Disclaimer: This article has been updated with new data from September 2025.

We’re stepping into Q4, and the big question is: Have you started your Black Friday Cyber Monday prep yet?

The longer you wait, the more you’ll miss out. BFCM is one of the most important events of the year for eCommerce.

It’s a time that can make or break millions of brands. In this Black Friday ads case study, you’ll learn how leading brands nailed their Black Friday ads and how to replicate their success.

BFCM 2025 Dates

Mark your calendar:

Black Friday – November 28th.

Cyber Monday – December 1st.

Everyone wants to know how to maximize sales and spotlight their brand during BFCM. This year is no exception.

Let us show you how it’s done.

BFCM 2025: Ecommerce Still Dominates

Black Friday may have started in stores, but today the battlefield is online. Foot traffic has dropped while online sales keep breaking records.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2024 broke every record. 75% of U.S. consumers shopped online, with 87.3 million choosing digital over physical stores. Shopify merchants alone hit $11.5 billion in sales—up 24% from 2023.

The opportunity is massive, but so is the competition.

Every brand is fighting for the same customers during this critical window. The difference between brands that thrive and those that struggle? Strategic advertising execution.

BFCM 2025 Preparation Timeline

Every year, the number of online stores grows, and eCommerce sellers have to work a little harder. 

With more than 5 million Shopify stores active in 2025, competition is steeper than ever. Success requires a disciplined prep cycle.

If you diversify platforms, run strong ads, and optimize early, you’ll earn your biggest returns of the year.

Here’s the preparation timeline for 2025:

• During BFCM (late November 2025): Use Auction Insights to track competitors, scale what’s working, and monitor CPCs and CPAs.
• Prior to BFCM 2025 (September – October 2025): Audit your account structure and optimize for scaling.
• Setting up for BFCM (November 2025): Build BFCM-specific campaigns, audiences, and extensions.

Preparing ads for BFCM: Google Ads Example

Before BFCM

You’ll want to start your preparations early to make scaling easier.

During September and October, take a high-level look at your overall account and focus on optimization.

Make sure you’ve created a scalable account structure. Organize your campaigns by collection and best-performing products on Shopping, PMax, and DSAs. 

Start adding Shopping Feeds to your Discovery ads to boost conversions. Optimize your feeds using Titles and Descriptions with your most relevant and searched keywords. You can add “BFCM” to your titles to make them more competitive in Shopping results.

Having tags in place will also help you accurately track your conversions and revenue. Properly-attributed revenue means you can put your ad spend in the right places to make the biggest impact.

Remember your audiences!

Define your audiences. Target them clearly, and tailor copy and creatives to each stage of the funnel to boost impact and retain more customers. Here are the basic, must-use audiences for any successful campaign:

• Remarketing: Website Visitors, Product Page Visitors, ATC, Cart Abandoners
• Remarketing Up/Cross-Sell: Past Purchasers, Customer Lists (reactivate existing customers with special offers and upsell/cross-sell)
• Prospecting: Similar Audiences (Past Purchasers, High-Value Customers, Engagers)
• Custom Segments: Based on performing keywords sourced from Search, PMax, Websites, and Competitors

BFCM Setup

With high-level organization out of the way, it’s time to get more granular in the weeks leading up to BFCM.

Ensure you create Campaigns, Ad Groups, Creatives, and Ad Extensions at least 72 hours before your planned launch. During BFCM, ad approvals take longer than usual.

Use Sitelink, Callout, and Promotion extensions to highlight offers and maximize reach.

Remember to use Google Merchant Center Promotions for Shopping Ads and Free Listing. These will allow you to include product badges to highlight sales and discounts. This type of badge on your ads will attract more clicks and, ultimately, more purchases.

Here are a few organizational tips to help manage all of these changes:

• Add BFCM and branded keywords to your campaigns.
• Add new ad groups with BFCM ads to all your campaigns.
• Create rules to turn your campaigns on and off. 
• Double-check (and then triple-check) that all of your rules are working.

Now is also the perfect time to increase budgets on your best-performing campaigns and turn on seasonal bid adjustments. 

During BFCM

Now that BFCM is underway. The initial setup you did leading up to the main event should mean that there is little work left to do. Here’s a quick checklist to help you keep up during these few hectic days.

