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lack Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) represent the biggest shopping days of the year, offering significant opportunities for businesses in the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) space. If you're looking to maximize your BFCM success, these 10 tips will guide you to create compelling video content that drives sales, engages your audience, and ensures a memorable customer experience.
Planning for BFCM should not be a last-minute scramble. Successful brands begin crafting their campaigns months ahead of time. The key to winning in such a competitive environment is preparation. For CPG brands, video content plays a critical role in conveying product benefits, promotions, and urgency, and creating these assets in advance is crucial.
Start with a content calendar that outlines your video releases for BFCM. By mapping out your messaging and timing, you'll have a comprehensive strategy in place, which will help optimize your content for the highest impact. This gives you time to create content that not only resonates with your target audience but can also be refined based on testing.
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Strategy: Apple, through sleek, professional video adverts released weeks leading up to the BFCM, focuses on the benefit positioning of products. The company now has more focus on phones and AirPods as it zeroes in on a marketing strategy where its unique attributes are highlighted together with promotional deals for the holiday season.
For instance, Apple would pre-vision ahead of BFCM and create a series of videos that would define the benefits of a certain product. A week or so ahead of the sale, reminder videos would be released to drive home the benefits and thereby drive conversion. Content Calendar.
Video Tip: Apple creates its videos minimalist in view, and most clearly, it is a focused message that resonates with the expectations of the audience.
User-generated content is one of the most authentic forms of advertising today. Consumers trust peer recommendations more than they do traditional advertising. Integrating UGC into your video content not only builds credibility but fosters stronger connections with your audience. Whether it’s unboxing videos, customer reviews, or content from influencers, showcasing real-world experiences with your product can make your brand more relatable and trustworthy.
For CPG brands, UGC can be particularly powerful. It highlights the tangible benefits of your products in the real world, providing social proof that can lead to higher conversions. By collaborating with micro-influencers or loyal customers, you can curate a variety of video content that highlights your products in action.
Campaign Strategy: Coca-Cola's "Share a Coke" campaign was one of the brilliant ways the company leveraged UGC to encourage its customers to share photos and videos with personalized Coke bottles. Coca-Cola amplified this content by featuring customer photos and videos in their social media ads and even on billboards. This approach fostered a feeling of community and encouraged consumers to be personally connected to the brand.
Outcome: With millions of shared posts, the campaign not only brought a significant boost in brand visibility but engagement for Coca-Cola as well, all on the back of authentic content.
Personalization is no longer just a nice-to-have; it’s expected. Consumers today want to feel as though a brand’s offers are tailored specifically to them. Leveraging data to personalize video content can significantly boost engagement and conversion rates. By segmenting your audience based on demographics, past purchases, behavior, or engagement history, you can craft video content that speaks directly to each group.
For example, loyal customers may respond best to exclusive offers, while first-time buyers might appreciate educational content or introductory discounts. Hyper-targeted messaging allows you to speak to each audience’s unique needs and increase your chances of conversion during the high-stakes BFCM period.
Campaign Idea: Using the huge dataset of customer purchase history, browsing behavior, and wish list items at Amazon to develop the most personalized video ads. Amazon utilized video recommendations targeted at past purchases and recently viewed items to customers before and after the BFCM period. The offers tailored to their interests and shopping behavior attract more conversion with a customer.
Result: This is highly targeted, so what they see on Amazon's recommendation page is going to be relevant and timely and, therefore, have better click-through and conversion rates because the customer feels that the offers are person-relevant to them.
With the growing importance of mobile shopping, ensuring that your video content is optimized for mobile devices is a must. A significant number of consumers will be browsing deals on their smartphones, so your videos must be easily viewable and engaging on smaller screens. Mobile optimization includes ensuring fast loading times, responsive design, and user-friendly video formats.
Consider keeping videos short, ideally 15-30 seconds, and include captions to cater to users who watch videos without sound. Vertical videos, particularly for platforms like Instagram Stories and TikTok, perform better than traditional landscape videos.
