How to Prepare for Black Friday
The holidays are coming! The holidays are coming! It’s the cry of every business and retailer throughout the country. Christmas is one of the busiest and most profitable times of the year, however, it is important to be ready. Events such as Black Friday – or is it Black Tag Week now – have become the norm, causing a headache for both the online and real world. Being caught off-guard by these giant events? Here at Q2Q-IT we know that it’s the last thing your company needs coming into the holiday season.
Of course, Cyber Monday is also next week and there will be a whole other wave of issues for an exclusively online event. Knowing what to expect for these events, preparing and not panicking are the first steps to being ready for Black Friday.
Security is Key
Today, online security is more important than ever. You wouldn’t leave your physical store unlocked at night, so why leave your online store unlocked? This is of paramount importance at a time of year that will see you getting double, if not triple, the normal amount of traffic.
A cyber-attack during Black Friday can be horrific. Worst case scenario: your site is down for the day and you miss the most important retail date on your calendar. The security of your customers is also an important factor to remember. People make payments on your site and expect the transaction to be safe. If their data is stolen or the payment is compromised it can be a black mark against your company’s name. Customer confidence breeds repeat sales, so this is vital for the health of your company.
The liability for hacking could fall heavily on your shoulders. Small businesses, especially, are often targeted for their customer’s data. So, a comprehensive firewall and anti-virus are a necessity for any online retail portal.
Open Advertising
Black Friday is probably one of the most hectic times of the year. People are rushing around, determined to get a deal before the Christmas season and sometimes can overlook the amazing deals you have to offer. So, you need to put together a comprehensive advertising campaign in order to get your Black Friday deals to the masses. Got an amazing 50% off? Splash your message everywhere you can – especially on Facebook and other social media platforms in these final days leading up to the event!
However, it is also important to remember to be entirely truthful when you are advertising. Recent years have seen increased importance being allocated to honest advertising. Lying to consumers is continually being monitored, with advertising watchdogs such as the ASA – Advertising Standards Authority – even recently canning an ad over safety concerns.
Ultimately, advertise your event to attract as many customers as possible, but, remember to tell the truth as you do so!
Prepare for Mobile
Many online shoppers are now accessing your website on their mobiles. Increasingly, web traffic has become exclusively mobile, so websites have to be optimised in order to support these on-the-go shoppers. Most online shoppers are younger (under 35) and as such more prone to mobile shopping. So, you need to ensure that your site is well optimised. This includes:
• A simplified layout – key information should be the breadth and depth of your site pages. Anything busy or cluttered will not retain a visitor for very long.
• White space – this is one way to give a cleaner and less cluttered feel to your web page is by utilising your white space. It may feel more natural to fill every gap but fight that urge to create a sleeker look.
• Avoid Flash – the reason for this is that Apple products don’t support this plugin. Although there are a lot of mobile devices on the market, it is hard to argue about the number of Apple products out there. So, don’t block off your site from one of the biggest mobile markets!
• No pop-ups – this should be a universal truth whether mobile or desktop. People hate pop ups and so should be avoided.
Overall, you should consistently be checking your website for both desktop and mobile optimisation. Losing a sale because your site wasn’t easy to navigate is an easy scenario to avoid, so be prepared!
So, be aware of the added pressures that your web page will face in the increased traffic Black Friday will bring. The more prepared you are, the easier the day will feel and the sweeter the rewards. Not sure if you are ready for the influx of traffic that Black Friday will bring? Do you need IT Support to get you through this most wonderful time of year?
Then contact us on 01524 581690 to discuss your options with our friendly team here at Q2Q-IT, or you can email us at [email protected].
