Thanksgiving is awesome, right? Sharing a juicy turkey with family or catching some football – can’t beat that! But if you run a business, it’s also prime time to cash in on the holiday rush, as long as you’ve got a good thanksgiving email plan.
The best way to make it happen is sending out thoughtful, well-designed emails packed with your best offers. If you’re ready to crush this holiday season and seize every opportunity, it’s time to step up your Thanksgiving email game with the tips we’re about to dive into below.
10 Reasons to Send Emails on Thanksgiving
You’ve likely heard the advice not to wait until Black Friday to roll out your best deals, and it’s true. Thanksgiving presents a unique opportunity to connect with your customers and set your brand apart. Here’s why planning your marketing campaign is just as important as your Black Friday strategy:
Expresses Gratitude
Thanksgiving is the perfect time to show appreciation. Why limit your gratitude to friends and family when you can also thank your customers and prospects? A thoughtful message goes a long way in building goodwill.
Strengthens Long-Term Relationships
A simple “thank you” email on Thanksgiving shows your customers they matter. This personal touch can strengthen bonds, increasing customer lifetime value (CLTV).
Keep Your Brand Visible
During the holiday rush, staying top-of-mind is critical. A well-timed Thanksgiving email ensures your brand remains in focus during this key shopping season.
Boosts Engagement
With the right message or offer, Thanksgiving emails can see a higher open rate, click-through rate, and overall engagement. People are in a festive mood and are more likely to interact.
Re-Activates Inactive Subscribers
This is the perfect time to wake up dormant customers. Everyone is hunting for deals during the holiday season, and a well-crafted email could bring back those who’ve been quiet.
Diminishes Competition
While many businesses are laser-focused on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving can be a less crowded space for your marketing. Take advantage of the lower competition to stand out.
Drives Sales Like Crazy
Thanksgiving sales have been skyrocketing, with 2023 seeing around $6 billion in online sales. Whether you’re targeting new visitors or loyal customers, there’s plenty of opportunity to boost your revenue.
Teases Black Friday Deals
Thanksgiving is also the perfect opportunity to build anticipation for your Black Friday offers. You can use Thanksgiving emails to tease upcoming deals and encourage customers to stay tuned for the weekend’s promotions.
Builds Emotional Connection
Thanksgiving is all about warmth and togetherness. Sending an email that reflects these values helps create a stronger emotional connection with your audience. It’s a chance to showcase the human side of your brand, thereby leaving a lasting positive impression.
Increases Loyalty of Your Customer
Consistent and meaningful communication during Thanksgiving shows your customers that you value them beyond just transactions. A well-crafted email that focuses on appreciation can deepen customer loyalty. This makes them more likely to choose your brand during the competitive holiday season and beyond.
Key Features for Bigcommerce Thanksgiving Email
A successful Thanksgiving email campaign isn’t built overnight. It requires thoughtful planning and execution to stand out in a crowded inbox and effectively engage your audience. However, here are a few essential features that should be included to ensure your campaign is both impactful and well-received.
Personalized Product Recommendations
Harness the power of dynamic content by offering personalized product suggestions based on your customer’s previous purchases, browsing behavior, or wishlists. Personalized recommendations make the email feel tailor-made for each recipient and increase the chances of conversion. For example, if a customer has recently browsed kitchenware, your Thanksgiving email can highlight discounts on related items like turkey carving sets or festive tableware.
Clear and Compelling CTA (Call-To-Action)
Your Thanksgiving email’s success largely depends on your CTA’s strength. Use concise, action-oriented language that encourages immediate interaction, such as “Shop Our Thanksgiving Sale Now” or “Get 20% Off Your Favorite Items Today.”
Ensure the CTA stands out with a bold design, and place it above the fold so recipients don’t have to scroll to find it. Multiple CTAs within the email can direct customers to specific collections or product categories..
Engaging visuals and Thanksgiving-themed graphics
Visual elements can make or break your Thanksgiving email. Incorporate festive imagery, such as fall colors, turkey illustrations, or harvest themes, that evoke the warmth of the holiday. Ensure the visuals complement your products and don’t distract from your message. For example, an email for a clothing store might use warm tones and cozy fall outfits in the imagery, making the content feel seasonal and inviting.
Countdown Timer
Add a sense of urgency by including a countdown timer that tracks how much time is left for customers to take advantage of your Thanksgiving offers. Countdown timers are highly effective at promoting quick action, whether it’s a limited-time sale or the final chance for free shipping. These can be integrated seamlessly into BigCommerce’s email tools.
Abandoned Cart Reminders
Capitalize on missed opportunities by sending automated abandoned cart reminders to customers who left items behind. During Thanksgiving, you can sweeten the deal by offering additional incentives, such as free shipping or a small discount, to encourage them to complete their purchase. Ensure the email prominently displays the products they left behind and a CTA that leads them directly back to their cart.
Holiday Shipping Information
Customers want reassurance that their orders will arrive in time for Thanksgiving, especially for gift-giving or dinner preparations. So you should include clear and upfront information about shipping options, delivery timelines, and cutoff dates to avoid any last-minute surprises. Offering expedited or free shipping for Thanksgiving orders can be a great way to entice customers to act quickly.
