It's here again. The e-commerce fever called Black Friday. Even though the date November 28th seems far away, preparations should already be in full swing for a successful e-shop. The competition will be massive, click-through prices will go up, and without precise preparation of PPC campaigns, you'll sink your budget without the desired result.
At ui42, we have successfully managed dozens of seasons and know where e-shops most often make mistakes. That's why we've prepared a checklist – divided into phases, so you know exactly what you need to do to make your Black Friday successful.
The Black Friday campaign should ideally run at least a week before the date (which means around November 21st) to be optimally set up.
Phase 1: Strategic Analysis and Data Hygiene
October
In this phase, we define goals, audiences, and key messages. At the same time, it's the last chance to check your data. First, it's crucial to audit your tracking. Is GA4 implemented correctly? Are all conversions and order value measurements (so-called e-commerce tracking) functioning at 100%? Without accurate data, algorithms won't know where to properly direct your increased budget.
Next, define realistic goals and budget. You must already account for the fact that the cost per click (CPC) will significantly increase (often by 30 – 50% compared to regular operations). If you want to maintain sales volume, you need to increase the budget and segment it into acquisition campaigns (new customers) and remarketing.
Checklist for Phase 1
- Tracking audit (GA4, conversions, and order value) is complete and flawless.
- Product feeds (Google Merchant Center, Meta catalogs) are up-to-date, error-free, and contain correct data.
- Campaign goals (ROAS) are realistically defined.
- Budget is planned and considers increased CPC during the season.
- Budget segmentation: Determine how much budget will go into acquisition campaigns (new customers) and how much into remarketing.
Phase 2: Creative Development and Testing
October – first half of November
Now it's time for content. The biggest mistake is relying on creatives that you quickly create a week before the season starts. Black Friday is not about improvisation, but about precise testing and preparation. Prepare a sufficient number of visuals, videos, texts, and don't forget about the diversity of formats for different channels.
The creatives you plan to use during Black Friday must be tested now, while the cost per click (CPC) is low. Launch them with a moderate budget and monitor which combinations of headline, image, and CTA (call to action) achieve the best CTR (click-through rate), especially with a cold audience.
Also, don't forget to test the functionality of your conversion paths.
Checklist for Phase 2
- Visuals and videos are created in sufficient volume and various formats. Don't forget about different formats (Stories, Reels, classic feed) and platforms (Google Discovery, Meta).
- Copywriting: Texts should evoke a sense of urgency and clearly communicate the value of the discount. Also prepare texts for the campaign before BF (teaser) and after BF (last chance).
- A/B testing of creatives and texts on a low budget is launched and winning variants are identified. Find out now, while CPC is low, not in the middle of the season.
- Audiences (e.g., Lookalike from top customers, abandoned carts) are created and ready for deployment.
- Conversion paths and UX are tested (speed, mobile functionality, checkout).
Phase 3: Launch, Bidding, and Optimization
Mid - end of November
Everything is prepared and tested. Now it's time for precise performance management.
For a successful Black Friday, it's important not to wait until the last minute. Launch campaigns 7–10 days before the BF date with a slightly increased budget. You need the algorithms to learn from BF conversions before the main rush. If you "throw them into the water" only on the day of BF, their performance will be unstable and inefficient.
You must account for more aggressive bidding settings. If you use automated strategies (e.g., Target ROAS), they must have sufficient budget and time to learn, ideally before the main CPC increase. At the same time, it's crucial to set protection against budget overspending.
And mainly continuous optimization.
During the key BF days, your specialist should be available for immediate response. Is performance dropping on the most important campaign? Increase the budget. Are you overspending on an inefficient segment? Stop it. After BF ends, don't forget to evaluate the data, which will help you better plan next year's season.
Checklist for Phase 3
- First days (Warm-up): Launch campaigns 7-10 days before BF, so algorithms learn from BF conversions.
- Bidding strategy is set more aggressively and considers higher CPC.
- Set protective limits for budgets (daily/total).
- Monitoring and optimization are conducted in real-time, based on CTR and conversion data.
- Weak creatives are promptly replaced with winning variants from phase 2.
- Prepared plan for data evaluation and reporting after the season ends.
Black Friday is a test of readiness for PPC specialists and managers. If you just realized by reading this checklist that you are behind in the preparation process or have forgotten one of the key phases, there is still time to fix it.
October is the last time to turn to specialists from ui42. Our team has successfully managed dozens of seasons. We will ensure that your Black Friday campaigns are optimally set, achieve maximum performance, and you maximize profit.