• Use Auction Insights to compare performance with competitors
• Scale aggressively on working campaigns
• Monitor ATC and purchase conversion rates closely
• Coordinate with your email team on recovery plans if rates drop

Tips To Prepare For BFCM

1. Set Clear Goals

Your BFCM goals should go beyond just launching Facebook Ads. Ask yourself:

• Do you want to drive more traffic?
• Increase conversion rates?
• Focus on customer acquisition?

Your goals will shape the campaigns you create, the platforms you prioritize, and the metrics you measure.

Here are some of the different types of goals for brands to focus on during BFCM:

Determine your most important KPIs and stay on track when the season becomes hectic.

2. Prepare Discounts

Shoppers love BFCM for one reason: the discounts.

This magical word will trigger a shopping frenzy like no other. But a simple 10–20% off won’t stand out. BFCM shoppers expect deep, attention-grabbing discounts that feel worth the hype.

The latest 2024 data shows average discounts hit 27% globally and 29% in the U.S. during Cyber Week (Queue-it). However, specific categories saw much deeper cuts, with makeup leading at 40% off, general apparel at 34%, and skincare at 33% (DemandSage).

Individual product categories reached even steeper discounts, with earrings and rings hitting 22-23% off, while electronics like computer monitors saw 17% discounts and headphones 16% (DemandSage).

The key insight? Beauty and fashion categories consistently offer the deepest discounts to drive BFCM traffic.

And while massive discounts may not look profitable upfront, remember: BFCM is about customer acquisition, not just revenue.

This is when shoppers are most eager to buy. The real win is bringing them into your ecosystem so you can:

• Retarget them in Q1 and beyond
• Upsell and cross-sell with email + remarketing campaigns
• Turn one-time buyers into loyal customers

The smartest brands use BFCM discounts as a gateway to long-term growth, not just a quick sales spike.

3. Boost Social Validation

Social validation is a must-have for a winning BFCM campaign. And if you haven’t built it yet, now’s the perfect time.

Why does it matter so much? Because people trust people more than they trust brands. A friend’s recommendation or a glowing review can do more to sway a shopper than anything you say yourself.

You can sell the best footwear, the best dog accessories, or skincare product. But if you don’t have social validation (or social proof) on your ads it’ll raise eyebrows among your potential customers.

Strengthen your ads with:

• ⭐ Reviews
• 📸 User-generated content
• 💬 Testimonials
• 👍 Engagement (likes, comments, shares)

At the end of the day, it’s not just the product that sells, it’s the buzz around your brand.

Show that excitement, and customers will feel a lot more confident hitting “buy.”

4. Make Eye-Catching Ad Creatives

Your Facebook ads won’t get far without strong, eye-catching visuals. During BFCM, this matters more than ever.

Competitors flood shoppers with offers, visuals, and catchy copy all season long. If your ads blend in, shoppers will ignore them.

You’ve got to get your creative juices flowing and make your ad creatives stand out from the bunch.

Set your goals, lock in your discounts, and build social validation. Then you’re ready to create engaging ads (or hire someone to do it for you).

5.  Set Up Your Ads

With the groundwork done, it’s time to handle the technical part.

Because without a proper setup, you won’t be able to promote your BFCM sale.

This includes:

• Setting up Facebook Ads Manager
• Installing and testing pixels
• Applying segmentation
• Preparing your audiences

If you already have this in place, great, just double-check that everything is running smoothly before BFCM. If not, don’t wait.

Head over to Facebook and follow the step-by-step instructions.s.

6. Start Early

When it comes to BFCM, waiting is a losing game.

Don’t fool yourself into thinking there’s plenty of time once Q4 kicks in — there isn’t.

Here’s why starting early matters:

1. Capture attention before the chaos. If you wait until everyone is advertising, your ad will drown in the noise.
2. Save on costs. CPMs spike as BFCM gets closer, making traffic more expensive by the day.

The takeaway here is if you wait until the last minute, you’ll spend more and get less.

Many marketers cut back before BFCM and then go all-in at the same time. The result? They burn through budgets fast, and platforms bury their ads.

