subscribers to your online shop. NewsMAN provides you with Black Friday newsletter templates like the ones below, so you can have a professionally designed campaign in no time.

6. Email and SMS abandoned cart. Although the Black Friday cart abandonment rate is 79% globally (SalesCycle), abandoned cart emails have an above average open, click-through and conversion rate: 34%, 9%, 42% respectively (Dotdigital, Apsis). As for abandoned cart SMS, Slicktext reports that 58% of those who received such an automated message returned to the site and completed their order. Here are some examples of abandoned cart newsletter templates you can find on NewsMAN.

7.  SMS a few hours or days after the purchase, asking for a customer review. 

Depending on how much time you have and your shop’s offer, you can include more or less emails and SMS in your campaign.

Some best practices to keep in mind when creating your promotional campaign:

• If you have sent email marketing campaigns in previous years, use the data to improve your Black Friday 2022 campaign. What types of messages worked and which didn’t? What email headlines are your audience reacting to? What other types of messages can you include in your campaign to increase its effectiveness? 
• Write clear subject headlines that highlight your benefits and offer. According to Dotdigital, email subject lines containing the words Black Friday or Cyber Monday have a 64% higher click-through rate.
• Use quality product photos. 
• Don’t send emails that are too long or too busy, as you risk deliverability problems. Select the products you promote in your newsletter and, if you have enough data, send personalised offers to subscribers based on their preferences. 
• Emphasise the value your products bring and explain how they will make the customer’s life better. 
• Don’t repeat the same information in your newsletter and SMS and don’t send them simultaneously. For example, send a abandoned cart email reminding the customer of the products they are interested in and some of the benefits of buying them. After a few hours, send an SMS announcing that the offer expires soon and that it’s the last chance to complete the order. In this way, you are giving him or her reasons to buy, but also a sense of urgency. 

How to set up your email marketing and SMS campaign

If we’ve convinced you to try an effective mix of newsletter and SMS for Black Friday 2022, it’s easy to set up such a campaign through the NewsMAN platform. First of all, email and SMS campaigns have the same segmentation, automation, A/B testing, etc. Database management is done from the same place and you can add phone numbers or any other information. Messages can be created and personalised easily. You can also add images and unsubscribe links to be GDPR compliant. 

Last but not least, as mentioned above, all data is integrated in one place, so it’s easy to track the performance of your campaigns and improve them over time. Create a NewsMAN account now to prepare your Black Friday promotion campaign and communicate early and effectively with your subscribers with the help of the comprehensive features we provide.