Strategy: McDonald's keeps its video content highly short and mobile-centric on social media. BFCM is a campaign of 15-second vertical ads to drive exclusive app deals and limited-time offers. A faster-loading, visually simple video with captions would ensure the person could watch without sound.
As a result, using small, mobile-friendly videos that are easy to consume on the move, McDonald's succeeds in attracting more users via mobile devices, and it also becomes a good reason to download the application and purchase due to exclusive offers for mobile.
Creating a sense of urgency is a well-established sales technique, especially during high-traffic events like BFCM. Countdown timers can visually convey that time is running out, which taps into the psychology of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). Including countdown timers in your video content is an easy and effective way to nudge potential customers toward completing their purchase.
A countdown timer can be used for limited-time offers, flash sales, or exclusive BFCM discounts. Whether it's displayed on screen during your video or integrated as a call-to-action, this tool can significantly drive urgency and conversions.
Campaign Approach : Nike focuses on countdown timers for flash sales and new product releases, especially in the days leading up to BFCM. Short-form, attention-grabbing video ad creative will be optimized by a countdown timer, encouraging people to make a purchase before the deal disappears. This behavior engenders this sense of urgency to buy now and not miss out on purchases of limited-time offers and then depletion stock.
Result: Nike has used the strategy of connecting timelines with the launch of their new uniquely designed products. Their appeal resulted in increased customers' demand for the limited editions. The sense of urgency to act promptly has enabled them to achieve faster sell-through on their new and seasonal products.
During BFCM, shoppers want to be sure they’re getting value for their money. Product demonstrations are a powerful tool for showing your audience exactly what they’re purchasing. Video is one of the best mediums for demonstrating how a product works, how it solves a specific problem, or how it enhances daily life.
For CPG brands, product demonstrations can highlight the practicality, quality, or unique features of your products. You can create videos that show the real-life applications of your products, as well as their benefits. This can build trust and increase the likelihood of conversions, especially for products that need visual explanation.
Strategy: Product demonstrations for their smartphones and appliances show the feature of water resistance, screen quality, or multi-tasking abilities. On BFCM, the company runs its side-by-side comparison videos that feature new upgrades versus old models, thus bringing home precisely why the latter is worth upgrading.
Result: From real-life applications and comparisons, Samsung creates a value case that amplifies the worth of the product, which in turn makes it more demanding by the customer to buy the new version.
Social media is where BFCM shoppers are spending much of their time. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube offer vast opportunities to amplify your video content. But each platform has its own strengths and video format requirements, so it’s crucial to tailor your content accordingly.
Instagram Stories or TikTok videos work well for short, engaging videos, while Facebook and YouTube may be better for longer or more informative video ads. By optimizing your video content for each platform’s format, you ensure you’re getting the best possible reach and engagement.
YouTube Application: Using the two platforms, Walmart has placed longer video ads in which they show BFCM deals by various departments such as electronics and home goods. They add product demos, offer highlighs, and sometimes testimonials in these videos tailored to deliver much more detail and attract a customer who intends to know before buying.
Result: Walmart's longer videos on Facebook and YouTube will therefore thus provide information for their customers that builds up confidence to purchase high-value items. With more elaborate content, Walmart would be targeting those consumers that highly value research and comparison shopping during BFCM.
One of the major advantages of digital advertising is the ability to target specific audience segments. With platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Google, you can target customers based on interests, location, behavior, and other demographic factors. For BFCM, targeting is key to ensuring your video content reaches the right people at the right time.
By targeting ads based on past purchase behavior or interests, you can ensure that your videos are seen by those most likely to engage and convert. Running paid ads ensures your content is seen, especially during a busy shopping period when organic reach can be limited.
Strategy: Adidas targets sports enthusiasts, fashion lovers, and specific fitness segments during BFCM - runners, gym-goers, etc. through video ads running on Instagram and Facebook, showing people getting amazing value via exclusive discounts on only relevant categories, like footwear or activewear, and focus the message on available for a limited time only saving.
