Black Friday, once a US-only promotional shopping day, has become a global phenomenon known for its deep discounts.
During this period, businesses from all around the world compete to offer the best prices on a wide range of products, including clothing, electronics, televisions, and, you guessed it, travel.
Travelers should anticipate many fantastic deals this year as more travel firms join in on the Black Friday and Cyber Monday buzz, according to the in-the-know website DealNews.
Describe Black Friday.
There is a lot of discussion over the origins of the term “Black Friday.” Others believe it has to do with the concept of numbers turning from red to black, while some tie it to the 1869 stock market fall.
Police in Philadelphia used the phrase “Black Friday” for the first time in the 1950s. The day after Thanksgiving was always busy in the city, people shopping for the holidays and others coming to watch the weekend Army-Navy football game.
Philadelphia’s stores saw a significant increase in sales due to this chaotic day, which also required traffic officers to work 12-hour shifts to manage the influx of customers. The worn-out officers started referring to the day after Thanksgiving as “Black Friday”. Black Friday has become one of the year’s busiest shopping days.
What alterations will there be to Black Friday this year?
Black Friday in 2017 looked different from previous years. Many consumers were afraid to join the early-bird rush or form huge gatherings. Cyber Monday was promoted in 2020 as a result. The entire world embraced online deals while avoiding in-person sales.
Vacation rental firms benefited greatly from this, even if it may have been negative for product-oriented businesses. Owners of short-term rentals sell an experience, an immaterial good, and primarily do business online. Owners of vacation rentals can benefit from consumers feeling more secure while making purchases online, especially around Black Friday.
The vacation rental industry is going to enjoy a successful year this year. Owners will not only be able to advertise their vacation rental online, but they may also try to draw in more expensive travelers. Although finding a deal is the primary objective of Black Friday, that doesn’t mean people aren’t prepared to splurge. Many visitors still have money in their savings from a year of staying at home and haven’t yet cashed in on their vengeance travel. Black Friday is a great time to provide discounts, but you can also sell opulent packages to visitors without them fighting over the price.
This Black Friday, luxury tourists will be a sizable target market, but they won’t be the only ones browsing the web in November. You’ll find good possibilities for your business with the increase in “workationers” and domestic travelers. Make sure your Black Friday vacation rental marketing plan is in place since this year; these audiences will be specifically targeted.
Black Friday Marketing: Tips for Owners of Vacation Rentals
By taking advantage of this seasonal promotion, you may fill your calendar with reservations for off-season days with a little assistance.
When you follow these ten pieces of advice, your bookings will skyrocket while you compete with leading hotel brands and make sure customers discover your attractive deals.
1. Plan the entire Cyber Weekend.
Cyber Monday is the first Monday after Thanksgiving when internet sales are open for business for 24 hours. Black Friday and Cyber Monday have combined to become Cyber Weekend, which offers deals that extend at least through the US Thanksgiving holiday weekend, if not longer. Black Friday was originally centered on in-store shopping, but the idea is evolving as more people opt to purchase online. The outcome? is a weekend entirely devoted to online deals!
But don’t limit your attention to Black Friday. Make a marketing strategy for the full weekend, incorporating sneak peeks in the first few weeks of November to generate excitement. Successfully increasing traffic and bookings to your vacation rental requires a well-balanced combination.
2. Create a pre-planned email blast
Efficient email marketing is one of the finest methods to generate anticipation in the weeks leading up to Black Friday. Sending the appropriate email at the right time can significantly increase bookings, regardless of whether you have thousands of newsletter subscribers or just a small list of previous visitors.
According to Campaign Monitor, most emails were sent on Black Friday last year between 9 and 10 am.
Planning, writing, and scheduling your email campaigns before the big day or days is a terrific idea for the best outcomes. Here are some examples of the various emails you might consider creating and scheduling in advance: Notification of a special deal for Black Friday and Cyber Monday; teaser email with dates and discounted prices; a reminder that the sale has 24 hours left to run; the announcement that the sale has been extended another 24 hours.
To say that the days leading up to Black Friday will be busy for your subscribers or contacts would be an understatement. In this situation, you are competing not just with your immediate rivals but with every other business vying for your customer’s attention. Add eye-catching components to your emails, such as movies, GIFS, and interactive elements, to draw the viewer in.
Remember to tailor your emails and build distinct campaign settings based on the audience you are trying to reach. In other words, you don’t want to send a guest who just booked in the last week a significant discount offer, because they might just ask for a refund!
Send a reminder email as well, as visitors will receive a lot of communications during this time. To facilitate planning and management, create a calendar for promotional content. Calculating the best time to send the emails would also be a nice idea. The majority of emails are planned for 9 or 10 am.
3. Use the landing page from the previous year.
Find your former landing page if you’ve previously participated in Black Friday celebrations. Use your last year’s campaign page for this year’s promotional activities rather than starting from scratch; just alter the content.