The smarter play is to launch top-of-funnel campaigns early in Q4. Use them to build awareness, spark excitement, and warm up audiences so remarketing converts once the sale starts.

Practical ways to start early:

• Sneak peeks: Run ads that tease your BFCM deals and build hype.
• Countdown landing pages: Create a landing page with a timer and email sign-up to notify shoppers when your sale goes live.
• Prospecting campaigns: Keep running them, even during slower months. Platforms like Facebook use that data to fuel stronger remarketing audiences when BFCM hits.

7. Leverage New Platforms and Features

In 2025, AI-driven social commerce and short-form video have fundamentally changed how shoppers discover and buy products.

If you want to win attention during BFCM, you need to be where shoppers are spending their time — and let AI work for you on TikTok, Instagram Reels Ads, and YouTube Shorts.

TikTok Shop has matured into a serious commerce platform, with 36% of all direct social media purchases now happening on TikTok and the platform delivering 2.4x higher ROAS compared to median performance benchmarks.

• Instagram’s shopping ecosystem now includes Reels Shopping, Stories Product Stickers, and enhanced AR try-on features. Meta’s AI-powered ad targeting has become more sophisticated, making it easier to reach high-intent shoppers during peak BFCM moments.
• YouTube Shorts continues its rise, now driving significant discovery traffic. YouTube’s integration with Google Shopping means your Shorts can appear in both social feeds and search results, maximizing visibility during crucial BFCM research phases.
• AI-Powered Targeting Revolution brings unprecedented AI capabilities: Meta’s AI now delivers significantly improved purchase intent predictions, while Google’s Performance Max optimizes across 12+ channels simultaneously. TikTok’s algorithm identifies micro-moments when users are most likely to convert, making real-time bid adjustments.
• Advanced Automation Features: Platform automation has evolved beyond basic rules. Instagram’s Smart Shopping campaigns automatically create catalogs and write ad copy, while YouTube’s AI generates video ads from product images. Snapchat’s AR commerce tools let customers virtually try products before buying — reducing returns and boosting confidence.

Here’s how to make the most of these platforms for BFCM 2025:

Let AI optimize: Enable automated bidding and creative testing to maximize performance during peak traffic periods.

Lean into native content: Create short, authentic videos that feel organic to the feed.

Work with creators: Influencers and micro-creators build trust and cut through the holiday noise.

Use shoppable formats: Add product tags, TikTok Shop links, and Instagram Shopping to shorten the path to purchase.

8. Set Up a Facebook Store

Facebook Store gives shoppers a seamless experience with fast checkout. Two things that are now essential in eCommerce.

If you’re running Facebook Ads, a store allows customers to complete their purchases without ever leaving the platform. This helps reduce distractions, cut down on cart abandonment, and keep the shopping journey smooth.

Speed also matters. That’s why Facebook built in integrated Facebook Pay to give shoppers a quick and secure way to check out.

If you haven’t set up your Facebook Store yet, here’s a little guide to get you started.

Facebook Store provides shoppers with a streamlined customer journey and a fast checkout. Two things that are becoming absolutely crucial in the eCommerce landscape.

If you’re running Facebook ads, a Facebook store allows users to complete their purchases without ever leaving the platform.

This helps fend off distractions eliminate cart abandonment, and make the entire shopping experience as close to real life as possible.

9. Make Sure Your Ads Provide Clarity

BFCM is not the time to experiment. Stick with the campaigns you know convert, and focus on making your ads clear, eye-catching, and easy to understand.

Research from Global Web Index shows that 86% of people worldwide want to hear from brands running a promotion. Use that to your advantage. Highlight your offers, bundles, and discounts so shoppers can’t miss them.

Attention spans are short. You have about three seconds to get your message across. If it isn’t obvious right away, shoppers will move on.

10.  Rethink Your Brand Voice

Last year caused most brands to restrategize the way they address their audience.

Your brand voice matters more than ever during BFCM. Shoppers want to connect with brands that feel authentic and aligned with their values.

Shoppers are focusing more on needs than wants as they adapt to economic changes. That means tone-deaf or “business as usual” messaging can fall flat.

Instead, acknowledge what your audience cares about. Be real, be human, and don’t be afraid to show empathy in your ads.

