Black Friday: Power up your retail experience this peak season

With Black Friday just around the corner, Shopify Plus and VISEO have released a new report, The 2022 Peak Sales Season Playbook.  This guide aims to explore the latest trends in e-commerce and share best practices to make seasonal campaigns a success.

Below, Sumita Ayyappan, Shopify Practice Lead, VISEO, uncovers the key takeaways of the report and provides recommendations for retailers to get ahead of the curve.

Projected to make up 75% of consumers in Asia by 2030, Gen Z and Millennials favour a brand’s story and purpose driven values. How can retailers win them over?

There is immense market potential for Gen Z and Millennials. Based on the report, we discover that 52% of these consumers are more likely to buy from a brand with shared values.

Gen Z and Millenials look for unique experiences, turning away from traditional and non-personalised marketing methods. This is why a custom storefront is essential, where retailers have full control of the way they present their values and how customers perceive their brands.

A high speed website is also important to not miss out on traffic and potential revenue. During peak sales days, some sites receive 200,000 visitors per hour. The report shows that 79% of customers ‘dissatisfied’ with web performance are less likely to return.

Apart from a custom storefront, what are some other strategies to reach this high growth audience?

1. Get smart at social: Gen Z spend most of their time on social media and social commerce accounts for 20% of retail spend. Video and livestream product recommendations are gaining a huge share of attention making this a prime area for retailers to tap on.

2. Go Omnichannel: E-commerce brands should consider exploring omnichannel, such as providing online to offline experiences, and fully integrate with physical retail, as post-Covid consumers yearn for the in-person shopping experience, to enhance online service.

3. Over-communicate: With the increasing supply chain vulnerability, consumers are aware of the growing challenges with delivery. Be clear, transparent and always keep consumers in the loop.

Can you share some industry trends to help retailers thrive ahead of Black Friday?

For growing brands, this sales event presents vast opportunities to compete with established names and drive conversions. A majority (94%) of year-end shoppers surveyed are likely to try a new brand during Mega Sales Day.

Now is the time to dial up creativity in marketing campaigns. Retailers that create immersive experiences with the aid of Augmented Reality tools are found to fare better at influencing consumer purchasing behaviours.

Finally, what does it take to handle a peak season sales event of this scale?

Major events like Black Friday are rife with opportunities, but they do not come without challenges. Retailers can power through the shopping bonanza with the right platform and service providers.

VISEO has a strong experience in e-commerce and omnichannel strategy and implementation. We work together with our clients to craft custom storefronts that meet their needs and reflect their brand identity. Since 2019, we have partnered with Shopify and thanks to their highly reliable servers, businesses can breeze through the high influx of traffic with confidence.

We know that data matters. A holistic integration of data from omnichannel touch points allows retailers to consolidate insights and optimise greater efficiency. By leveraging data and automation, we help retailers create hyper personalised and seamless experiences for consumers.

It is our belief that opportunities gained during Black Friday can extend far into the future. An enhanced peak event performance can unlock long term growth and lifetime value. Early preparation with the right partners is key to winning big this peak season.

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Do you have a project?

VISEO can support you in this process, email us at marketing-apj@viseo.com.