With the holidays just around the corner, many businesses are rolling out their e-commerce marketing strategies for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This time of year often brings in a large amount of revenue for many businesses, and according to a recent post on Forbes.com, “COVID-19 has massively accelerated the growth of e-commerce. Total online spending in May hit $82.5 billion, up 77% year-over-year.”
Compared to Black Friday, Thanksgiving, and Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday still reigns supreme when it comes to spending on a global scale, according to Fundivo. CED Commerce reports that last year in the U.S. alone, Black Friday reached total sales of $ 6.2 billion, setting a new record. However, Cyber Monday surpassed that, breaking all previous sales records and reaching $7.9 billion sales in a single day.
Many B2B businesses tend to breeze over Cyber Monday, as many believe that it is only a B2C or retail business-focused holiday. Many business owners are searching for deals for their businesses while doing their personal shopping. In fact, Forbes reports that “almost nine out of 10 (88 percent) of B2B buyers would prefer to shop online, but most B2B suppliers offer little or nothing to let them.” This issue often stems from the fact that the “B2B customers expect the same type of online interaction—personalization, simplicity, catalog, and shopping cart—as when they shop in a B2C shopping experience,” according to Oracle.
We all know that Cyber Monday is the day for shoppers to get extreme deals on new toys, clothing, and games. But B2B businesses can participate, too! What can B2B businesses do to take advantage of the Cyber Monday sales boost?
Here are 10 ways your company can take advantage of Cyber Monday and drive your end-of-year sales.
Your B2B Marketing Guide to Cyber Monday
1. Consider a philanthropic campaign.
As younger generations start to realize their buying power, they tend to love to spend money and support a good cause, all at the same time. One way to entice these younger buyers is to donate a portion of your sales to a good cause, rather than offer a discount. Not only will this make you feel good but it can also enhance your reputation in the community as a company that gives back—which is perfect during the season of giving. Besides participating in Giving Tuesday, you can extend your good works through the entire weekend by partnering with a charity that aligns with your business values.
2. Make sure your website is running smoothly.
We humans have a short attention span, especially with the information overload of today’s society. If your website is slow or the buying or contact processes aren’t smooth, your leads will quickly leave. . Here are a few tools you can use to improve your website and convert those leads to sales:
- Check your site speed: Check out Google’s PageSpeed tools
- Optimize for mobile: Run a Google mobile compatibility test
- Ensure a smooth conversion or user experience: Use Uptime Robot (or a similar tool) to monitor your site for downtime
3. Partner with a different business.
Why not leverage two different circles of influence by partnering with another B2B company and extending a joint sale to both of your connections? By combining efforts with a business that has a similar target market as yours, both of you can benefit from the increased exposure. Some examples for partnering are:
- Rewards or incentives for new and existing customers via a loyalty platform
- Emerging tech partnerships
- Influencer endorsement
- Business promotions in-store or online
- Product licensing
- Package giveaways with products or offerings from both businesses
4. Bundle products or services together.
If some of your products or services go hand in hand, why not offer a 2 for 1 special or bundling of products or services? As a marketing agency, you could offer a new website or website redesign special with search engine optimization (SEO). The Cyber Monday offer could be a limited number of website development purchases, and those who “buy in” will get 50% off SEO as a 24-hour sale. This may push clients or event prospects into the buyers’ bucket and finally get them to take the plunge.
5. Promote offers on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn still offers superior marketing for B2B businesses, and the holidays are no exception. After all, 80% of B2B leads come from LinkedIn, and it’s 277% more effective for lead generation than Facebook or Twitter, according to ModGirlMarketing.
Consider giving away a free consultation, promoting a free webinar, or offering a free e-book that relates to your target audience. This allows you to build a relationship with your audience, even if they don’t want to spend any more after their personal shopping day. You can then follow up with an email marketing campaign.
6. Educate while selling.
Although the end goal is to have conversions that lead to sales, one way that B2B companies can increase end-of-year sales—as well as improve their business reputations—is to provide education pieces along with sales pieces. For example, if you are a tech company wanting to promote data security products, you could link topics such as “How to Know Where Cyber Threats Are Coming From” to informational articles or instructional videos. This will provide your audience with long-term value, allow them to see you as the expert in the field, and build your brand reputation. So when they are ready to purchase, they’ll know who they should buy from.
7. Up-sell or cross-promote other sales.
Up-selling and cross-selling are great ways to take full advantage of promoting Cyber Monday to a current customer. Create combinations of one to three complementary products or services and offer the package to customers at a discounted rate. This works well when people are actively looking for a package deal at a better price and creates a sense of urgency if the offer is only good for one day or one week. When clients are pressed for time or have limited availability, they are more likely to act spontaneously when purchasing.
8. Offer something very exclusive.
Offering a limited-time or limited-number offer will increase the need for fast action. The reason Cyber Monday sales are so popular is because the deals are eye-catching and there is only a limited quantity. Buyers don’t have a lot of time to think, they just act. Although B2B sales cycles are often slower than B2C sales cycles, your business can still take advantage of this mindset.
9. Announce a waitlist for a new product launching in 2021.
Launching a product is not easy. With a large investment of time and a tremendous amount of effort to be successful, your product launch needs to be effective. What better time to roll out a new product or service launch than Cyber Monday? People are already searching for deals and items to purchase, so consider rolling it out during this high buying season.
One thing that can help boost your launch is creating a rolling launch with a waitlist for your product or service. A rolling launch allows you to start promoting the product or service and build awareness around it before you actually launch it. That way, when you finally do, people have been waiting and are ready to purchase.
Amazon did this recently with their Echo Loop ring, a smart ring designed for those tech lovers that need to have the latest technology at their fingertips (literally). Before the smart ring was even available, they created a waitlist for those who were interested. Then they collected names and information from those customers and finally released it to them for purchase months later. This strategy built interest, and since it was a limited offer, it caused buyers to focus on buying the smart ring as soon as it came available.
10. Run an email campaign.
It should be no surprise that email marketing had the highest conversion rate during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend. According to Data Axle, although Black Friday emails have the highest open rate, Cyber Monday emails have the highest conversion rate (which is what we are all really after).
As a small business, email is your friend. Many people who often skip over emails are now scouring their emails to find the best deals and ideas on what to purchase. This means that prospects who are almost ready to buy could finally decide to make the plunge. You can also farm additional business from your current customers. Either way, the end goal is an increase in your end-of-year sales. Check out these two simple tips for setting up your Cyber Monday campaign:
Use the keyword “Cyber Monday” so that customers or prospects who are looking for deals in their inboxes see you—but remember to be creative to stand out.
Personalize your subject lines with first names, locations, or industries.
Putting these tips to use
We all have a lot going on this time of year, but that’s no reason to ignore the amazing opportunity that Cyber Monday and the holiday season bring. Act quickly by using the tips above and put together your B2B Cyber Monday Marketing Campaign to drive your end-of-year sales.
If you need help putting together your Cyber Monday campaign or developing a digital marketing strategy, Jennasis & Associates is here to help!
Jennasis & Associates is a full-service digital marketing agency with deep experience in creating comprehensive marketing strategies. Our diverse team has expertise in fields such as web design, graphic design, SEO, social media, content marketing, and more!
Reach out to us at digitalmarketing@jennasisassociates.com for more information about our flexible, scalable approach to developing a digital marketing strategy for your business.
