Ep. 231 - NEW Marketing Tactics that WORKED on Black Friday!📺 NEW TV Show Alert! What’s Up THIS WEEK

Summary

Podcast Summary: Ep. 231 - NEW Marketing Tactics that WORKED on Black Friday! 📺 NEW TV Show Alert! What’s Up THIS WEEK

Podcast Information:

• Title: Do This, NOT That: Marketing Tips with Jay Schwedelson l Presented By Marigold
• Host: GURU Media Hub
• Release Date: December 3, 2024

Introduction In Episode 231 of "Do This, NOT That!" presented by Marigold and hosted by Jay Schwedelson from GURU Media Hub, the conversation centers around the latest marketing tactics that proved successful during Black Friday. The episode delves into data-driven insights, particularly focusing on the transformative role of artificial intelligence (AI) in retail, email marketing trends, and innovative strategies that marketers can adopt to enhance their campaigns. Additionally, Jay shares some pop culture recommendations and announces an upcoming certification program.

1. Black Friday Performance Overview The episode kicks off with a brief recap of Black Friday's success, highlighting impressive sales figures and personal anecdotes from the hosts.

• Sales Surge: Jay notes, “Salesforce came out and said on Black Friday, online sales in the US rose 7% to $17.5 billion” (00:45). This uptick signifies a robust consumer response to the holiday shopping event.

2. The Impact of AI on Black Friday Sales A significant portion of the discussion focuses on how AI technologies influenced Black Friday sales, providing retailers with a competitive edge.

• Generative AI Boosts Conversion: Jay emphasizes, “Retailers employing generative AI had a 9% higher conversion rate than those that didn't” (02:15). This improvement underscores AI’s role in personalizing the shopping experience and driving sales.

• Chatbots and Increased Traffic: He further explains, “Chatbots powered by AI during Black Friday were super impactful as bot-driven clicks to retail sites rose by over 1800% compared to last year” (02:50). AI-driven chatbots not only enhance customer engagement but also significantly increase site traffic.

3. Email Marketing Trends for Black Friday The episode delves deep into the evolving trends in email marketing, backed by data from SubjectLine.com.

• Increased Use of Emojis:

  • Subject Lines: “Emojis were used 14% more in email subject lines for Black Friday email promotions this year than last year” (04:10).
  • Pre-Headers: Jay adds, “Emojis in pre-headers of emails promoting Black Friday offers were up 70% this year versus last year” (04:25). The strategic use of emojis enhances email visibility and engagement.

• Capitalization in Subject Lines:

  • “Nine percent of emails had at least one full word capitalized in their subject line in Black Friday emails. That is up almost 100% versus last year” (04:40). Capitalizing entire words like "SALE" or "IN STOCK" grabs recipients’ attention without triggering spam filters.

• Email Frequency:

  • Jay observes, “Brands sending out multiple emails on Black Friday were up over 300% this year versus last year” (05:05). Instead of a single email blast, brands are engaging customers with multiple touchpoints throughout the day, announcing flash sales or countdowns.

• B2B Email Marketing Strategies:

  • Contrary to the overall trend, "business to business promotional email volume was down about 15% versus last year on Black Friday” (05:30). However, Jay suggests that B2B marketers who did send emails benefited from lower competition, allowing their messages to stand out more effectively. “They actually have the opportunity to stand out in that inbox” (05:45).

4. Trending Keywords: The Use of "Wicked" in Subject Lines A unique trend highlighted is the integration of current pop culture references to boost email open rates.

• "Wicked" as a Powerful Keyword:

  • “The word 'Wicked' is increasing email open rates, 90% on the consumer side and 15% on the business side” (06:10). Inspired by the popularity of the movie Wicked, marketers are leveraging this term to create engaging and timely subject lines such as "Wicked Smart Strategy" or "Wicked New Guide for Finance Pros."

• Cultural Relevance: Jay advises, “This is the edge that you get in marketing by tapping into being of the moment” (06:30). Utilizing trending terms can enhance relatability and prompt higher engagement rates.

5. Pop Culture Influences and Marketing Beyond marketing tactics, Jay shares his personal recommendations on current TV shows and movies, subtly tying the conversation back to marketing strategies influenced by popular media.

• TV Show Recommendation: “Ted Danson is in a new show on Netflix called A Man on the Inside. It is the number one TV show right now on Netflix. A Man on the Inside. It is great. He’s like this undercover dude at this home for elderly people. And it is fantastic” (07:00). This recommendation underscores the importance of staying current with media trends, which can influence marketing narratives.

