🧠 Are You BFCM Ready?

Welcome back to the 35th edition of the Nord Media newsletter.

Before we get started, is there anything specific you want to learn about? Let me know, as always I appreciate all of you who reply each week and share feedback with me.

The biggest consumer event of the year is just around the corner—Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Last year was record-breaking.

Over 61 million consumers shopped from Shopify brands with an average cart of $108, racking up a staggering $9.3 billion in sales.

And guess what? This year is going to make that look like nothing.

It's election season and this one is going to be one for the books. 

Political digital ad spending is projected to hit $3.4 billion, with 16% of that flooding Meta platforms.

This BFCM is going to be a whole new level of competition.

Here’s how to survive:

Plan Your Budgets

The “prep period” should've begun yesterday. 

If that’s not the case, you still have an advance head start on planning today.

When planning your spend, you’ll need to take into account factors such as: 

• When your offers run

• Your available budget

• Historical performance data

• Latent impact of performance

• PR pushes

• Product launches

The days when your ad spend worked best in the past will likely be your top performers this year, too. 

If you’re using the same offer as before, you can already measure its result and plan your budget to hit those peak days. 

But if you’re testing something new or changing the timing, consider that when you look back at last year’s results.

As you map out your spending, you’ll likely need to tweak the numbers to fit your brand’s needs and goals. 

And be ready to make adjustments on the fly.

For example, if Black Friday is crushing it and you’re able to spend $50K instead of $40K, you’ll need to shift the following days to keep pace. 

That might mean going into Saturday with $35K instead of $30K.

Planning for your budget—and how to adjust it when things shift—will help you steer the BFCM towards high-value results.

Optimizing Your Shop

The key to driving real sales?

Clear, effective communication of your offer, with the right products and categories front and center.

Start by:

1. Synching with Shopify: Make sure your sale or offer is live on Shops and matches what’s on your website.

Just add your BFCM offer to Shopify, enable it for the Facebook and Instagram sales channels, and then hop over to Meta. 

Go to Promotions > Offers to double-check if it’s active or scheduled.

2. Add an email opt-in offer: Take advantage of your email flow by matching your website's email capture form and discount to convert Shop traffic into your own audience. 

You’ll find this in Promotions > Marketing Settings > Marketing to get it set up.

3. Merchandize your homepage: Feature carousel cards featuring your top collections, 2-3 static product blocks highlighting key SKUs, and bundles. 

In the weeks leading up to BFCM, try out a few different variations and keep an eye on how they affect conversion rates from both ads and organic traffic.

They’ll want to purchase your solution if it means an end to their problems.

Try Not to Obsess Over Your Ad Account

There’s a concept known as “intention-based management.” 

Basically, you set an overall goal or intention with a clear optimization plan to avoid over-stressing about the outcome. 

It’s easy to fall into a loop of constantly refreshing Ads Manager.

Media buying is stressful enough, and the holiday season only ramps up the pressure. 

Without a clear optimization plan, you might overthink and make rash decisions you’ll regret.

How can you do this?

• Set a certain number of check-ins: For major days, like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it's a good idea to schedule 5 checkpoints, while 4 should suffice for the slower days, like Saturday and Sunday. 

This will help you stay alert without rushing.

• DON’T try and deeply analyze every campaign/ad set: Create a log to note which campaigns/ad sets need attending to and which can be held. 

This way you won’t get sidetracked and you can address the most major concerns. 

Plan for this to be slightly more hectic than normal. When you have a plan you can stay one step ahead of the curve to avoid stress and overwhelm. 

Post BFCM

After Black Friday and Cyber Monday concludes the work isn’t over yet.

Shift your messaging to focus on gifting. 

Christmas is approaching and the gift-shopping frenzy is in full blast.

Shoppers aren’t as interested in buying for themselves anymore—they’re now thinking about gifts for friends and family. 

This is the perfect moment to switch up your offers. 

Running promotions like "Buy One, Get One" or including a free gift with purchase can be a good play-off point from your BCFM sales.

This is also when you should be focusing on repeat business. 

Chances are, your customers will remember your brand when looking for gifts. Make sure they know your shipping deadlines so their orders arrive in time for the holidays. 

Adding a clear banner to your ads, emails, and landing pages with this info can create a sense of urgency and boost sales. 

Don’t take your foot off the gas pedal just yet. This period has the potential to deliver high performance. 

Some of the strongest sales happen between Boxing Day and New Year's. Keep pushing, and you’ll see an extra boost in sales during this overlooked but profitable window.

Closing Thoughts

Although BFCM and the holiday season can get pretty overwhelming as a brand owner, your best bet will be to start planning RIGHT NOW.

Take the next few weeks to 

• Finalize your strategy, including understanding which channels will deliver the most ROI,

• Optimize your ad spend, 

• And find what offers will resonate most with your audience. 

Consider segmenting your campaigns to hit different customer segments, whether it's first-time buyers, loyal customers, or those who need a little extra incentive to convert.

Stay agile, keep a close eye on performance, and be ready to pivot if certain campaigns or channels aren’t delivering. 

Hope this season will be your brand’s most profitable yet!

Want to learn from me or connect on other platforms? 👇
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Thank you for reading! I appreciate you.

Sincerely,
Kody