How E-Commerce Business Doubled Black Friday Revenue in One Year

Proven strategies you can use to drive conversions, maximise customer spend, and make a success of the biggest shopping week of the year.

Why Black Friday is a Vital Moment for E-com D2C

Black Friday isn’t just about discounts, it’s about market share. This is the week where buying intent is at its peak, customer acquisition costs are often at their lowest, and consumers are actively looking for the best deals on brands they already love.

A strong Black Friday strategy doesn’t just boost short-term sales, it drives long-term customer loyalty, strengthens brand presence, and creates momentum for the months to follow.

But with every competitor shouting for attention, the brands who win are the ones who plan and execute with precision and speed, making the customer experience feel exclusive and irresistible.

In 2024, Skin Pharmacy did exactly that, and in doing so doubled their Black Friday revenue YOY.

The Challenge

Black Friday 2023 was already a success for Skin Pharmacy, but the brand knew there was more opportunity to capture.

The goals for 2024 were clear:

• Increase total revenue during the Black Friday period compared to 2023.

• An unforgettable customer experience by making the event feel exclusive and premium.

• Maximise every marketing channel with a more structured, multi-phase approach.

The challenge? Cut through the noise in one of the most competitive retail weeks of the year without eroding the high-end feel of the Skin Pharmacy brand.

The Strategy

We built a highly structured, integrated campaign running over 9 days, designed to reward loyalty, create urgency, and precisely target customers.

Key Strategic Shifts from 2023 to 2024:

• Increased email frequency from 5 to 9 strategically timed sends.

• Introduced VIP early access for Gold loyalty members (24-hour exclusivity).

• Added two SMS sends for high-impact touchpoints during peak buying moments.

• Increased Meta Ads budget to capitalise on proven ROI from previous years.

• Increased organic social content output across Meta and TikTok.

• Refined audience segmentation for more personalised messaging and product recommendations.

  
  

The Campaign Phases

The campaign encompassed a variety of digital output opportunities, implemented over a strategically planned timeline.

Teaser & VIP Access (26th–27th November)

Gold loyalty members received 24-hour early access via personalised email, building exclusivity and rewarding high-value customers.

Mass Launch (28th November)

Coordinated release across all channels, Meta & Google Ads switched to 'event live' creative, email to full list, and website banners updated.

Daily Engagement (28th Nov – 2nd Dec)

Targeted daily emails, SMS nudges, and retargeting ads kept the event top-of-mind.

Last Chance Push (2nd December)

Final email and ads used urgency messaging 'Last Chance to Shop the Event' to drive final-day conversions.

Channel Highlights

The main channels utilised for marketing the Black Friday Event were email, SMS, Meta ads, Google ads and organic social.

Email Marketing

• Total revenue from email up 97% from 2023.

• 9 emails sent during the campaign to targeted segments.

• Best performers: Mass 'Launch' email (Thurs 28th Nov) and 'Shop Now' follow-up (Fri 29th Nov).

• Personalised subject lines (including customer names) drove highest open rates.

• Emails were segmented by customer type: VIP Gold, high spenders, and brand-loyal repeat purchasers.

• Averaged a 39% open rate, with the VIP segment achieving a 79% open rate.

• For D2C e-commerce businesses, 37% is the standard open rate for email campaigns distributed via Klaviyo.

SMS Marketing

• SMS 1 launch message (29th Nov).

• SMS 2 final reminder (3rd Dec).

• Achieved a 13% order rate for orders per SMS sent.

• Short, urgency-driven copy supported email sends and targeted high-value segments.

• For D2C e-commerce businesses, 11%–20% is a solid average estimate for orders per SMS sent.

Meta Ads

• 5:2 (2.5 x ROAS).

• 99 purchases, 147K impressions, 2,078 clicks, CTR 1.42%.

• Static artwork brought best results for brand visibility & website visits.

• UGC video delivered best results for direct sales.

• For D2C e-commerce businesses, a 2:1 (2.1 x ROAS) is standard for most well-optimised, nurtured campaigns.

Organic Social

• Output increased from 2–3 posts to 6 posts + 8 stories, all strategically planned to hook in potential shoppers.

Results

The main KPIs for the Black Friday campaign were to see a 50% increase in revenue resulting from email campaigns and Meta Ads, improve email open rate and enhance brand awareness. We achieved:

• Black Friday revenue resulting directly from email activity doubled year-on-year (97% increase, smashing the 50% growth target).

• Increased average order value and reduced abandoned cart rate compared to 2023.

• Paid social delivered a direct ROAS of 5.2 and 99 tracked purchases.

• Enhanced customer experience through exclusivity, segmentation, and consistent premium branding.

Key Lessons for Brands Planning 2025 Black Friday

Reward loyalty first — VIP access drives urgency and brand goodwill.

Increase touchpoints — more frequent, targeted emails, SMS messages and retargeting ads = higher conversions.

Segment and personalise everything — tailor offers and messaging to high spenders, loyal customers, and new prospects.

Keep it premium — avoid 'sale' language if it dilutes brand positioning; 'event' language works better for high-end brands.

Trend Analysis

Black Friday is evolving into a multi-week event rather than a single day of deals. Businesses are reporting that pre-Christmas sales in the weeks leading up to Black Friday outpace the main event itself.

Consider Your Offer

Consumers are pushing past 'discount fatigue', increasingly expecting sophisticated bundles, loyalty perks, and flexible payment options, such as BNPL, now a key conversion driver for value-conscious shoppers.

Social Shopping

Social shopping via TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest now enables effortless product discovery and purchase, accelerating impulse buys and reducing friction in the customer journey.

Retail Media Networks

Meanwhile, RMNs, especially those powered by the likes of Amazon, are rapidly gaining traction. With access to unmatched first-party data, these networks offer precision targeting, powerful insights, and increasingly immersive ad formats tailored for FMCG brands.

3 Mistakes To Avoid

Don't loose your Black Friday RIO before you even launch your campaign.

Leaving It Too Late

Brands nailing Black Friday start building audience awareness and warming up email/SMS lists at least 6–8 weeks in advance. Launching campaigns cold means you’re competing for attention against brands who’ve already been in your customers inboxes and feeds for weeks.

Discounting Without Strategy

Sitewide blanket discounts may look attractive, but without segmenting offers or protecting margins, you risk eroding profit without boosting long-term customer value. Smart brands focus on bundles, free gift with purchase, VIP exclusives, and limited-time drops that encourage urgency and upsells.

Overlooking The Post-Purchase Window

A huge percentage of Black Friday buyers never return, unless you actively re-engage them. Failing to follow up with loyalty rewards, replenishment reminders, or tailored offers is leaving repeat revenue on the table.

What Next?

Want to turn your Black Friday into your biggest revenue week of the year?

Ouma helps FMCG brands plan, execute, and scale high-impact campaigns for short-term wins and long-term customer growth.

Let’s plan your 2025 Black Friday strategy, book your free discovery call now.