Black Friday lands on November 27 this year, so you have about two weeks. That is enough time to run a strong sale, but only if you decide on your plan this week and keep it simple.
Black Friday isn’t only for product stores. Coaches, service providers, and online business owners can make some of their best sales of the year in this window, because buyers are already in a spending mindset and looking for deals. The businesses that win aren’t always the ones with the biggest discounts. They’re the ones with a clear offer, a clear deadline, and a plan to tell people about it.
Here is how to set yours up.
1. Build a Sale That’s Worth Showing Up For
A good Black Friday sale starts with one clear, easy-to-understand offer. When people have to work out what you’re selling and why it’s a deal, they scroll on.
Decide what you’re promoting. Pick one hero offer, or at most two or three, instead of discounting everything. A focused sale gets a focused message.
Choose your sale type. You don’t have to slash prices. Options include:
- A percentage or dollar discount (e.g., 30% off, or $100 off)
- A bonus stack, where the price stays the same but buyers get extras like a bonus session, template pack, or private Q&A
- A bundle, where you combine products or services at a lower combined price
- A payment plan perk, such as an extended plan or a waived fee, for people who need to spread the cost
- A tiered sale, where early buyers get the best deal (e.g., the first 10 buyers get an extra bonus)
If you sell services or high-ticket programs, bonuses often protect your pricing better than discounts do. They also keep your offer from looking permanently “on sale.”
Protect your profit. Before you announce anything, work out your margins. A deal that sells out but loses money isn’t a win. If you’re discounting, make sure the price still covers your time, tools, and delivery.
Make the deadline real. Urgency works because it’s honest. Set a clear start and end time, say “closes Monday at midnight,” and stick to it. If you extend the deadline every time, people learn they can wait. Tools with built-in countdown timers help here, since the deadline is visible and enforced automatically.
2. Launch a New Offer With a Limited-Time Deal
Black Friday is one of the best times to introduce something new, because you have a warm audience and a built-in reason to act now.
A launch-week discount (sometimes called a founding-member or beta price) works well because you’re giving people a legitimate reason to buy before the regular price kicks in. A few ways to make it stronger:
- Name the deal. “Founding Member Pricing” or “Black Friday Launch Special” feels more valuable than “10% off.”
- Cap it. Limit it by time (“through Cyber Monday”), by spots (“first 20 people”), or both.
- Say what the price will be afterward. Showing the regular price next to the sale price makes the value obvious.
- Keep the path to purchase short. A single sales page, a clear button, and a simple checkout. Every extra step costs you sales.
- Add a thank-you page upsell. Right after someone buys, offer a related add-on or upgrade at a special price. Buyers are at their most receptive in that moment.
If your new offer isn’t fully finished, you can still pre-sell it. Be upfront about the delivery date, and give early buyers a bonus for trusting you.
3. Host an Event Right Before Black Friday
An event is one of the best ways to warm up your audience before the sale opens. Instead of cold-announcing a deal, you give people a chance to see your expertise, get a quick win, and learn about your offer while it’s still fresh.
Format ideas:
- A free live workshop or training (45 to 60 minutes)
- A live Q&A or “ask me anything” session
- A short challenge (3 days works well)
- A live demo or walkthrough of your new offer
A simple structure that converts:
- Teach something useful. Deliver real value in the first two-thirds of the session.
- Introduce your offer naturally. Show how it helps people take the next step.
- Reveal the Black Friday deal. Give attendees early access or an attendee-only bonus.
- Add a deadline. Tell them exactly when the deal ends.
- Follow up. Send the replay, a reminder, and a final-day email.
Timing: Aim for the days just before Black Friday. This year, that means the week of November 16 to 25. The registration page, reminder emails, and replay sequence should all be set up in advance so the event runs mostly on autopilot.
Even a small event can sell well. Twenty engaged people on a live call often convert better than two thousand people scrolling past a post.
4. Create a Marketing Campaign That Does the Heavy Lifting
Your sale only works if people know about it, and one announcement won’t do it. People are busy, inboxes are crowded, and most buyers need to see an offer several times before acting.
Build a simple campaign calendar that covers the stages below.
Before the sale (teaser phase):
- Tell your audience a deal is coming
- Invite people to join an early-access or VIP list (this builds a segment of your hottest buyers)
- Share content that addresses the problem your offer solves
During the sale:
- Launch day: announce it everywhere (email, social, your website banner)
- Mid-sale: share testimonials, results, FAQs, and bonus reminders
- Final 24 hours: send a last-chance email and post
- Final hours: one more short, direct message
After the sale:
- Thank buyers and deliver a strong onboarding experience
- Follow up with people who clicked but didn’t buy
- Send one last “doors just closed” message and start building your waitlist
Email is your best channel
Email regularly outperforms social media for sales, because you own the list and people have opted in to hear from you. For a sale, plan on at least 4 to 6 emails over the sale period, including a launch email, a value or testimonial email, a FAQ or objection-handling email, a “closing soon” email, and a final-day email (ideally sending two on the last day, morning and evening).
Use segmentation if you can. Send different messages to people who clicked but didn’t buy, and stop sending sale emails to people who already purchased. Your CRM or email platform can automate this with tags and sequences.
