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- Your BFCM Revenue Is Already Decided
Hey, Michael from AdSumo Digital here.
We’re back with another edition of The DTC Letters.
Every year it's the same story...
Some Ecommerce brands absolutely CRUSH IT during Black Friday, while others barely break even on their ad spend.
Here's the crazy part - the difference usually comes down to what happens in the next 30 days.
True story: Last week I was reviewing two BFCM campaigns from 2022. Both brands had similar revenue ($2-3M), similar products, similar AOV.
Brand A: Did $482,749 during BFCM
Brand B: Did $1.2M during the same period
The difference?
Brand A started their prep in late October. Basically showed up to the gunfight with a butter knife.
Brand B? They started executing the exact strategy I'm about to show you back in September.
Today I'm going to give you the three most crucial moves you need to make RIGHT NOW to ensure your BFCM isn't a complete disaster:
The "Silent List-Build" Method
The Pre-BFCM Segment Strategy
The Early Bird Revenue Secret
The "Silent List-Build" Method
Here's the thing most brands get wrong about BFCM list building:
They wait until November 1st to start cranking up their lead gen... right when ad costs shoot through the roof.
That's like trying to book a beach house the week before summer vacation. Good luck with that.
Instead, here's what our top-performing clients are doing RIGHT NOW:
Running strategic pop-ups with holiday-specific language: "Want early access to our biggest sale ever?" "Get VIP Black Friday pricing before anyone else" "Save your spot in line for holiday deals"
Creating BFCM-focused lead magnets:
Holiday gift guides
Early bird wait lists
VIP preview access
Quick win story: One of our clients implemented this strategy last year.
They added 12,847 subscribers between September and October at a $1.12 cost per lead.
The same targeting in November? $4.37 per lead.
Do the math on that savings.
The Pre-BFCM Segment Strategy
This is where the real money gets made.
Most brands treat their entire list the same during BFCM. Big mistake.
Here's how we're segmenting lists RIGHT NOW:
VIP Customers (3+ purchases)
Get first access
Better discounts
Exclusive bundles
Previous BFCM Buyers
They bought last holiday season
Highly likely to buy again
Need special attention
Window Shoppers
Opened emails but never bought
Need more social proof
Higher discount threshold
Real numbers: We helped one brand segment their BFCM emails last year based on these exact criteria.
Result? Revenue per email jumped 247% compared to their "batch and blast" approach from 2021.
The Early Bird Revenue Secret
Here's something most brands miss:
You can start making BFCM revenue NOW.
No, I'm not talking about running your Black Friday sale in September (please don't do that).
I'm talking about our "Preview Profit Strategy":
Create a VIP early access list
Special sign-up form
Exclusive content
Behind-the-scenes looks
Send "leaked" deal previews
Build anticipation
Get commitment
Create FOMO
Early bird offers
24-hour access windows
Limited quantities
Special bundles
We implemented this for a client last year. They made $127,432 BEFORE Black Friday even started.
That's found money most brands leave on the table.
The 30-Day Action Plan
Here's exactly what you need to do in the next month:
Week 1:
Set up BFCM-specific pop-ups
Create segment frameworks
Launch VIP list building
Week 2:
Start warming up your sending domain
Build out preview campaigns
Design early access flows
Week 3:
Begin social proof collection
Test subject lines
Prep automation flows
Week 4:
Final segment clean-up
Load early access campaigns
Set up tracking pixels
Look, at the end of the day, your BFCM success isn't determined during the actual sale.
It's determined by what you do RIGHT NOW.
The brands that crush Q4 aren't smarter than you.
They just started preparing earlier.
Don't let your competition beat you to the punch.
Talk soon,
Michael
P.S. Want to see our entire BFCM preparation checklist? The same one that helped our clients generate over $4.2M during cyber week last year? Hit reply - I'll send it your way.
P.P.S. If your emails aren't hitting the inbox NOW, you're already behind for BFCM. We just helped a client go from 23% deliverability to 91% in 9 days using our rapid triage system. There's still time to save your holiday revenue - but that window closes fast. One brand waited until Black Friday week last year... their emails hit spam and they lost $392k in potential revenue. Don't let that be you...
If you run an Ecom brand and want to have a 15 minute strategy session with me, book a call here »
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