Modern consumers also want brands that stand for something. Emphasizing:

• ✅ Ethical manufacturing
• ✅ Positive social or environmental impact
• ✅ Building long-term customer relationships

will help your brand stand out far beyond BFCM.

Your voice should do more than sell products. It should build trust.

11. Focus On Remarketing

BFCM is prime time for remarketing.

You’ve already put in the work capturing leads, building your brand, and growing customer relationships. Now is when you turn that effort into sales.

With a good remarketing campaign, you’ll appeal to all those users that already had an interest in your product.

So let’s say you start your prospecting early.

You’ll gather a database of engagers, website visitors, leads, past purchasers, etc.

Then when the BFCM is in full swing, you can get your remarketing ads to pick those shoppers up again.

Also, you’ll manage to stick in the back of their mind for whatever product you’re offering.

Tip: Most customers shop online, but you can still mimic offline shopping behaviors.

Use ads such as carousel to showcase as much of your store as you can.

12. Optimize Ads For Mobile

Most U.S. shoppers now browse and buy on their smartphones. That means shoppers will see your ads on mobile more than desktop.

Mobile shopping now accounts for 55% of online sales during BFCM, making mobile optimization non-negotiable.

It’s not just your ads that matter. Your landing pages and checkout flow also need to be mobile-friendly. A page that looks great on desktop can still be clunky on a phone. And that’s where you risk losing sales.

13. Salvage Your Abandoned Carts

Driving traffic is only part of the job. The real challenge? Converting it. Recent studies show that shoppers abandon approximately 70% of online carts worldwide, with the rate climbing even higher during peak shopping periods like BFCM.

That’s why you need dedicated remarketing campaigns aimed at cart abandoners. Most social platforms make this easy, letting you target people who added items but never checked out.

To win them back, sweeten the deal with:

• 🎁 Special offers
• 💸 Discount codes
• 🚚 Free shipping

These small nudges can be enough to push shoppers toward that final click.

14. Leverage SMS

SMS marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach customers, and BFCM is the perfect time to use it.

According to research, an average person spends 3 hours and 15 minutes each day looking at their phone.

SMS marketing delivers up to 7,100% ROI, nearly doubling email’s 3,600%, making them unbeatable when used together.

And check these two awesome stats from Yotpo:

• SMS open rate is over 90%
• 90% are opened and read within the first 3 minutes

So here’s what you need to do.

First, create content that’s short, on-brand, and easy to read. Share your BFCM offer upfront and drop in a clear CTA that takes shoppers straight to your landing page.

But beware. Pushy, aggressive SMS marketing can put customers off as well. So tread lightly when you start setting up your SMS campaign.

15. Get Loyalty Programs Going

Gen Z and younger shoppers want brands that build real connections, making BFCM the perfect time to reward loyalty.

Showing appreciation to your best customers boosts retention, raises brand awareness, and can even spark user-generated content. Loyal shoppers are also the most likely to spread the word about your brand.

Simple ways to reward your VIPs:

• Offer exclusive discounts to repeat customers
• Send samples of new products in exchange for feedback
• Include a free gift with purchase

Recognizing loyal customers during BFCM strengthens relationships and keeps them coming back long after the holiday rush.

16. Harness AI for BFCM Personalization

2025 is the year AI personalization stops being optional. It’s now essential.

 While SMS gets you in front of customers instantly, AI ensures every touchpoint feels personally crafted for each shopper.

Modern consumers expect more than discounts now. They expect experiences tailored specifically to them.

Dynamic Creative Optimization takes the guesswork out of ad performance. Platforms automatically test thousands of ad combinations in real-time, showing each user the creative most likely to convert them.

Predictive Audiences represent the next evolution of targeting. AI identifies users likely to purchase during BFCM before they even show buying signals. Letting you reach high-intent shoppers first.

Real-Time Personalization goes beyond basic demographics. Your ads, emails, and website content automatically adjust based on user behavior, weather, location, and current events.

The brands winning BFCM 2025 aren’t just using AI tools—they’re letting AI optimize their entire customer journey. Most major platforms now offer these AI-powered features with minimal setup and maximum impact.