The most crucial thing to remember is to change any places where the year is printed, such as the page title, to reflect the current year.
Reusing an old Black Friday landing page will help you launch the campaign more swiftly and effectively and ensure you maintain all the SEO juice you’ve acquired over the previous 365 days.
4. Install a countdown clock on the premises
One tactic that, around Black Friday, nearly always prompts consumers (in this case, vacationers) to make that impulsive purchase.
An interval counter.
The number of visitors window shopping vacation rentals to find the greatest offer has significantly increased in recent years.
Therefore, it makes sense that including a countdown timer that indicates how long guests have to take advantage of the promotion will assist convince them to book their stay more quickly.
Create your customizable countdown widget using a free tool like Counting Down To or Are We There Yet, then insert the resulting raw HTML code into your website.
5. Speak to visitors on social media
This campaign is a good opportunity to utilize some of the additional features social media sites offer, including remarketing on Facebook or Instagram and sharing original Black Friday content.
This method of retargeting your previous website visitors will increase traffic to your website and, hopefully, increase bookings. It will also make your brand prominent on their social media channels during the event weekend.
To make appealing social media visuals that seem professional, use free design software like Canva. Following a consistent theme throughout all of your social media accounts will provide a unified appearance that is especially appealing to any followers you may have across several apps. Use your brand’s personality or a dash of comedy in your postings to set them apart from the competition.
And lastly, think about collaborating with a travel influencer to market your vacation rental via an Instagram contest. Before entering into one of these partnerships for your particular vacation rental business, consider the advantages and disadvantages as they may be rather expensive.
6. Turn on online reservations
Online reservations for travel increased by 21% on Cyber Monday in 2016. Before Black Friday, you should consider adding online booking to your vacation rental website if you don’t already have it.
Online, immediate reservations have recently transformed the market and are a crucial part of any Black Friday advertising strategy. So start accepting online reservations to gain a jump start on the competition (and potentially your rivals).
To improve the visitor experience on your website, you can quickly install an embeddable booking widget if your website software doesn’t already allow you to accept online reservations.
Remember: Block out the high-season area of your calendar in advance if your offers are only valid for a limited time (for example, during your off-peak season). Just remember to unblock it when Cyber Monday and Black Friday are finished!
7. Contribute VIP
Black Friday’s primary selling point is its exclusive deals. Additionally, it’s a fantastic method to make your current customers feel valued. For a variety of reasons, having repeat visitors is the best. Several benefits of returning visitors include:
- They’re more inclined to write reviews for you.
- They advocate for your house among their contacts
- You are aware of their responsibility as visitors.
And the best part? They’re simpler to market to. Compared to new clients, they typically spend more during the holiday rush. First-time customers “pay around 17% more per transaction during the peak season,” according to Adobe. Although this is fantastic news, recurring consumers spend 25% more on each transaction.
You may share in these profits by giving your loyal customers something extra. You may make more money by providing them priority access to your summer season dates or additional promotional coupons for being frequent visitors.
8. Develop a unique “in-store doorbuster”
Black Friday was the day after Thanksgiving when shoppers gathered in lines early in the morning for in-person bargains. Customers are turning to the internet for their greatest prices thanks to the digital age and a significant push from COVID-19, but this doesn’t negate the existence of in-person deals.
Most people still treat Black Friday as an occasion and shop from store to store. As previously mentioned, the domestic travel fever is likely to continue in 2022, therefore, you should go where these customers are. Don’t be afraid to go old school by attracting local customers by using print marketing strategies like fliers, giveaways, and business cards since shopping malls are a popular destination on Black Friday.
9. Collaboration is crucial
Don’t forget to collaborate with domestic partners while we’re on the subject of domestic travelers! Why not provide them with a whole experience when they are seeking the ideal gift to give on Black Friday?
By collaborating with neighborhood companies, you may be able to offer visitors and gift recipients a complete travel experience. Join forces with local masseuses, eateries, photographers, or even attractions to create the ultimate travel package. You not only enhance your chances of acquiring a booking but also receive free publicity from other companies.
10. Complement your purchase with a gift
Remember that Black Friday customers want to feel like they “score” something, whether it’s a buy-one-get-one deal or a freebie. Discounts and extras for vacation rentals give customers a positive feeling about their purchase and set the stage for a glowing future review.
Free presents can be a simple and low-cost approach to satisfy your customers. Think about what might appeal to your visitors or fit best with the theme of your vacation property. You might wish to provide free branded towels for them to take home if you own a beach house. Returning to the discussion of partnerships, you may even propose to add a restaurant or winery certificate to complete their experience.
Don’t forget to benefit from the offers yourself.
Although you may be focused on creating your Black Friday marketing plans and promotions, you should also remember that this is a great time to acquire supplies for your vacation rental. Make a list of everything you need, from new decor to appliances, and keep an eye out for deals throughout November.