Post-thanksgiving Promotions Teaser
Keep momentum by teasing upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales at the end of your Thanksgiving email. A teaser could be as simple as “Stay tuned for our biggest sale of the year!” or “Exclusive deals coming your way this weekend!” This helps build anticipation and encourages recipients to keep an eye on their inbox for future emails, boosting engagement during the holiday season.
Tips for Thanksgiving Email Campaigns
As you prepare your Thanksgiving email campaign, take advantage of the cultural significance and traditions of the holiday. Here are some ideas that can help boost engagement, open rates, and click-through rates.
Express Genuine Gratitude
This is a simple but effective tactic. Thanksgiving is all about saying “Thank you,” this theme works wonders with email marketing. Just send a heartfelt message thanking your subscribers for their loyalty and support throughout the year. It’s a great way to build trust and strengthen your relationship with your audience, reminding them they are valued members of your community.
- Keep it sincere and personal.
- Consider adding a heartfelt story or message from the CEO or team.
- Use phrases like “We wouldn’t be here without you” to make it personal.
Show Generosity
Thanksgiving is also a time for giving, and offering your subscribers something special will make them feel appreciated and encourage them to engage with your brand. Even small gestures can go a long way in building goodwill.
- Share exclusive discounts or coupons as a special “Thank you” gift.
- Offer free shipping for a limited time.
- Host a giveaway with a small prize, or encourage social sharing with an incentive.
- Send printable Thanksgiving resources like meal planners, recipes, or holiday checklists.
Stay Non-Promotional
Instead of focusing on selling, use Thanksgiving to send non-promotional emails. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday just around the corner, customers expect sales. However, a non-promotional email can help your brand stand out by highlighting your values and the good work your company has done throughout the year.
- Showcase your company’s charitable work or social responsibility efforts.
- Share positive milestones, like customer achievements or your business’s progress.
- Thank your employees or partners for their hard work.
- Send a warm, feel-good message that resonates with the spirit of Thanksgiving without pushing a sale.
Extend the Thanksgiving Spirit
Even after Thanksgiving ends, people are still in a celebratory mindset, so it is the perfect time to prolong your campaign. Use the long weekend to keep the holiday spirit alive by sending another festive email to engage your audience.
- Follow up with an email after Thanksgiving expressing continued gratitude.
- Tease upcoming Black Friday or Cyber Monday deals while maintaining a festive tone.
- Encourage subscribers to stay connected throughout the holiday season by offering special deals or exclusive content in the lead-up to year-end.
Incorporate Thanksgiving Traditions
Thanksgiving traditions like turkey dinners, family gatherings, and watching football or the Macy’s parade can be used creatively in your email campaign. Relating your message to these familiar traditions will help you connect emotionally with your audience.
- Incorporate traditional Thanksgiving imagery in your design to evoke a warm, cozy feeling.
- Share holiday recipes or tips for family gatherings.
- Use playful language that references Thanksgiving customs in your messaging.
How Atom8 Increases thanksgiving Sales with email marketing
Running an effective Thanksgiving email campaign can feel overwhelming, and we got it. Timing the perfect message, personalizing content for every customer, and adjusting strategies on the fly can be daunting, especially during such a busy season.
That’s where Atom8 BigCommerce by GritGlobal comes into play. The BigCommerce Automation tool automates the hard work to help you craft personalized, timely, and optimized email campaigns that maximize engagement and sales without all the manual effort.
Here’s how Atom8 BigCommerce can take your Thanksgiving sales to the next level:
Automating Email Workflows
Trying to manually manage every aspect of your email marketing is nearly impossible during high-demand periods like Thanksgiving. Atom8 BigCommerce simplifies this by automating key workflows:
- Pre-scheduled promotions: Ensure your best offers reach customers at the perfect time by automatically sending out Thanksgiving promotions in advance.
- Follow-up reminders: Handle the timely follow-up emails after a customer engages or purchases, keeping communication consistent and relevant.
Personalizing Email Content Automatically
Crafting personalized emails for every customer takes time, which you don’t have during the holiday rush. Atom8 BigCommerce makes personalization easy by:
- Delivering tailored product recommendations: Automatically suggest products based on each customer’s browsing or purchase history.
- Customizing offers: Analyze customer data to deliver special deals that resonate with individual preferences, making your campaigns feel more personal and engaging.
Real-Time Monitoring and Adjustments
The pressure to perform during the holiday is high, and manual monitoring won’t give you the insights fast enough to act. Atom8’s real-time analytics allows you to:
- Track key metrics: Instantly see open rates, click-through rates, and conversions as they happen.
- Make adjustments on the go: Fine-tune your content, send times, or audience segments based on real-time data, ensuring your campaign is always optimized.
Conclusion
One of retailers’ biggest mistakes is thinking Thanksgiving email isn’t worth the effort and betting everything on Black Friday and Cyber Monday instead. Just don’t make mistakes! Thanksgiving is a prime sales opportunity and a key milestone every smart marketer should have circled on their calendar.
Atom8 takes the complexity out of email marketing campaigns by handling everything from automation to personalization and real-time adjustments. Instead of struggling to manage everything manually, let Atom8 handle the heavy lifting and watch your sales soar this holiday season.
So contact us now, share your story, and let us provide you with professional support to maximize your Thanksgiving sales opportunities! With Atom8 BigCommerce, you can adapt quickly, making the most of every opportunity and maximizing your sales during one of the biggest holidays.