The end would be that Adidas ensures that all the commercials it airs achieve their intended goal and are seen by the target group-most likely to click on an ad and order pieces relating to interests, such as sports or athleisure fashion.
BFCM shoppers expect to find great deals. Offering exclusive, time-limited discounts and promotions is one of the best ways to capture attention and drive conversions. Video content is an excellent way to highlight these deals, making sure your audience knows exactly what they can get if they act fast.
Consider offering BFCM-only bundles, free shipping, or special discounts. Emphasize the exclusivity of these deals in your video messaging, making it clear that these offers won’t last long.
Sephora Strategy: Sephora publishes BFCM flash sales on Instagram Stories and TikTok, with specific product categories, like skincare or makeup discounted 50 percent for a limited time. On TikTok, they add some attention-grabbing countdown stickers and free shipping on orders over a certain amount for bigger purchases.
Result: This will attract and urge focus by making announcements about exclusive flash sales and free shipping on video. Shoppers will be forced to act in a hurry by buying their favorite beauty products at severely discounted prices before the end of the deal.
After the chaos of BFCM subsides, it’s time to evaluate your performance. Analyzing the results of your video campaigns will give you valuable insights into what worked, what didn’t, and what you can do better next time. Key metrics like engagement rate, click-through rate (CTR), and conversion rate will help you gauge success.
Use these insights to fine-tune your future campaigns, adjusting elements like video length, messaging, or call-to-action. Continuous improvement is essential for long-term success.
Best Buy is running A/B tests across the other video factors, such as length and call-to-action, to determine what works best. They can compare short 15-second promo videos with longer, more detailed product feature videos. Those results will help Best Buy optimize the length and style of their video messages to different segments of their audience.
Result: Such findings were enough to make Best Buy focus on short, direct video ads in future campaigns by making it a top priority. The constant refining also offers flexibility in tailoring content to shopper preferences and general performance each season.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are crucial sales events for CPG brands, offering immense opportunities for growth. By using these 10 strategies, you can maximize the potential of your video campaigns, driving more traffic, boosting conversions, and creating a memorable experience for your customers. Tools like Crafted can help streamline your content creation process, allowing you to focus on crafting compelling campaigns that resonate with your audience.
Start preparing today, and unlock the full potential of BFCM with expertly executed video content that drives sales and enhances brand loyalty.
Consider retargeting customers who engaged but didn’t convert, using dynamic content tailored to their browsing history. Keep customer service teams prepared for the surge to maintain a positive shopping experience.
Emphasize value through exclusive offers, but don’t forget the power of storytelling—use videos to convey the story behind your products, values, and community impact. This approach enhances emotional connection, making customers more likely to buy and return.
Consider offering a seamless multi-channel experience by integrating video content across email, social media, and your website, ensuring consistent messaging wherever customers engage. Enhance this further by enabling shoppable videos, which make it easy for viewers to purchase directly from within the content, shortening the buyer's journey.
Assess inventory and logistics before BFCM to ensure fulfillment readiness. A smooth post-purchase experience, from fast shipping to proactive communication on delivery status, can significantly enhance customer satisfaction, turning one-time buyers into loyal advocates.
In addition to inventory management, make sure your logistics team is fully prepared for the demands of BFCM. This includes confirming partnerships with carriers, setting realistic delivery timelines, and implementing contingency plans for potential delays. By enhancing the post-purchase experience, from timely shipping updates to efficient returns processing, you strengthen customer trust and reduce buyer anxiety.
Consider implementing a streamlined return policy specific to BFCM, as it reassures customers and encourages them to buy with confidence. Also, use post-purchase surveys to gather feedback on customer satisfaction and identify areas for improvement. This feedback is invaluable for optimizing future campaigns, helping you learn and grow from each BFCM season.
Lastly, remember that a positive BFCM experience can lead to lasting brand loyalty. Provide an exceptional shopping experience to turn BFCM buyers into repeat customers, engaging them with personalized follow-up offers, loyalty programs, and early access to future promotions. This proactive approach ensures that your BFCM success isn’t just seasonal but fuels long-term growth for your brand.
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