BFCM Prep Checklist 2022: How to Get Your Shopify Store Ready

The last few years have been anything but business as usual.

A mix of shipping delays, inflation, and out-of-stock inventories has trained online shoppers to get their holiday buying done early.

As shoppers get started months before the biggest shopping days of the year, there’s additional pressure on ecommerce businesses to be ready for that influx and still provide customers with a high level of support.

With rising advertising costs and supply chain issues also in the mix, ecommerce brands should be starting their BFCM marketing campaigns well before the official shopping season. In fact, some have already started.

You’ve likely seen those “Christmas in July” offers already hit your inbox (we see you, Ruggable). And it’s going to ramp up even faster as we get closer to Halloween, which has traditionally been the launch of holiday shopping campaigns.

Greg Bauman, director, ecosystem partnerships at Attentive, agrees with the notion that holiday shopping starts even earlier than it used to, thanks to the ease and convenience provided by ecommerce and mobile shopping:

“We’re in a mobile-first era…Black Friday/Cyber Monday starts in October.”

The bottom line: start planning and getting ready for the BFCM rush as early as possible. Here’s what you can do to get ready and position yourself for success.

Tips for getting your Shopify store ready for BFCM

According to Shopify, it’s estimated that ecommerce brands raked in a whopping $6.3 billion in BFCM sales in 2021 – up from $5.1 billion in 2020.

Want to maximize the two biggest shopping days of 2022? 

To help simplify things, we’ve put together a checklist of what you can do immediately:

1. Build an email and SMS list now

The holiday shopping season is a huge revenue opportunity for ecommerce brands, and every name on an email and SMS list is a potential customer.

How do you start growing your list in the weeks leading up to BFCM?

Klaviyo, a popular email platform used by many top Shopify brands, suggests the following strategies:

• Sync your Facebook lead ads with your email list

• Add a signup form to your homepage (incentives play well here)

• Include an email signup option in your social media profiles

• Encourage signups in your order confirmation emails 

• Use a loyalty program as an incentive for email sharing

Many brands choose to piggyback a request for digits after their request for an email address, but if you find that SMS is a more valuable channel, you should lead with that. 

2. Update related email flows with BFCM in mind

It’s no secret that most shoppers are inundated with emails during the holiday season, and many go unread. Standing out in a crowded holiday shopping season feels tough but don’t sweat it; there are a few things you can do to draw in customers and get them shopping.

Personalization and creativity are key during Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. Creating highly focused emails and segmented flows is one of the best ways to grab attention and make it worthwhile for the customer.

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Francesca Magana, head of data analytics and optimization at Simplistic, shares this advice: “Give your VIP customers early access to Black Friday deals as a reward.”

From promotional codes that offer exclusive savings and early shopping access to revamping email flows that attract shoppers back to abandoned carts, look for ways to segment and customize emails to meet your customers’ needs and consider using their shopping history to offer targeted recommendations.

3. Audit and optimize your website's checkout process

Mobile (and website sales) spike during BFCM. If your ecommerce store is not optimized for mobile devices (yikes!), this is the time to turn things around.   

How else should you optimize the checkout experience for a busy holiday shopping season?

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By making it as quick and easy for customers to place orders. Big Commerce offers some helpful tips:

• Make the user interface as streamlined and simplified as possible.
• Offer a variety of payment options (PayPal, Buy Now Pay Later, accelerated checkouts)
• Consolidate pages into a single checkout experience
• Turn on automated email flows for abandoned carts

4. Set up shipping and delivery communications ahead of any delays

When customers place an order, they want to know where it is and when they can expect delivery (especially during the holiday season!). You can decrease customer stress and keep your support team happy by implementing tools that keep everyone up-to-date on order status.

Wonderment helps ecommerce brands monitor shipping and delivery delays from their carriers, and communicate proactively with customers about stalled shipments via email.

As a bonus, when you link your shipping and delivery emails to your order tracking page, you also have an opportunity to highlight related products your customers might want for themselves or as a holiday gift (bringing in even more revenue for your business).