Well, it's Hunger Games season.

ALSO: Black Friday secrets, interactive ads' 45% edge, ad spend up 55%

October 29, 2024

In partnership with

Hey there, eComm legend.

The Black Friday Hunger Games are upon us. With ad spend skyrocketing by 55%, it’s all about finding that edge—learning from other brands, spotting their weaknesses, and fine-tuning your strategy. From interactive ads to real-time, AI-driven pricing, only the sharpest will come out on top. Sales records are there to be broken, and those who tap into competitors' insights and build emotional brand connections will claim victory. Remember, it’s not just about surviving—it’s about thriving with every smarter, savvier move you make this season.

In today’s agenda:

1) Competitors have their Black Friday strategy, so steal it.

2) Spy their feedback, find your edge.

3) Welcome to the Black Friday jungle: Ad spend up 55%

4) Click click: interactive ads drive 45% more conversions

— Alex & David

1) Competitors have their Black Friday strategy, so steal it.

Rising Demand: Black Friday 2023 online sales hit $70.9 billion globally, an 8% increase from last year. With millions of shoppers joining, strategic competition analysis is essential to capture more of this expanding market.

Maximizing Strategy: Predictive analysis is critical to stay aligned with consumer trends. Early competitor insights can shape pricing and promotional strategies, optimizing for Black Friday’s high stakes.

Next Steps: For an established operation, Shine Commerce can track competitor sales and ad strategies. For smaller teams, Pricefy and Intelis AI Dynamic Pricing offer accessible options for real-time competitor pricing insights and automated adjustments.

2) Spy their feedback, find your edge.

Sentiment Counts: Even for smaller brands, understanding how customers perceive competitors can reveal key opportunities to stand out. Gallup's research shows that emotional factors, including brand sentiment, drive approximately 70% of consumer decision-making, underscoring the impact emotions have on purchasing choices.

Accessible Sentiment Tracking: Simple, budget-friendly tools can help you monitor customer feedback on competitors and discover what resonates with your target audience.

Next Steps: For easy sentiment insights, try affordable tools like Hootsuite Listening or Awario, which offer social listening on a smaller scale. For tracking reviews, consider ReviewTrackers, which aggregates feedback across platforms for quick analysis.

3) Welcome to the Black Friday jungle: Ad spend up 55%

Increased Competition: Black Friday 2023 saw a 55% surge in ad spend. Despite the investment, conversion rates dropped by 5.1%, making it clear that competition is fiercer and returns are harder to secure.

Optimizing Ad Budget: Shifting ad spend from high-cost Sponsored Brands to more stable options like Sponsored Products can help reduce the impact on ROAS.

Next Steps: For larger campaigns, consider AdSpy to monitor competitor ads and refine your pricing strategy. For smaller businesses, tools like BigSpy or PowerAdSpy offer similar ad tracking features with budget-friendly options.

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4) Click click: interactive ads drive 45% more conversions

Interactive Influence: During Black Friday, interactive ads increased click-through rates by 45% compared to static ads, proving the power of engagement in boosting sales.

Optimizing Conversion: Investing in interactive formats can lead to stronger conversion rates, with brands seeing higher ROI from more engaging ad experiences.

Next Steps: For larger operations, platforms like Ceros can help create customized interactive experiences and track engagement. Smaller teams might explore Outgrow for simple quizzes and polls or Involve.me for affordable interactive forms and calculators, both ideal for creating high-impact ads with budget-friendly options.

* Executive Cheat Sheet

Predictive analysis: The use of historical data and AI to predict future consumer behaviors and trends.

Dynamic Pricing: Automatically adjusting prices in real time based on competitor prices, demand, or other market factors.

Interactive Ads: Ads that allow users to engage directly within the ad (e.g., clicking, swiping, or interacting with quizzes).

Sentiment Tracking: Monitoring and analyzing how customers feel about your brand or competitors, often through social media or reviews.