November 18, 2025
Most people wait until the week of their promotion to start selling, but a strong Black Friday strategy starts weeks before you ever mention a discount. If you’ve spent weeks designing a sale only to watch it flop, wondered why your can’t-miss Black Friday offer didn’t move the needle, or felt like people just weren’t seeing your promotion, this episode will change how you plan every campaign.
In this episode of Bringing Simplicity Unfiltered, Judy and Greta break down the Black Friday strategy they use with clients, and it works for any promotional period: a brand anniversary, a birthday sale, a new announcement, or a signature offer you’re trying to sell. It’s how they move audiences from cold to warm to hot, so by the time you make the offer, people are already asking how to work with you.
Give yourself at least a month, ideally six weeks. That extra two weeks gives you baseline data so you know which direction to pivot. Your success is determined before you ever drop a discount, and you don’t have to discount at all. People need to see and hear about your offer multiple times before they realize, “That’s for me.”
Your pre-promo month is all about subconscious selling. And honestly, you should always be subconsciously selling. If you sell an info product and you’re the face of the brand, you are the product. Create curiosity and connection without pushing the sale.
Judy noticed Kim Kardashian showing up at NBA games before SKIMS was announced as an NBA partner, and she knew something was coming. It’s smart marketing. Marketing and sales work the same in every industry. You just switch the product.
You don’t need floor seats. In the digital marketing world, the equivalent is:
When your offer drops, it’s not a surprise. People already feel like they know you, and the next logical step is to “date” you, maybe with a $47 offer, then ascend to your other offers.
We’re prepping most clients for Black Friday now, and one has crushed subconscious selling so well that we had to swap out her Black Friday offer. It had essentially sold out before it launched.
It’s okay to mention your program, like “people in my program get these results,” so people get familiar with it. You’re just not saying “buy now.” This client used a Q&A box in her stories and answered questions the way she would as their coach, mentioning her one-on-one coaching. People replied, “Wait, I want you to do that for me.” She wasn’t selling at all.
Watch the big brands. They drop hints and early releases weeks ahead of Black Friday, and you’ll see this pattern all year.
If your promotion only runs three days, you’re not giving it time to breathe or giving buyers time to say yes. During the holidays, advertising is at its most expensive and most crowded. Expecting one email and a couple of posts to carry a “doors open, doors closed” sale is unrealistic, especially if this is the first time people are hearing you offer this.
Our rule: never run a promotion or ad campaign for less than seven days. Ideally, 10 to 14 days. (Events are an exception. This is for launches and promos.)
With a longer promo, you’ll usually see a U shape. One client runs a birthday sale every year. Her diehard fans buy right away, and sales spike. Then there’s a lull in the middle. Then we run an “ending soon” campaign, and everyone else buys at the last minute.
You might think, “That’s why I do three days.” But the bottom of the U is where your thinkers are studying you, watching your content, and asking, “Is this really for me?” Keep showing up for them in your stories and posts, with ads that complement and amplify that. With enough runway, your ads warm up, your audience feels informed, and conversions rise without last-minute panic or wasted spend.
People don’t skip your offer because they don’t want it. Usually they forget. We’re all busy. One client told Judy he likes to buy right before the cart closes, forgot, and missed it. People want to support you. They need reminders in different ways:
We create videos and graphics at the very beginning: “Don’t miss out,” “Ends tomorrow,” “Ends today,” “Final hours.” Big brands like Macy’s do this because the data says it works. Judy records 60-second and 30-second versions for each day, sized for each placement. Sometimes we don’t even need them (like with the client who pre-sold her offer), but they’re ready if we do.
Ads get people curious, but your marketing funnel (emails and texts) is what gets them to click buy. Use every channel, and keep the look consistent. Don’t change colors or styles every day, so people visually connect it: “Oh yeah, I was going to buy that.” Make the text crystal clear: this is the last time you can buy this, this month or this year. You’re not pressuring them. You’re reminding them, so they don’t end up sending you sad DMs after it closes.
At least a month before, ideally six weeks. Use that time for subconscious selling through reach campaigns and value-driven organic content, without pushing the offer.
At least seven days, ideally 10 to 14. Three-day sales don’t give Meta time to optimize or give buyers time to decide, and they drive up your cost per conversion.
Building familiarity and desire before you ever ask for the sale, through transformations, testimonials, lifestyle content, and value, so your offer feels like the natural next step.
Remind people across channels (emails, texts, stories, and ads) with clear countdown messaging and consistent visuals. Most people want to buy and simply forget.
If you want your next promo to feel calm, strategic, and profitable, see our services or book a call with us.
Want more? Watch every episode of Bringing Simplicity Unfiltered on our YouTube channel.
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Bringing Simplicity is a full-service marketing and Meta Ads agency helping established online businesses scale proven offers through paid advertising, stronger systems, and smarter strategy.