• Movie Highlight: “Lindsay Lohan’s new holiday movie, Our Little Secret, has jumped right to the number one spot on Netflix as the number one movie in the world right now” (07:40). References to popular movies can be leveraged in marketing campaigns to enhance engagement through shared cultural touchpoints.

6. Announcements and Future Episodes Towards the end of the episode, Jay announces an upcoming initiative and teases future content.

• Certified Guru Program: “Later this week, we are opening up Certified Guru. That is a free email certification program... Only people on the waitlist are going to be able to do it” (07:50). This program aims to provide marketers with specialized training and certification, enhancing their expertise and credibility.

• Upcoming Content: Jay mentions that listeners can expect a "Certified Guru" program to open up and encourages them to join the waitlist via certifiedguru.com.

7. Conclusion In wrapping up, Jay reinforces the wealth of information shared and encourages listeners to apply these insights to optimize their marketing strategies.

• Final Takeaways: “You're going to stick 'Wicked' in your subject line, you're going to watch a Lindsay Lohan movie and I don't have any idea what's going on” (08:00). This lighthearted closing emphasizes the blend of professional advice with personal touches, making the content relatable.

• Engagement Call: Listeners are encouraged to subscribe for more actionable tips and to leave a review, ensuring they stay informed with future episodes (08:02-08:19).

Key Insights and Actionable Takeaways:

1. Leverage AI Technologies: Implement generative AI and chatbots to personalize customer experiences and boost conversion rates.
2. Enhance Email Marketing:
   • Use more emojis in subject lines and pre-headers to increase engagement.
   • Capitalize full words in subject lines to draw attention without risking spam filters.
   • Increase the frequency of emails during peak shopping periods to maintain visibility.
3. Capitalize on Pop Culture Trends: Integrate trending keywords and cultural references to make marketing messages more relevant and engaging.
4. Explore B2B Opportunities: Consider sending promotional emails during high-volume consumer periods like Black Friday to stand out in a less crowded inbox.
5. Stay Current with Media: Keeping up with popular TV shows and movies can provide inspiration for marketing strategies and content creation.
6. Invest in Professional Development: Participate in certification programs like Certified Guru to enhance marketing skills and stay competitive.

This episode provides a comprehensive analysis of successful Black Friday marketing strategies, emphasizing the crucial role of AI, innovative email marketing techniques, and the incorporation of current cultural trends. Marketers are encouraged to adopt these tactics to improve their campaigns and achieve remarkable results.

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to do this not that the podcast for marketers. You'll walk away from each episode with actionable tips you can test immediately. You'll hear from the best minds in.

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Marketing who will share tactics, quick wins.

[A]

And pitfalls to avoid. Also dig into life, pop culture and the chaos that is our everyday. I'm Jay Swedel. Let's do this, not that.

[B]

