Black Friday Email Subject Lines Inspirations for eCommerce + Templates

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ContactPigeon | Nest Series

4 min readNov 13, 2017

Black Friday is one of the biggest retail events of the year. It is the curtain for Christmas shopping and in 2016 it grossed a shocking $3 billion from online and mobile purchases alone. For many retailers, such as jewelers, it’s a significant day since up to 40 percent of their annual turnover can occur between Black Friday and Christmas. With sharp discounts and deals, it is not surprising many consumers want to fully leverage this occasion to stock on their wish list and get ahead of Christmas shopping in one go. Consequently, nearly all brands and online retailers are looking to make a difference on this day, starting with email campaigns that increase awareness and drive traffic to the websites. In today’s post, we share inspirations on Black Friday email subject lines along with a few not-so-traditional Black Friday email approaches, to help you distinguish your email campaigns from the very first impression!💡

Black Friday Email Subject Lines

Black Friday email subject lines are perhaps the most important text for your email campaign this season. Why? It’s the first thing, aside from the sender name, that will be perceived by the reader to determine whether it’s worth the time to open and read. Of course, the tone of voice, sense of urgency, and creativity will vary by verticals and types of audiences you are looking to reach. Another rule of thumb: use vocabulary and phrases that your audience is accustom to.

Here are some examples of industry verticals.

Beauty & Personal Care:

Black Friday Alerts: Get 20% off on your annual supplies of skincare! 💄
Black-out This Friday. Hourly deals waiting for you to grab!

Fashion:

Outfits worth a year’s purchases PLUS 2018’s Halloween custom 70% off!
Limited time on Black Friday only! 50% off. Everything.
Black Friday Event: 25 Shirts Under $25

Pet supplies:

This Black Friday, your furry friends will enjoy special treats 4x cheaper!
Bark Friday! Special deals & free delivery on ALL purchases.

Household:

This Black Friday, Mi Casa es Su Casa — Buy one get one free on all items!

Outdoor & Sports:

No need to put on sneakers & race to the store! Get up to -70% off online! 👟
Make 2018’s fitness resolutions come true with Black Friday -50% at ___!!

Toys:

Animating your kid’s toy stories at all costs JUST became real at ___!!! BUY NOW!!!
Bring all your kid’s toy stories to life NOW with BFCM offers at ___!

Combine Campaign Channels for Maximum Effect

Most eCommerce businesses tend to use email campaigns to drive maximize traffic from Black Friday, either online or in-store, in a creative way. In this example, Apple used email campaigns to build awareness for its in-store sales:

Example: Apple Black Friday Campaign seeks to drive in-store traffic.

The rule of thumb dictates that Black Friday email campaigns must start building awareness about 2 weeks prior and intensify anticipation as time progresses. As more people choose to stay out of busy streets and cashier queues to enjoy Black Friday shopping from the comfort of their home, the need for brands to reach all possible digital channels is intense. Maximum visibility can be achieved via multi-channel campaigns, with integrated campaigns across online and offline channels which will spread awareness and create a top of mind effect to your audience.

Taking a Path Most Unexpected

eCommerce businesses generally opt to gain from the Black Friday & Cyber Monday momentum. However, as of the past 2 years, some brands decided to go against the tide, and as a result, further distinguishes the brand ideal from the crowd. A good example of such is REI, a retailer for outdoors apparels. In email message was sent directly from REI’s CEO, Jerry Spritzke, to its customers announcing that REI is closing all the stores on Black Friday.

REI Black Friday Email — REI choose an alternative approach for Black Friday Email

By choosing to uphold its’ brand values as an outdoors gear retailer, REI was able to garner brand recognition for its core customer base. Although forgoing the potential sales for Black Friday, such brand marketing and choices will have a significant effect on the company’s bottom line for years to come.

Release Your Creativity

Black Friday is a great opportunity to make a difference with your ‘revolutionary’ marketing campaign strategy, starting with a set of attention-catching email campaigns and creative Black Friday email subject lines to create anticipation, grow awareness, traffic or better yet, long-term branding. Whatever the case, make sure your holiday marketing is planned to a T. All the best!