How To Run Successful BFCM Ads By Channel

Here, we’ve gathered some of the best tips and tricks to implement during BFCM and organized them by channel so you can get the most out of your marketing team.

BFCM Meta Ads Tips

Your Meta Ads will reach potential customers on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp.

For maximum results, diversify and set up ads for Prospecting and Remarketing audiences.

Here are some more Meta marketing tips that we implement in our agency as well:

• Use a wide campaign: The wider your net, the more fish you’ll catch. So, include both prospecting and remarketing in one campaign or ASC+. And test ALL your audiences, even if they aren’t top performers in your evergreen campaigns. 
• Don’t skimp on run-time: Run your ads for at least five days to achieve complete optimization. Plus, include DPA frames for a unified look across your campaign.
• Start early: If you wait too long, Meta may hold your ads in review when they should be live.
• Optimize your landing page: Create one central landing page with all your BFCM deals in plain sight. A single hub makes it impossible for customers to miss your offers. And once the sale is over, reuse your best-performing creatives for future holidays.
• Increase your budget: You’ll want to start your promotional campaign at as high a budget as you can. Ideally, 2-3x your current daily budget. Optimize aggressively, and don’t be afraid to turn ads off quickly if they don’t perform. 
• Be a tease: Create a sneak peek at BFCM teasers before they go live to generate buzz. Whitelisting and signup campaigns are also effective ways to excite your customer base during BFCM.
• Be generous: Run a giveaway to collect leads and funnel in emails. Everyone loves a freebie.

BFCM Email Tips

Did you know email subscribers spend 138% more on average than non-subscribers? 🤯

That makes email marketing one of the biggest drivers of BFCM revenue, often outperforming paid ads.

So, building your email list is the most important thing you can do right now to secure Black Friday and Cyber Monday success.

Here’s how to get the most from your email campaigns:

• Grow your list: Start early and capture as many email addresses as possible by using pop-ups, landing page capture, and lead ads. 
• Don’t be shy: Put your discounts front and center. Last year, our email campaigns with “$xx off” messaging had the highest conversion rate at 14.8%
• Make it personal: Wherever possible, include personalization in your title and email body. 
• Know your enemy: Conduct a brief competitor analysis. Find out what competitors in your industry offer, where they are weak, and what your brand can do better.
• Know your audience: Segmentation is key. Break your list into groups and tailor your offers to each one. Give loyalty members exclusive deals. Entice new subscribers with special offers, and re-engage past buyers who have not purchased this year but still interact with your emails.
• Know your holiday: Your audience is in a giving mood. So attract gift-givers with can’t-miss promos and holiday-themed messaging. Strong subject lines and personalization make the biggest impact, so A/B test to see what resonates.
• Show the goods: Use dynamic product feeds based on your audience’s needs. Highlight gift sets, budget-friendly items, seasonal sales, and popular accessories to make shopping easy.
• Keep It Simple: Wherever possible, simplify. Make your offers easy to understand and your shipping dates obvious for your least-savvy customers. 

BFCM Copy & Creative Tips

Once your technical setup is solid, your copy and creative need to pull their weight. Strong messaging and visuals are what close the deal when shoppers see your ads.

Here are key tips to guide your creative team:

• Don’t be too specific: Use broad phrasing like “up to 60% off” so you don’t have to swap ads if discounts shift.
• But also, don’t be too vague: Make it clear you’re offering a Black Friday discount. During BFCM, creatives should focus on the sale, not product benefits. Shoppers know what they want, and they’ll scroll past if your discount isn’t obvious.
• Get to the point: BFCM is not the time for long copy. Attention spans are short and distractions are everywhere, so grab attention fast and state your deal clearly.
• Their poor planning is your advantage: Nothing sparks panic like last-minute gift shopping. So put shipping cut-off dates front and center with clear “Order by” messaging. For many shoppers, this is the final push to buy.  
• Frames are your friends: Use DPA frames to give your products a cohesive look and make your ads feel polished. Be sure to feature your sales prominently within those frames.
• Stay timeless: These ads may not be evergreen, but you can make them feel that way by avoiding specific dates and times. Instead, use phrases like “limited time only” and “hurry” to create urgency

Short Case Study: TGM Ads That Crushed BFCM

The proof’s in the pudding. Don’t think we’d let you go without a few examples!

