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Black Friday Marketing Lessons: What Consumers Really Respond To
Here’s All the GOOD Bits:
- Simplicity sells – The clearest Black Friday ads, with bold discounts and minimal clutter, consistently outperform lifestyle-led creative.
- Value beats hype – A weak product won’t shift even at 80% off. Discounts amplify demand, but they can’t create it where it doesn’t exist.
- Preparation is power – Test your creative, copy, and offers weeks in advance. Black Friday is the stage, not the rehearsal.
- Agility wins – Monitor campaigns daily, cut losers quickly, and funnel spend into what’s delivering in real time.
Over the last few years, we’ve been tracking how shoppers behave during Black Friday, and the results continue to surprise us. Spending habits shift, consumer expectations grow, and the strategies that worked last year rarely work the same way again.
Let’s have a look at what brands and marketers can learn from the latest Black Friday trends and how to prepare for this year.
How Much Do People Spend?
Spending levels during Black Friday are consistently high, with online sales often overtaking in-store purchases. eCommerce is where the majority of money now flows, and the ease of comparison shopping means discounts need to be both bold and genuine to stand out.
One consistent trend has been growth in overall spend year on year, even when household budgets tighten. Shoppers are willing to part with cash, but only if they see actual value in the offers being presented.
What We've Learned From Previous Black Friday Campaigns
- Sales-focused messaging works. The strongest creative has been the simplest. Large, unmistakable text stating the discount and tying it directly to Black Friday consistently outperforms elaborate lifestyle imagery.
- Copy length depends on the price point. Short, sharp copy works for lower-cost items. Higher-value products need more explanation, reassurance, and detail to win customers over.
- Simplicity is key. Paid search and paid social campaigns that use clear ‘Black Friday Sale’ language outperform vague promotions. For example, jewellery brands have seen stronger results when the words ‘Black Friday’ appear directly in headlines and descriptions.
- Prepare your audience early. Warm up potential buyers with email sign-ups and lead generation campaigns weeks before Black Friday. Email marketing for Black Friday can make subscribers feel they’re being invited into something exclusive, and they are far more likely to convert when the main offer launches.
- Build a retargeting pool. Use much of your early budget to find new cold audiences. Then, once Black Friday arrives, focus your spending on retargeting the people who have already shown interest.
5 Key Lessons From Black Friday Campaigns
- Forget the fancy creative. Simple, text-heavy graphics highlighting the discount often beat product shots or lifestyle ads.
- Discounts alone don’t sell. If the product or service isn’t in demand, slashing prices won’t create long-term customers.
- Accelerated delivery helps. On platforms like Facebook, pushing ads aggressively during the short Black Friday window ensures your campaigns are seen.
- Test beforehand. Trial ad formats, copy, and creative in advance, so you’re not gambling on unproven ideas during peak sales.
- Cut weak ads quickly. Monitor results daily and don’t hesitate to pull underperformers so you can redirect budget to what’s working.
Why Simple Black Friday Ad Creatives Win
Our testing has shown that focusing purely on the discount, rather than the product itself, grabs attention most effectively. For example, a bold design with ‘Black Friday – Up to 80% Off’ outperformed product-led visuals for a client in the beauty sector.
Why? Because consumers already know what Black Friday represents. They aren’t looking for the same lifestyle ads they see all year round. They want huge savings, and they want them immediately.
The Limits of Big Discounts
Not every brand can rely on deep price cuts. A poor product will not sell, even at a 90% discount. Value always comes before price. Businesses that use extreme discounts to mask a weak product often damage long-term trust and retention.
The Role of Accelerated Delivery
Accelerated delivery can help when competing with thousands of other advertisers for visibility. It pushes spending faster to secure impressions during the narrow Black Friday window. Costs may rise, but the payoff is worth it when urgency is the goal.
Preparation Matters
The best-performing campaigns are never built overnight. Testing creative, copy, and audiences in advance is critical. Treat Black Friday as the final stage of a longer campaign, not the launchpad. That way, by the time the big weekend arrives, you already know what will resonate.
Managing Winning and Losing Ads
Black Friday offers little room for hesitation. Ads that don’t perform within the first day are unlikely to turn around. Be prepared to shut down underperformers quickly and reinvest in the creative delivering results.
What To Expect Going Forward
Shoppers now expect substantial discounts as standard during Black Friday. Offers below 20% are increasingly ignored, while deals of 25% or more are more likely to drive action.
At the same time, the cost-of-living squeeze means many consumers are saving specifically for this weekend, skipping smaller November purchases to maximise Black Friday deals. This means competition for attention will only intensify. If brands want to stand out, they should offer competitive offers, sharper creatives, and more personalised targeting.
What You Can Implement Now
- Build your email list early. Subscribers convert at higher rates during Black Friday.
- Run pre-sales tests. Use small promotions in the weeks before to identify which offers resonate.
- Design bold creatives. The discount should dominate the ad visually.
- Keep copy sales-focused. Clear and direct messaging drives urgency.
- Budget smart. Use early spend to attract cold audiences, then pivot heavily into retargeting across Black Friday weekend.
Are You Ready for Black Friday?
Black Friday has grown from a single-day shopping event to a sales season. It creates urgency, excitement, and competition in equal measure. Brands that succeed prepare early, keep messaging simple, and respect the fact that value drives sales more than price alone.
At The Good Marketer, we know what consumers really respond to — and how to turn that insight into sales. So, are you ready to build this year’s campaign? Get in touch today!