We are back for what's up this week from the do this not that podcast presented by Marigold. This is our super short episode where a breakdown what's going on this week in business and marketing and life. And then we still have our short ask us anything later in the week and our big tips episode at the end of the week. So what's going on? Well, Black Friday went well. People bought a lot of stuff. What did I buy? I bought socks and a phone case. Oh yeah, I'm a wild dude. But there's always these big numbers that come out. And Salesforce came out and said on Black Friday. Online sales in the US rose 7% to $17.5 billion. Woo hoo. Way to go. Really? That's all fine, but the most interesting thing about all the data points that have come out, and this one also came from Salesforce is about AI and how that impacted sales this year. And this to me was the most interesting thing. Retailers employing generative AI had a 9% higher conversion rate than those that didn't. And that is really everything. When you're going to these sites now, it's giving you recommendations for products and things based on your experiences online and things that you visit, things that you've searched for. And those brands and those sites that are using AI have a 9% higher conversion rate on Black Friday. And there's very tight margins this time of year. This really, really matters. And Adobe came out and said chatbots powered by AI during Black Friday were super impactful as bot driven clicks to retail sites rose by over 1800% compared to last year. That is all AI generated traffic. So AI is everywhere. So let's talk about some cool data points released from subjectline.com about this year's Black Friday email marketing trends versus a year ago on Black Friday. So emojis, do you think there were more emojis used in email subject lines this year versus last year? Well, there were emojis were used 14% more in email subject lines for Black Friday email promotions this year than last year. How about emojis in pre headers? You know that's that second subject lines. Yes, you could put emoji in your pre header was that used more by marketers this year? Big time emojis and pre headers of emails promoting Black Friday offers were up 70% this year versus last year. Some other interesting tactics and you always want to be thinking about these for your own marketing. Nine percent of emails had at least one full word capitalized. That doesn't mean the first letter capitalized. The entire word was capitalized in their subject line in Black Friday emails. And this is up almost 100% versus last year. What does that mean? You might capitalize the full word of the word sale or the fir. The full word of the word, you know, in stock. That phrase. That is up almost 100% versus last year. And no, it does not cause you to go to the junk folder or go to the spam trap, whatever. None of that. The other interesting things that we were seeing is the volume of emails that brands were sending out. Brands weren't just sending out one email on Black Friday. They're sending out multiple emails. So Brand sending out two times on Black Friday versus just one time in Black Friday. Brands sending out at least two times or up over 300% this year versus last year. A lot of brands are sending out early in the morning, later in the afternoon or that night saying it's almost up, Black Friday's almost over. So this idea of sending out multiple emails in one day was up significantly. What about business to business marketing, especially emails on Black Friday? Believe it or not, business to business promotional email volume was down about 15% versus last year on Black Friday. You know, business marketers just say, nope, not going to send out in that day. And I get it, but we did actually some sense on Black Friday business to business sense. And they did really well. Why? Because they stand out. So it's one of those things that, no, you don't want to be sending out the holidays, but yeah, you might want to be sending out the holidays because volume is so low for business promotional stuff that you actually have the opportunity to stand out in that inbox. So I wouldn't do what you normally do, which is avoid the whole Christmas period and New Year's period and not send out your promotional stuff if you're a business marketer, because this is an opportunity to stand out. What else is going on related to email that I thought was super interesting is there's one word right now in all of email marketing that is normally not a word that has any impact. That's crushing it. And that word is wicked. Yes, there's the movie Wicked. That's everywhere. And that's the talk of all pop culture is Wicked. Everybody's singing the song. Popular, great. But believe it or not, we're seeing it bleed into regular marketing for both business and consumer marketers. When you start your subject line, okay, and this is in the last week, if you start your subject line with the word Wicked, okay, it is increasing email open rates, 90% of the consumer side, according to World Data research, and 15% on the business side. So you could start your subject line like Wicked Smart Strategy or Wicked New Guide for Finance Pros. Now, you may be sitting out there saying, that is ridiculous. I am not going to use the word wicked because Ariana Grande is running around out there with her new movie. That's fine. But that's the edge that you get in marketing by tapping into being of the moment. And Wicked is of the moment. So if your brand has any kind of, like, fun spin to it, this is a great opportunity to jump on the Wicked train. It'll probably last for another, you know, week to two weeks. So in completely useless information, there's so much good new TV and movies on TV that's out right now. And normally I'm only locked in on reality tv, which I am, because a lot of good Real Housewives seasons that are out right now that I'm all in on. But I have a non reality TV recommendation I'm watching that I like very much. Ted Danson is in a new show on Netflix called A Man on the Inside. It's the number one TV show right now on Netflix. A Man on the Inside. It is great. He's like this undercover dude at this home for elderly people. And it is fantastic. I give it two thumbs up. It makes you feel good. So that is a non reality TV recommendation. I like Ted Danson. He's funny. And then the other one, which just came out is Lindsay Lohan's new holiday movie, Our Little Secret, which has jumped right to the number one spot on Netflix as the number one movie in the world right now. Our Little Secret. Lindsay Lohan is doing great. This movie is very good. And when I say very good, it's very good. In the Hallmark movie category of very good, it's not like, you know, the Godfather. It's going to be like, oh, my God, this is the best movie I've ever seen. But it is solid and I'm very happy that Lindsay Lohan is doing good things. Very important episode today. We covered a lot of ground. You're going to stick Wicked in your subject line, you're going to watch a Lindsay Lohan movie and I don't have any idea what's going on. Listen. Later this week though we are opening up Certified Guru. That is free email certification program that my organization is putting out there and only people on the wait list are going to be able to do it and that is opening up later in this week. So to get on the waitlist it is free. You go to certifiedguru.com we're really excited about making this available, working really hard on it. So check that out and see you later. You did it.

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