BFCM Meta Ad Example 1 – Pixi Beauty US

Pixi Beauty US set big goals. Break through the crowded beauty space and crush BFCM while still staying profitable.

They asked us to craft a competitive offer that still delivered profit. So we put our best practices into action and built this eye-catching ad.

What worked?

We didn’t date the ad.

Urgency is key, but instead of locking the copy to specific dates, we used “limited time only.”

This created FOMO while keeping the ad reusable for future campaigns. It also gave our media buyers more control to adjust run-times or pull the campaign early if needed. 

We clearly stated the deal…

The copy and creative worked together to spell out the offer: BOGO 50% off sitewide. Customers knew what they were getting (the discount), why (Black Friday Sale), and how (discount code shown front and center). Clarity drove clicks.

…And then we sweetened it.

BOGO 50% off can cut into margins. With many competitors offering similar discounts, brands risk blending in. To stand out, we added a strong freebie that lifted AOV (average order value) and gave shoppers an extra reason to buy more.

The result?

Pixi ended BFCM with a massive ROAS of 8.69.

The results?

Pixi killed last year’s BFCM season with a massive ROAS of 8.69.

Black Friday Instagram Ad Example – American Vintage

Every year, Instagram gets flooded with BFCM ads. American Vintage came to us with a clear challenge: stand out in the scroll while staying true to their premium, minimalist aesthetic.

The game plan?

Keep it sleek, discount-first, and true to the brand’s identity. Here’s how we did it…

We led with clarity.

The ad put “Black Friday” and “Up to 50% Off” front and center, making the offer impossible to miss.

We kept the creative clean.

Instead of cramming in products or competing visuals, we used bold typography and a clean layout to spotlight the discount. The lifestyle hook “styles you’ll live in” tied it all together, giving shoppers a reason to picture themselves in the brand while keeping the focus firmly on the offer.

We made it easy to act.

The copy was short, urgent, and savings-focused. Calling out “no code needed” removed friction and made the path to purchase effortless. Shoppers had one clear reason to click.

The result?
This stripped-back creative delivered a ROAS of 5.3. It was a standout return that proved less really can be more during the busiest shopping weekend of the year.

Strategy Spotlight: When attention is scarce, clarity wins. Put the discount front and center, strip away the clutter, and guide shoppers straight to checkout. That’s how you turn a scroll into a sale.

Black Friday Email Example – The C Curl

Black Friday inboxes are packed. After sending the launch email for The C Curl, we followed up with a reminder email to keep the sale top of mind. That second touchpoint grabbed attention and ended up driving the most revenue.

Here’s what we did:

Put the discount front and center with 15% off sitewide.

Kept the tone light and human with “Just popping in to remind you…” instead of pushy language.

Highlighted best-sellers to reduce decision fatigue and give shoppers quick options.

Added multiple CTAs so no matter where readers skimmed, the next step was always clear.

The result? The reminder email outperformed the launch. It delivered a 42.9% open rate and drove $4,715 in revenue. 

Pro Tip: During BFCM, reminder emails aren’t optional. They’re the deal-closers. Most shoppers won’t buy on the first touch, so that second (or even third) reminder is what nudges them over the finish line. Time it right, keep it simple, and watch it become your biggest revenue driver.

Black Friday Email & SMS Example – Waterbox Aquariums 

In a sea of generic “Black Friday” subject lines, Waterbox Aquariums needed a way to stand out and drive engagement without overwhelming shoppers.

The solution? Put a twist on tradition with “Blue Friday”, a clever rebrand that instantly separated them from the noise and made shoppers stop and click.

What worked? We made the deals impossible to miss. 

Each section of the email spotlighted one offer, so shoppers didn’t have to dig to find the savings.

We kept it visual.  Big, bold product images paired with clean copy did the heavy lifting. No fluff, just the deals.

Then we added a cherry on top.  Free shipping on all aquariums gave shoppers one more reason to buy.

The results?

The email crushed it with a 65.7% open rate and a 21.4% click rate. 

