Black Friday has become one of the most important sales dates for any business. However, competition is fierce, and getting customers to see and act on your offer among so many promotions is a real challenge. This is where a powerful email marketing strategy comes into play: the Early Bird.

What is the ‘Early Bird’ in Email Marketing?

The ‘Early Bird’ strategy consists of giving your subscribers exclusive early access to Black Friday deals before they are available to the general public. Not only does this help to grab their attention before the saturation of offers, but it also makes them feel like they are part of a select group, increasing the sense of exclusivity and urgency.

Benefits of Early Bird on Black Friday

1. Exclusive advantage for your subscribers

By offering early access, you show that you value your subscribers’ loyalty, making them feel special. In addition, this type of VIP treatment tends to generate higher open and conversion rates on emails, as customers tend to react favourably when they feel they are receiving a privilege.

2. Reduce Official Day Saturation

By sending offers before the official date, your emails are more likely to be seen and read without competing with the thousands of promotional emails arriving on the same day. This helps avoid the ‘Black Friday fatigue’ that many consumers feel and gives your brand a time advantage.

3. Inventory and traffic control

By allowing advance purchases, you can observe demand before peak sales. This facilitates better inventory management, so you can adjust your stock and ensure products are available to meet demand. In addition, more distributed traffic reduces the chance of your site becoming saturated.

How to create an effective Early Bird strategy

For an early bird email marketing campaign to be successful, it is essential to execute it strategically. Here are a few tips:

1. Communicate the benefits clearly

Make sure the subject line of your email highlights the exclusivity of the offer, for example, ‘Get in before everyone else! Black Friday Exclusive to Subscribers’. Make the customer understand that, by opening the email, they are getting something unique and special.

2. Create urgency, but without losing clarity.

It is critical to emphasise that this is a limited opportunity to motivate quick action. Phrases like ‘Early access for 24 hours only!’ or ‘Last few hours of VIP access’ work very well to create a sense of urgency.

3. Segment your database

Target this type of mailing to your most loyal customers or those who have shown interest in similar products in the past. Segmentation increases the relevance of the message and therefore the conversion rate.

4. Offer extra benefits

Further incentivise the purchase with benefits such as free shipping, additional discounts or complementary products, which will make early access even more attractive to users.

Examples of Early Bird messages

Some examples of subject lines and messages to inspire you in the Early Bird campaign could be:

• Subject: ‘VIP access to Black Friday! Take advantage of our best offers first’.
• Body: ‘We want to thank you for your loyalty by giving you the opportunity to shop our Black Friday deals before anyone else. Take advantage of this exclusive opportunity and find great discounts on your favourite products.”
• Subject: ‘Only 24 hours early access to Black Friday!’
• Body: ‘Our Black Friday starts early for you. Enjoy a full day of special offers just for subscribers – don’t let this opportunity pass you by!”

Conclusion

Early Bird email marketing is a strategy that can make all the difference in a competitive shopping season. By tapping into your subscribers’ desire for exclusivity and generating a sense of urgency, you can highlight your brand and increase the likelihood that your customers will make a purchase before the Black Friday peak. This year, take the first step and start your Black Friday campaign before the competition!