Social Media Advertising Insights Ahead of Black Friday, Cyber Monday
Holiday forecasts suggest U.S. e-commerce holiday sales will reach record numbers this year, generating more than $240 billion in revenue, an 8.4% increase over last year. This year, it’s especially important for brands to get a jumpstart on their holiday campaigns due to the shortened holiday season (the time period between Thanksgiving and Christmas is almost one week less, compared to last year), according to Emplifi, a customer engagement platform.
Emplifi recently released insights on social media advertising and customer care trends ahead of November's Black Friday/Cyber Monday shopping timeframe. The insights, largely drawn from last year’s findings, suggest there’s still time to build effective ad campaigns for this year’s sales events.
According to Emplifi’s data and analysis, in 2023, ad spend on Meta’s Facebook and Instagram surged by 90% in the days leading up to Black Friday, with social ad impressions peaking during the same period.
Other notable insights from 2023 include:
- Click-through rates (CTR) for Black Friday ads held steady at 1.3% from 10 to six days before the holiday last year but surged to 1.82% in the final five days, even as ad spend dropped by more than a third, indicating the effectiveness of ads closer to the holiday.
- Customer inquiries/comments on branded social posts rose by 52% in Q4 2023 (the holiday quarter) compared to Q1, while response rates by brands dropped 16%. This underscores the growing need for brands and retailers to address customer service demands during peak shopping times.
- Black Friday-themed posts with phrases like “limited-time offers” and “countdowns to the holidays” drove twice as many interactions in the lead-up to last year’s shopping event, suggesting that urgency in posts boosts engagement.
- Social posts that prominently featured product images at a larger scale generated 30% more interactions compared to ads where the product appeared smaller or less central.
“Our insights show that consumers become much more likely to click on ads as we get closer to the Black Friday shopping holiday,” Susan Ganeshan, chief marketing officer, Emplifi, said in a media release on the findings. “Based on [last year’s findings], brands should rethink their social media spending strategies and consider allocating a larger portion of their ad budget to the final two weeks before Black Friday — especially the last five days when consumers are actively searching for deals.”
2024 Projections
As Black Friday approaches, fewer impressions may be generated, but they result in higher engagement, according to Emplifi. Brands can get more value from their ad spend closer to the event when consumer urgency is highest.
“Our data reveals a significant customer service gap during the holiday season — a crucial time to win new customers and maintain loyalty among existing ones,” Ganeshan added. “With a surge in customers reaching out to brands via social apps, it’s vital that brands respond promptly. Failing to do so leaves money on the table and puts brand loyalty at risk, especially considering that 86% of consumers say they would leave a brand after just one negative experience. This disconnect in social customer care presents a key opportunity for brands to leverage generative AI tools to streamline their customer care strategies and create more efficient workflows.”
After analyzing thousands of Facebook comments on Black Friday- and Cyber Monday-themed content, Emplifi found the two most frequent topics involved a consumer missing a sales opportunity or a bad customer support experience. Other frequent customer care topics included overpriced product items, disappointing sales experiences and problems with online ordering.
Also according to Emplifi insights, 49% of U.S. consumers place high importance on their experience with brands on social media.
“To stand out from the competition, brands must ensure seamless collaboration between their social media marketing and customer care teams to guarantee quick response times and clear communication across platforms,” Ganeshan said. “After investing heavily in social media ads, the last thing a retailer wants is to lose momentum when a customer replies with a question or service issue. It’s essential for brands to have strategies and tools in place to respond to customer inquiries promptly. Offering self-service options like chatbots for common questions or an FAQ page on ordering and shipping can also be invaluable during high-traffic periods.”