Four Things to Revisit in Your Email Program Before BFCM

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As the holiday season rapidly approaches, inboxes will become more crowded, making it harder to stand out. Now is the perfect time to make small changes to your email strategy.

Here are four things to review before Black Friday and Cyber Monday arrive:

1. Let’s Talk Email Real Estate

Okay, be honest… how many of you are still using flip phones or devices that don’t render HTML? I’m guessing none. So why is "View in browser"still the first line of so many emails? That space is prime real estate, so use it wisely.

Consider adding an offer in that space. After all, during the busiest season of the year, your goal should be to grab people’s attention, even if the entire email isn’t read.

This link is still important, but it can be placed in your footer.

2. Audit Your Behavioral Automations

Let’s talk abandoned cart flows, as now is the perfect time to revisit them. If you’re using both email and SMS, make sure they don’t trigger simultaneously. You want your email and SMS to work together to provide the best subscriber experience and drive increased revenue through a coordinated approach.

Consider this strategy: send the abandoned cart email 2–4 hours after the cart is abandoned, then send an SMS 24 hours later. However, always test this to see what works best for your specific audience.

If you have automated lapsed customer or engagement emails, this is also the time to review them. This is the first year I’ve recommended this to a client, and here’s why:

I recently took my first real vacation since starting my consulting business in 2017. No judgment, please—I’ve taken long weekends, but this time I didn’t log into anything work-related. On day four, I received a "We haven’t seen you in a while" email from a tech brand I log into daily and sometimes on weekends too.

What upset me was that four days didn’t seem long enough for that email… BUT maybe it was. It reminded me that lapsed logic should take into account temporary behavior changes, like holidays, which can also be busy travel periods.

I make it a rule for my own consulting business to turn off automated emails for prospects and clients during certain times, like Thanksgiving week or Christmas, because authenticity matters. This may not apply to those in retail, but in the service or business software areas, it’s worth considering.

3. Stop Sending Image-Only Emails

I said it last November, and I’ll repeat it: don’t rely on image-only emails. Use live text to ensure your key message gets across, even if images don’t load.

Last year, my inbox was flooded with image-only emails on Black Friday, and the main messages I saw were the auto-generated previews, which essentially encouraged me to unsubscribe, as that was the only readable content. I won’t bore you with a repeat, but you can read more here.

4. Keep Your "From" Name Consistent

During BFCM, customers are scanning inboxes quickly. If your "friendly from" name changes with every campaign, you’re making it harder to build recognition. Stick with a consistent sender name that builds trust with your subscribers and reflects your brand.

Last Word

I realize these are minor adjustments, but they can make a significant impact on your email. Happy BFCM Season!

tony litvyak c9Pwi BN7hQ unsplash 600Photo by Tony Litvyak on Unsplash