The cost of living crisis is hitting the UK hard. 77% of the population have reported that they are worried about rising costs. With Black Friday on the horizon, retailers have already spent weeks calculating the best deals they can offer. This is also whilst signing off marketing collateral to tempt customers to shop.
But will these pre-calculated efforts be rewarded on Black Friday? Or will cost-conscious customers resist the temptation of a discount?
Black Friday 2022 – what’s the outlook?
A new survey from Zendesk suggests that customers are more eager for Black Friday than ever this year. 4 in 5 respondents said that the increased cost of living makes them more likely to shop the discounts and deals available. They will be looking to complete their holiday gift shopping without breaking a tighter budget.
Over 90% of Gen Z surveyed, a key audience for so many retailers looking to win brand advocates, also intend to participate in the sales shopping. This means retailers who were anticipating a quieter Black Friday given the looming recession will miss out on a ripe opportunity to boost their bottom line.
For almost all customers, brand loyalty is important in choosing where they’ll head to shop first. In turn, the majority of customers surveyed felt more loyalty to brands who offer them ‘strong and responsive’ customer service. This element of loyalty was even more important to customers than the sustainability or trendiness of the brands they shop with.
The good news is, strong and responsive customer service doesn’t mean that everything must go perfectly. 58% of those surveyed responded that they are willing to forgive delivery delays and/or long waiting times in shops. Ongoing global supply chain challenges have become commonplace, and customers have learned to anticipate minor delivery delays around busy shopping holidays. Therefore, they are more likely to forgive this when proactively communicated with. In this, then, they will appreciate it when they can easily find information on the status of their deliveries.
In fact, more than half of those surveyed said they could forgive delivery delays over the Black Friday weekend. However, only 8% of consumers would forgive poor customer service at this time.
How can retailers prepare?
This is great for brands who already feel confident in their customer experience team. For those who don’t, it’s easy to implement changes. These will bring them shoulder to shoulder with bigger competitors in time for Black Friday. In turn, these changes will start building a loyal customer base.
The first easy win is to use the data they already have on their customers. This will help to develop some personalised offers. Each time a customer reaches out to a business, they leave clues about what matters most to them. From the products they’ve been browsing, to inquiries about express delivery.
Wherever you look, there are opportunities to offer the customer bespoke discounts and voucher codes. Overall, this will make them more inclined to complete their order and avoid the dreaded abandoned cart.
Proactive communication is also a really great way to win over customers. By reaching out to customers on the channels they use most, like WhatsApp, businesses can put their best deals in front of the right customers at the right time. As a result, retailers can win quick sales.
Utilise the convenient ability to share a link with customers to products that might interest them, or shareable messages that can turn happy customers into brand advocates. With this, the real success of Black Friday can be sealed weeks before the shopping weekend.
Loyalty – the ultimate win/win
Yes, Black Friday is an opportunity to increase the bottom line over a few key shopping days. But by proactively communicating with customers, and using the insights gleaned from previous interactions, brands can show their customers that they are well understood and valued with bespoke deals.
In doing so, they can create loyal customers. And long after the recession ends, loyal customers will provide value to your business. They will come back for seasonal sales, holiday seasons, and their own shopping time and time again. The success of Black Friday will linger on for months to come if done successfully.