Black Friday stands as one of the most pivotal times of the year for marketing and business. Proper preparation and strategic use of this opportunity can significantly boost your company’s profits. In this article, we offer practical insights to help you fine-tune your Google Ads campaigns and, ultimately, maximise your return on investment (ROI).
Where to start?
Start by addressing these critical questions:
- Which product categories are your priority for promotion?
- Do you have adequate stock levels?
If stock is limited, opt for a less aggressive bidding strategy or shift focus to promoting products through Google Shopping or sponsored links. Should you be unsure about having enough stock for the entire promotion, prepare alternative bids for more generic keywords. Prioritise promoting products with a healthy margin — deep discounts may drive high turnover, but they can diminish profitability.
Analysing past campaigns
Reflecting on last year’s Black Friday performance offers valuable insights for refining this year’s strategy. Consider the following:
- Which advertising messages yielded the best results?
- What CPC (cost per click) and ROAS (return on ad spend) did you achieve?
- Did certain keywords or product categories underperform?
- How did non-promoted categories perform during the same period?
- How did your spend compare to other times of the year?
- Was remarketing effective, or did it perform better after Black Friday and Cyber Monday?
- Did ads highlighting product benefits outperform those focusing on price, delivery, or other features?
These insights can guide you in tailoring this year’s strategy more effectively to suit your business and industry.
Budget and market trends
While it may seem trivial, Black Friday is a fiercely competitive time, with businesses vying to capture as many customers as possible. To rise above the competition, allocate additional budget both in the lead-up to Black Friday to build brand awareness and during the event to close sales through remarketing.
Keep an eye on market trends that can justify budget increases. For instance, searches for televisions tend to spike in November, while demand for toys grows steadily from early October, peaking in December. Understanding these seasonal shifts will help you align your budget with consumer interest to drive better performance.
PLA and Performance Max campaigns
Begin preparing your dedicated Performance Max and standard PLA campaigns several weeks ahead of the promotion. This early start allows the algorithms ample time to complete their learning phase before Black Friday kicks off. In the final days leading up to the event, increase budgets and fine-tune bid strategies to ensure optimal performance during the peak shopping period.
To keep a pulse on performance, use analytics tools like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to monitor campaign results and ensure accurate segmentation. Be sure to manually tag your campaigns to ensure GA4 tracks them correctly. Additionally, update your product feed in Google Merchant Center with Black Friday promotions using the sale_price attribute.
Sponsored link ads
In text ads, make Black Friday offers stand out, particularly in headlines. You can either create new campaigns or tweak existing ones to find the best-performing strategy. Testing various options will help identify the most effective method.
Ad extensions
Leverage Google Ads promotion extensions to enhance the visibility of your Black Friday campaigns. Adding these extensions to the relevant product categories enables you to highlight your offers and attract attention to special discounts. These features are particularly useful when competition is at its peak, and customers are actively searching for deals.
Tailor your extensions to the products you’re promoting, providing details like discount amounts, promotion duration, or exclusive benefits. This will make your ads more appealing and encourage quick purchasing decisions.
Another tactic is to create links to sub-pages that lead directly to the promotional categories. During Black Friday, consumers are often hunting for “super bargains,” so directing them straight to the deals can drive more conversions.
For example, extension texts should be clear and compelling, featuring both the discount and the product category, such as: “TVs 50% Off | Black Friday Deals”. Messages like these can significantly boost click-through rates and conversion potential.
Summary
An effective PPC campaign for Black Friday requires a precise and strategic approach — from setting the right budgets and bids to refining ad texts and extensions. Craft a compelling promotional offer, analyse last year’s results, and remain flexible with a strategy that can adapt quickly to changing conditions.
By increasing your budget, closely monitoring results, and experimenting with different tactics, you can significantly enhance the visibility and performance of your offers. Thoughtfully planned Google Ads campaigns will help you fully capitalise on the immense sales potential of this crucial shopping weekend.
Looking to achieve even greater results from your advertising campaigns? Fill out the form below, and our expert team will craft a custom strategy tailored to your needs. Together, we will optimise your campaign management and deliver solutions that engage your target audience.
