It is late August and online stores are already running the first calculations for November. The question is almost always the same: how much discount do we give this year. Last year 20 percent, this year probably 30, because the competition is going to 40.
In November sales really do jump. But when you look at the statement in December, the profit is similar to September — only there was three times more work. The problem is not that you are selling too little. The problem is that you plan Black Friday as a discount instead of as an offer.
A discount is the most expensive form of advertising
If you have a 40 percent margin and give a 30 percent discount, you have just sold the product at a ten percent margin. Out of that tenth you still have to cover delivery, packaging and advertising. Plenty of stores sell at a loss in November and do not notice, because all the charts point up.
Every euro of discount comes straight out of profit. An ad euro at least brings in a new customer you can re-engage three months later. A discount brings in no one new — it just sells more cheaply to people who would have bought anyway. So a discount is not a strategy. It is the last weapon when you have no better idea.
Build an offer, not a discount
Instead of a lower price, try raising perceived value:
- a bundle of two or three products that logically belong together
- a gift with purchase over a certain amount
- free delivery and free returns
- an extended warranty or a longer return window
- a limited series, color or packaging only for November
- early access for newsletter subscribers
A bundle of two products with a small add-on often sells better than a 30 percent discount on a single item, and it raises the average order value instead of lowering it. The customer feels they got more. You gave less.
Prepare creatives in September, not November
In November, ad space is the most expensive it is all year. That is not the time to learn what works. If you are only launching new videos in the first week of November, you are paying the highest price for testing.
At Red Eye Monkey we lifted online sales by 400 percent mainly because we tested creatives systematically and in advance, not only when it became urgent. In September and October, run small budgets on several different angles: the product in use, a before-and-after comparison, a customer opinion, an unboxing, an answer to the most common objection. By November you know which three videos work. Then you just raise the budget and swap the last second for the offer.
Existing customers do not need the biggest discount
The biggest quiet mistake in November is that everyone sees the same offer. Someone who has already bought from you three times does not need 30 percent to buy a fourth. They need early access, a sense of priority, and maybe a small gift.
Save your strongest offer for the cold audience seeing you for the first time. Segmentation in your newsletters and ad audiences saves you more money here than any ad optimization.
Measure margin per order, not ROAS
In November ROAS looks great, because the discount lifts conversion. That is exactly why it is misleading. Look instead at contribution per order: sale price minus cost price minus discount minus delivery minus ad cost. If that number is lower in November than in September, you bought traffic, not profit.
What to do this week
Black Friday is not a contest over who gives the biggest discount. It is a contest over who has the offer and the creatives ready by November. Until then you have about twelve weeks — just enough, if you start now.
If you would like us to look at your offer and ad creatives for this November together, book a 15-minute call or write to jaka@vvvdigital.eu.