But the magic didn’t stop in the inbox. We followed up with a punchy text that said, “Our Biggest Sale Event of the Year Starts Now.” Short, bold, and impossible to ignore. 

The copy worked because it created urgency, gave shoppers one clear action, and made the path to the sale effortless. That one SMS brought in over $49,000 in revenue, proving that sometimes the simplest messages deliver the biggest wins.

The takeaway: Shoppers don’t want to read essays during BFCM. They want the deals, front and center. Clear, discount-first emails paired with timely, punchy SMS are the combo that wins. Keep it short, keep it skimmable, and keep the savings impossible to miss.

BFCM 2025 Checklist

If you’re looking for any extra advice for this year’s BFCM bonanza, you’re at the right place.

When working with partners, we share a detailed checklist of must-haves for successful BFCM campaigns.

Let’s lay it out.

BFCM 2025 Checklist Part 1: Strategy

The first thing you should know is that all changes should be implemented by October 1st.

Don’t hesitate, don’t wait. You’re losing ground to your competitors who have already laid the foundations.

Cast a wide net with your first BFCM offer. Holiday shoppers come out in full force, and many are ready to buy even if they haven’t engaged with your emails lately.

Here’s what you should do when it comes to strategy:

• Define your products and discounts, calculate margins, and take time to think it through
• Create a BFCM activity calendar where you’ll promote and track your campaigns
• Define if you should do lead generation or just sales
• Know your budget and what you can spend without hurting your business if results fall short.
• Be realistic about your stock. If you go out of stock early, you’ll waste money on ad campaigns.

BFCM 2025 Checklist ✅Part 2: Website

Your website can make or break a sale, so make sure it’s BFCM-ready.

Update your hero image with BFCM offers and make sure landing pages have the right dates and times.

Add upsell and cross-sell apps to boost conversions. Double-check that your site is connected to your product catalog so you’ll get alerts when stock runs low.

Finally, apply product discounts. Update visuals with BFCM-style images and badges, and place a BFCM-style banner in checkout.

BFCM 2025 Checklist ✅Part 3: Creative

As mentioned, eye-catching ad creatives are what will turn “scrollers” into your customers.

BFCM 2025 Checklist ✅Part 4: Ads

We’ve covered Meta ads in detail, but here’s a quick refresher on what to lock in before BFCM:

• Populate your audience: using first-party data, server-side tracking, lookalikes, etc.
• Organize your BFCM material: Produce creative assets (influencers, your team, UGCs) and BFCM copy.
• Check your tracking: Make sure CAPI, pixels, and reporting tools are all set up and working correctly.
• Verify ad account credit limits so you can scale without restrictions.
• Confirm budgets and goals across all channels and partners – super important.
• On Google Ads, add countdown timers in titles to drive urgency.

BFCM 2025 Checklist ✅Part 5: Email

Your email workflows are the backbone of BFCM success, and they need extra attention this season.

Here’s how to get your email and SMS ready for BFCM:

• Update your email workflows for the season and map out a newsletter calendar.
• Get your BFCM graphics, copy, and promos ready to roll.
• Clean up your list, and maintain list hygiene before you blast out the BFCM campaign.
• Define a VIP audience of loyal or high-value shoppers, and reward them with perks like early access, extra discounts, or free gifts.
• Add urgency to key flows like Cart Abandonment so shoppers know they’re running out of time.
• Create exclusion segments to stop marketing to people who already bought.
• Make sure all URLs include dynamic coupon code parameters and check the post-click UX. Does the code apply to their cart directly? Is it easy to understand the discount?
• Plan resends in advance so you avoid last-minute campaign creation when you want to hit a revenue target.
• Optional: Update your website pop-up with BFCM-related messaging (“get on our VIP list for extra special offers.”) And follow up with a Welcome email.

Buckle Up – BFCM Is Almost Here

These are just a handful of proven strategies to help you boost sales and crush Q4. We’d spill all our secrets, but hey, we’ve got a business to run. 😉

Still, this guide should give you a solid foundation and spark fresh ideas for your own BFCM prep.

What else do you do during your BFCM preparation and execution? Do you have some BFCM ad strategies that you’d like to share? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think!

And if you want more articles, tips, and case studies like this one, make sure to subscribe or reach out so you never miss a post.