Social media posts and ads
Organic posts: Mix up your formats. Try a short video explaining the offer, a carousel breaking down what’s included, a testimonial graphic, a behind-the-scenes story, and countdown posts. Always include a clear call to action and a link.
Paid ads: If you run ads, keep things simple:
- Retarget first. Show ads to people who already visited your site, watched your videos, or joined your list. They convert much better than cold audiences.
- Lead with the benefit and the deadline. “Ends Monday: [result] for [audience]” is clearer than a clever line.
- Test two or three variations of your image and headline, then put more budget behind the winner.
- Watch your costs. Ad prices tend to climb around Black Friday and Cyber Monday because of competition. Start early, set a daily cap, and don’t let spending run unchecked.
Prepare your site too. Add a banner announcing the sale, make sure your sales page loads quickly and works on mobile, and test your checkout before you go live. Nothing kills a sale like a broken link.
5. Track Your Numbers So Next Year Is Easier
This is the step most small businesses skip, and it’s the one that makes next year’s sale better. If you don’t record what happened, you’ll be guessing again in 12 months.
Numbers worth tracking:
- Revenue and number of sales, total and by offer
- Conversion rate on your sales page (visitors who bought)
- Email performance: open rate, click rate, and which emails drove the most sales
- Traffic sources: where buyers came from (email, social, ads, event, direct)
- Event results: registrations, attendance, and how many attendees bought
- Ad performance: cost per click, cost per sale, return on ad spend
- Average order value and which bonuses or bundles were the most popular
- New subscribers and leads gained during the sale
- Cart abandonment, if your platform tracks it
Set up your tracking before the sale starts. Use unique links or UTM tags for each channel, and use tags in your CRM so you can see who bought, who clicked, and who didn’t.
Then review within a week of the sale ending. Ask yourself:
- Which offer sold best, and why?
- Which channel or email brought the most revenue?
- Where did people drop off?
- What would I do earlier, differently, or not at all next time?
Write the answers down while they’re fresh. Even a one-page recap will save you hours of planning next year.
6. Keep Selling Through Christmas and New Year’s
Black Friday doesn’t have to be the end of your sales season. The weeks after offer a few different opportunities, and the way you sell shifts a little with each.
Cyber Monday (November 30)
Treat it as the sale’s closing act. Extend your Black Friday offer through Cyber Monday and use “last chance” messaging to pull in people who needed the weekend to decide. Many buyers purchase on Monday, so don’t go quiet after Friday.
Early to mid-December: gifting season
People are buying for others, so tailor your offer:
- Offer gift versions of your products, programs, or services (gift cards, “gift a session,” digital gift certificates)
- Create a holiday bundle or limited-edition package
- Set order-by dates for anything that needs delivery or setup
- Spotlight how your offer makes a thoughtful gift for a friend, colleague, or fellow business owner
Mid to late December: “Last Chance Before the Holidays”
Many people want to wrap up purchases and decisions before taking time off. A “last chance before year-end” message works well, especially for services and programs people want to start in January. If you’re on Canadian time, don’t forget Boxing Day (December 26), a big shopping day in Canada, so a short Boxing Day sale can pull in a second wave of buyers.
Between Christmas and New Year’s
This is a quieter, more reflective week, and people are thinking about goals. Keep your tone calm and helpful instead of pushy:
- Run a “year-end reset” or “plan your year” offer
- Offer a low-ticket product like a planner, workbook, or template that helps people prepare for the new year
- Send a reflection email that celebrates the year and previews what’s coming
New Year’s: the fresh-start window
January 1 brings a surge of motivation. People want to start something, and they’re ready to invest in themselves.
- Launch a New Year, new start offer, or reopen your Black Friday deal in a “new year” version
- Highlight transformation and goals more than discounts
- Promote January start dates for programs, memberships, and services
- Use a short early-bird window to encourage fast decisions
A few rules for the whole season
- Don’t over-discount. If every week is a sale, people will wait for the next one. Vary your offers (bonuses, bundles, gifts) so each promotion feels fresh.
- Be mindful of email fatigue. Pace your messages, and give people an easy way to opt out of promotions. Quality beats quantity.
- Plan time off. Schedule emails and posts in advance so you can enjoy the holidays and not run your business from the couch.
Your Black Friday Quick-Start Checklist
With roughly two weeks left, here is the short version:
- Choose your hero offer and sale type
- Check your margins and set a firm deadline
- Build or update your sales page and checkout (and test it)
- Schedule your pre-Black Friday event and set up reminders
- Write your email sequence (4 to 6 emails minimum)
- Create your social posts and, if running ads, your retargeting ads
- Set up tracking (UTM links, CRM tags, and a simple spreadsheet)
- Plan your Cyber Monday, December, and New Year’s follow-up offers
- Schedule a review for the first week of December
Final Thoughts
A successful Black Friday doesn’t need a huge audience or a complicated funnel. It needs a clear offer, a real deadline, consistent communication, and the discipline to track what happened. Do those four things, and you’ll earn sales this season and build a better plan for the next one.
If you’re still working out your offer or your funnel, this is a good time to get it in place. Start small, finish it, and launch it.
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