AI Summary
Black Friday and Cyber Monday remain two of the biggest opportunities of the year for both eCommerce and service-based businesses. However, most business owners start too late, throwing together last-minute discounts, unplanned emails, and rushed posts that fail to convert.
This comprehensive guide explains how to plan your Black Friday 2025 campaign strategically and profitably. You’ll learn when to start, how to structure your offer, where to promote it (across social media, Google, email, SMS, and partnerships), and how to use your post-promo campaigns for long-term growth.
Why Most Black Friday Campaigns Fail
Every year, Black Friday and Cyber Monday arrive, and every year, many business owners scramble at the last minute.
They quickly create a discount, send a few emails, and post on social media, then wonder why their campaign didn’t perform.
The truth is simple:
By the time November hits, it’s already too late to start planning.
The businesses that succeed during Black Friday have been preparing all year, building email lists, nurturing their audiences, improving systems, and creating content that builds trust long before the sale begins.
If you’re ready to make Black Friday 2025 your most profitable promo ever, this guide walks you and your marketing team (or VA) through a full strategy, from planning to implementation, for both service-based and eCommerce businesses.
1. Start With the Right Strategy
Black Friday shouldn’t be a panic-driven discount weekend. It should be a strategic campaign that fits into your broader marketing ecosystem, not a one-off cash grab.
Key Steps to Plan Your Strategy
- Decide your goal early: Is your focus sales, lead generation, brand awareness, or reactivation?
- Define your audience segment: Who are you targeting, new leads, past buyers, or loyal clients?
- Align your offer: Choose between “Buy One, Gift One,” exclusive bonuses, or limited-time bundles that align with your brand values.
- Select your channels: Social media, email, SMS, Google, website banners, or ideally a combination.
- Plan your timeline: Finalise your creative and offer strategy by end of October.
Service vs. eCommerce Approach
- Service-based businesses: Focus on value-adds rather than discounts. For example, offer a free strategy session, bonus resource pack, or additional support period.
- ECommerce brands: Use urgency and exclusivity, limited-edition bundles, VIP early access, or short-term bonuses that drive action.
2. Planning Timeline for Black Friday 2025
Here’s a suggested timeline to help you stay on track:
| Month | Action Step |
| August–September | Finalise your offer, creative direction, and promo strategy. |
| October 1–15 | Build landing pages, prepare graphics, and write your email and SMS sequences. |
| October 15–31 | Warm up your audience with engagement posts, teaser campaigns, and list-building activities. |
| November 1–15 | Run early access or “sneak peek” offers to beat the noise. |
| November 22–29 (Black Friday Week) | Launch and promote across all channels — email, SMS, social, and website. |
| December 1–5 (Cyber Monday + On-Sell) | Execute your post-promo campaigns: last-chance offers, upsells, or “thank-you” bonuses for buyers. |
Short on Time? Here’s Your 2-Week Black Friday Rescue Plan
If you’ve left things a little late, don’t panic. You can still run a strong, streamlined Black Friday promo with a focused two-week action plan. The key is to simplify and prioritise. Week 1: finalise your offer, write your emails, and prepping your website or landing page. Week 2: warm up your audience with daily posts, teasers, and early-access invitations.
Automate what you can (email, SMS, and scheduling tools like OBMHub), and focus only on the channels that convert best for you. A clear, consistent message delivered fast will outperform a complicated campaign done in a rush.
3. Implementation Plan by Channel
a) Social Media
Create a campaign calendar with teaser posts, countdowns, FAQs, and educational value posts. Avoid relying solely on discount messages.
Effective Social Strategies:
- Teaser videos with countdowns
- Behind-the-scenes preparation posts
- Polls or “which deal would you choose?” engagement prompts
- Collaborations or joint giveaways with partner brands
Service-based brands should focus on sharing client results, testimonials, and proof of outcomes.
b) Google & Website
Your website and Google presence should communicate the offer clearly and drive conversions.
Action Steps:
- Add a homepage banner and countdown timer by early November.
- Publish a keyword-optimised landing page (e.g., “Black Friday Coaching Offer 2025”).
- Update your Google Business Profile with promotional posts.
- Test site speed, mobile optimisation, and checkout flow to ensure a seamless customer journey.
c) Email Marketing
Your email list is your most valuable Black Friday asset.
Best Practice Timeline:
- Pre-promo: Warm up your list with educational or value-based content.
- Early November: Send teaser emails to build anticipation (“Something exciting is coming…”).
- Black Friday morning: Send your launch email.
- 24 hours later: Send a reminder.
- Final day: Send a last-chance email before the offer closes.
- Post-promo: Follow up with thank-you and upsell messages (“Loved this deal? Here’s your next step.”).
d) SMS Marketing
SMS remains one of the highest-converting channels for short-term campaigns.
Recommended Messages:
- Launch Day: “It’s here! Access your exclusive deal now [link].”
- Final Hours: “Last chance to grab your offer before it’s gone. Ends midnight!”
Keep messages under 150 characters with a direct link to your sale page.
e) Lead Generation & Re-Engagement
The best campaigns don’t just convert existing leads, they grow your audience beforehand.
Ideas to Implement:
- Launch a lead magnet or quiz in October to attract new subscribers.
- Run a re-engagement email sequence for inactive contacts with “early access” incentives.
- Use your CRM (such as OBMHub) to segment your leads and automate your follow-ups.
f) Partnership Marketing
Collaborations can expand your reach quickly and organically.
Examples:
- A fitness coach and nutritionist offering a joint Black Friday Wellness Bundle.
- A business strategist and photographer partnering for a “Visibility Boost” campaign.
Cross-promoting to each other’s audiences increases visibility and credibility.
4. Not Every Business Needs to Discount
Many purpose-led or premium-positioned businesses prefer not to discount, and that’s perfectly valid. You can still participate by shifting the focus from price to value.
Alternative Black Friday Approaches:
- Offer a bonus inclusion instead of a discount.
- Create a “Give Back Friday” campaign donating a portion of profits to charity.
- Host a community competition or online challenge to build engagement.
- Explain your reasoning clearly:
“We don’t discount because we value our service quality, instead, we’re giving you something even more meaningful.”
Transparency builds authenticity and long-term trust.
5. Post-Promo and Cyber Monday Campaigns
When the main campaign ends, don’t go quiet. The post-promo phase can significantly boost revenue.
What to Do Next:
- Send a thank-you campaign to buyers and ask for reviews.
- Launch a Cyber Monday upsell or “add-on” promotion.
- Retarget non-buyers with special bonuses.
Your Black Friday customers are your warmest future buyers, stay connected with them through value-driven follow-ups.
Pro Tip: Success Starts Long Before November
Black Friday success is rarely about what you do in November, it’s about how well you’ve marketed all year.
The strongest campaigns come from businesses that are:
- Building and nurturing their email list consistently
- Creating meaningful content that builds trust
- Tracking marketing data and ROI
- Using systems and tools to streamline execution
If you only plan when it’s urgent, you’ll always be competing on price instead of purpose.
Ready to Create a Marketing Plan That Delivers All Year, Not Just on Black Friday?
Don’t wait until November to get organised.
Start now and build a marketing system that attracts leads, nurtures buyers, and grows with you all year long.
Next Steps:
✅ Download the Hot Leads on Repeat Guide, your roadmap to consistent, automated lead flow.
✅ Book a Strategy Call, let’s map out your Boxing Day and 2026 game plan together and get your VA or marketing manager on track.
