Black Friday brings to mind long lines at the mall, but that's only half the picture. For e-commerce retailers, getting your SKUs online before Black Friday needs to be a top priority in late summer and early fall. And while it's true that you can hurriedly publish unaltered vendor data and copy, you're missing out on the benefits delivered by curated product data and custom content. To make the most of Black Friday 2019, you'll need to ensure your SKUs are:
- Online
- Accurate
- Well-organized
- Complete
Are you ready for the big day? Use Virtucom Group’s e-commerce product data management to-do list for this year's Black Friday SKUs to confirm your company is prepared.
Getting Your SKUs Online – What You Need to Know
Black Friday presents an unusual challenge: every retailer’s best deals are online and they’re all once-a-year spectaculars. That means you have to compete not just on selection, quality, and price, but for the best shopping experience, too.
Create Unique Product Content
To stand out this Black Friday, focus on custom content. Engaging, informative copy that’s unique to your site gives shoppers context, helping them see how every item fits into their lifestyle while forging connections to your assortment and brand. At the same time, you’ll avoid the SEO-killing effect of duplicate content that leaves you behind as competitors climb to the top of the search engine results page (SERP).
Is your team ready to handle the influx of SKUs that arrive each Black Friday? Many retailers must choose between neglecting their day-to-day workflows or falling behind on holiday assortments. Either way, time-to-market slows and you miss out on the seasonal spending – a record-breaking $6.22 billion in e-commerce sales for Black Friday 2018.
Review Vendor/Product Information
Every piece of product data presented online must be accurate and complete. That’s because American shoppers still have concerns about seeing a product in person, although consumers are slowly growing more confident in e-commerce in general. Today, just over 30% of Baby Boomers and Gen X shoppers cite the inability to interact with products as a top online shopping concern, with only 26% of Millennials and about 18% of Gen Z buyers feeling the same.
The takeaway? E-commerce retailers have an unprecedented opportunity to win customers. To do so, it’s essential to mirror the quality of an in-person shopping experience online. Today’s online shoppers aren’t afraid to give their trust, but retailers have to earn it with product data that compensates for the inability to see, hold, and compare a product in person.
Yet many online retailers assume vendor-provided data is correct and complete. More often than not, this isn't the case. Data feeds and vendor-populated item setup sheets frequently include inconsistencies and lack critical information, leading to discrepant, inaccurate, or incomplete product attributes that raise questions about the trustworthiness of your brand and the value of your offerings.
Plus, you’re not just competing with other e-commerce firms. While brick-and-mortar Black Friday sales fell 9% in 2018 and another 4% the previous year, these stores are still among your top competition. This means you need to present 100% accurate and complete product attributes to eliminate comparison shopping and combat a still-powerful desire for in-person shopping experiences.
Provide a Frictionless Path to Checkout
Your SKUs are populated with quality information, but can your customers find them? Even though your team is busy normalizing product information for Black Friday, it's critical to go the extra step and ensure your website taxonomy is optimized to make product location simple and intuitive. Browsers need faceted search and filter capabilities and easy access to items grouped for special deals.
If you'll be placing time limits on items left in carts like many e-commerce retailers, you understand how important it is for shoppers to move quickly through products that interest them and search efficiently for what they need. Removing frustration from the online shopping experience is a surefire way to keep consumers on your site longer – not just on Black Friday, but all year long.
Gear Up for Black Friday with Virtucom Group
From high-quality product content to product data management and taxonomies, Virtucom Group takes the stress out of Black Friday 2019. We’re not a software solution, suite of bundled services, or a workforce replacement. Instead, we work side-by-side with your team, delivering custom solutions tailored to your assortment and your business. Contact us today to learn more.
