How to get Black Friday ready (in August)

How to get Black Friday ready (in August)

How to Get Your Shopify Store Black Friday Ready in 2025

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are two of the biggest opportunities of the year for your Shopify store—but only if you're ready for the surge.

With ad costs rising, customer attention shrinking, and inboxes getting noisier than ever, success this year won’t come down to luck or last-minute discounts. It’ll come down to preparation.

Here are 5 key tips to help you get your Shopify store Black Friday ready—based on what’s working for some of the most successful ecommerce brands that i have worked within. 

1. Set a Clear Goal (and Don’t Try to Do Everything)

Not all Black Friday campaigns should aim for the same outcome. Decide whether your focus is on:

  • Driving revenue

  • Acquiring new customers

  • Moving old stock

  • Increasing average order value

Then design your offer, timing, and customer experience to support that specific outcome. Your Shopify dashboard and analytics should guide your decision.

2. Optimise Your Shopify Theme for Speed & Conversion

Your Black Friday traffic will bounce fast if your store doesn’t load quickly or isn’t optimised for mobile.

  • Audit your theme for load speed (use tools like Shopify Analyzer or Google PageSpeed Insights)

  • Compress image files and remove unnecessary apps/scripts

  • Use a dedicated Black Friday collection or landing page

  • Add urgency: countdown banners, stock messages, and “ends soon” badges

A simple, frictionless shopping experience will always outperform flashy, overdesigned distractions.

3. Create an Offer That Balances Excitement and Margin

You don’t need to discount everything to make an impact.

Consider:

  • Tiered offers (e.g. spend more, save more)

  • Product bundles or BOGO deals

  • Free shipping thresholds

  • Limited-edition drops or early-access exclusives for email/SMS subscribers

Use Shopify’s discount engine to build out your logic in advance—and make sure it’s crystal clear to the customer at checkout.

4. Build Hype Ahead of Time (Not on the Day)

Shopify store owners often wait too long to promote their sale. Start building awareness early through:

  • Email previews and early access signups

  • SMS reminders with urgency copy

  • Retargeting ads to past customers or abandoned carts

  • Creator/affiliate partnerships (you can even track sales via Shopify Collabs)

Shopify’s built-in tools like automation, segmentation, and custom landing pages make this easier than ever—if you plan ahead.

5. Prep Your Ops and Post-Sale Experience

  • Tag your Black Friday products in Shopify for easier fulfilment

  • Double-check inventory sync across your channels

  • Update shipping timelines on product pages and in your post-purchase emails

  • Write macros in your helpdesk to manage common CX queries

  • Use flows in Shopify Email or Klaviyo to thank customers, request reviews, and offer bounce-back discounts

Black Friday isn’t just about selling—it’s about impressing new customers so they come back again.

Want the Full Strategy?

This blog covers the essentials—but if you’re looking for a no-fluff, tactical playbook to get your Shopify store truly Black Friday ready, grab the full guide:

👉 [Download the 30-page ebook: How to Get Your Online Store Black Friday Ready]

From offer strategy to retention flows, this guide breaks it all down so you can plan smarter, move faster, and scale profitably this peak season.

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