What Comes After Black Friday? 5 effective ways to retain customers after the promotional period
Table of contents
- How much does it cost to gain a customer for an online store?
- Black Friday – a one-time purchase or the start of a long-term customer relationship?
- How to retain customers over time? 5 tips for eCommerce
- Will you unlock the full potential of Black Friday promotions in your online store?
Preparing for Black Friday goes far beyond planning promotions and ensuring your platform can handle increased traffic on the big day. True success lies in a strategy that extends further - one that not only boosts profits temporarily but also builds lasting customer relationships. How can you encourage customers to return to your store not just during the Black Friday rush, but all year long? In our article, you’ll find practical tips that will help you turn one-time shoppers into loyal customers. Learn how to not only increase sales but also lay the groundwork for long-term success.
How much does it cost to gain a customer for an online store?
With the growing number of online stores, increasing online advertising, and rapidly shifting shopping trends, acquiring customers is becoming more challenging—something the eCommerce industry particularly feels. So, how much does it really cost to "acquire" a single customer? This is measured by the CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) metric. It calculates all the sales and marketing expenses an online store incurs to attract a new customer over a given period.
During high-potential sales periods (like Black Friday), these costs may naturally rise due to intensified promotions. However, high customer acquisition costs during aggressive promotional campaigns can pay off if we focus on fostering customer loyalty and encouraging repeat purchases. That’s why it's crucial to maximise the efficiency of activities during these times, ensuring they not only boost short-term revenue but also help build long-term customer relationships. You can achieve this by focusing on increasing the Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) - a metric that reflects the total value a customer brings to your business throughout the entire relationship. Find out how to enhance it.
Black Friday – a one-time purchase or the start of a long-term customer relationship?
Imagine two scenarios. In the first, a customer discovers your online store through a Black Friday campaign, makes a one-time purchase, and never returns to your site again. In the second scenario, the same customer places an order and, after being properly encouraged, regularly visits your eCommerce, making additional purchases. It's hard to deny that the second scenario is far more desirable. Achieving it, however, requires a carefully crafted strategy that focuses not only on November promotions but also on building relationships after the purchase. It doesn’t mean that this goal is unattainable. The key is to plan all activities well in advance. Simply put, if customer loyalty is your priority, don’t plan your Black Friday campaign at the last minute. Preparations should ideally start several months earlier by analysing customer preferences, building segmentation, and developing personalised offers.
Additionally, to foster long-term relationships with customers, it's important to focus on a few key areas, such as:
- regular customer communication,
- personalised messaging,
- well-crafted customer service,
- engaging loyalty programs.
Each of these actions should result in the customer feeling valued and having reasons to return to your online store regularly, which can directly contribute to the long-term success of your sales strategy.
How to retain customers over time? 5 tips for eCommerce
Crafting effective Black Friday promotions while also retaining customers for the long term is a significant challenge. However, with the help of practical advice, this task can become much easier. That's why we've prepared 5 tips to help you turn one-time purchases into long-term relationships. Will you put them into practice?
Analyse the results of your Black Friday campaign
Right after your Black Friday campaign ends, it’s essential to thoroughly analyse its results. If you’ve never organised such an event in your store before, it’s worth taking a look at what your competitors and the broader industry have done to draw valuable conclusions for the future.
Consider which actions brought the highest return, which ones need optimization, and which failed to gain customer trust. This analysis will help you better prepare for future promotional campaigns and refine your overall sales strategy.
Next, dive into user behaviour data and their purchase history to personalise the shopping experience. You can do this through tailored product recommendations or targeted email campaigns. These efforts boost customer engagement and improve satisfaction, which can lead to higher loyalty and more frequent purchases in the future.
The increased traffic during Black Friday is also a great opportunity to observe how users navigate your website. Check whether the shopping process is fast, intuitive, and free of unnecessary obstacles. You might discover UX issues, such as slow page loading times, confusing navigation, or unclear delivery and return information. Fixing these problems can be crucial for improving conversion rates and strengthening customer engagement in the future.
Don't let users forget about your online store
"I recognize this brand, but I can’t remember from where" - Black Friday is too short of a time for new customers to form a lasting bond with your brand. Remember to focus on regular communication. Don’t assume that shoppers are tired or overwhelmed by messages from your store. Especially in the fourth quarter (often called the sales peak in eCommerce), silence could cause your brand to "disappear" among communications from other brands.
Keep customers informed about new products, promotions, and share industry insights. Use a variety of channels—newsletters, social media, blogs—to stay present and build brand awareness.
Take advantage of the quiet period after Black Friday as an opportunity to reconnect—reach out to customers for feedback about their shopping experience or remind them about making another purchase after some time. Rossmann has mastered this strategy—by using their loyalty card for both online and in-store purchases, they collect data on purchased items and estimate when a customer might run out of a product. They then send an email at just the right time, reminding them to restock.
Surprise customers with promotions beyond Black Friday
Keep in mind that many customers continue looking for deals even after Black Friday ends. Use this trend to maintain their interest. How? One effective way is to extend existing promotions or introduce new offers at key times, such as the upcoming holiday season.
Be sure to tailor new promotions to the customer behaviours you observed during Black Friday. For instance, if phones were the most popular, you could now offer special discounts on related accessories—chargers, cases, or headphones. Such well-targeted offers not only encourage additional purchases but also help build a long-term relationship with the customer by demonstrating an understanding of their needs.
It's also worth introducing more advanced promotional models that go beyond one-time discounts. For example, offering product subscriptions at a lower price can attract customers who regularly buy specific items (e.g., cosmetics, dietary supplements, or other everyday products). Subscriptions in eCommerce not only increase purchase frequency but also help create a stable base of loyal customers who will regularly return to your store.
Ensure a high level of customer service
The quality of customer service plays a crucial role in building loyalty and encouraging repeat purchases. Research shows that 93% of customers are more likely to return to a brand after a positive service experience (according to HubSpot Research). That’s why providing quick and effective responses to inquiries, solving problems, and maintaining a professional approach in every interaction with customers can significantly influence their buying decisions.
It's important that customers feel their needs are a priority and that their questions and concerns are taken seriously. Simple gestures, such as thanking them for their purchase, can create positive emotions and make the customer feel valued. Ensuring high-quality service across all communication channels—whether by email, phone, or live chat—is a key factor that can lead to long-term loyalty and increased customer engagement.
Don’t underestimate the power of a loyalty program
Also, remember proven methods for retaining customer loyalty, such as loyalty programs. Offering points that can be exchanged for rewards or discounts is an effective way to increase purchase frequency and build a lasting connection with your brand.
It’s worth creating loyalty programs and campaigns that are particularly effective during high-sales periods like Black Friday. For instance, you could double the number of loyalty points awarded for purchases during this time, encouraging customers to make more transactions and bringing them closer to earning rewards. Such actions motivate customers to return, especially when they feel they can gain additional benefits.
If you don’t have a loyalty program yet, you don’t need to start with a complex system. You can begin with simple steps - like offering small discounts for a certain number of purchases. These initiatives can be expanded as your business grows, gradually helping you build a base of loyal customers.
Will you unlock the full potential of Black Friday promotions in your online store?
Investing in building loyalty, meeting customer expectations, and creating unique experiences can bring benefits all year round, not just as a one-time event. The true value of Black Friday doesn’t lie solely in the number of products sold, but in the ability to attract and retain customers for the long term. That’s why it’s worth focusing on a strategy aimed at long-term success. You already know the tips on how to implement it - now it’s time for action. Use our advice and see how your efforts can turn Black Friday into lasting success for your eCommerce business.
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