As Black Friday and Cyber Monday approach for 2025, the pressure on businesses to prepare strategically across channels with a focus on overall efficiency in returns has never been higher.
In this episode of the Roundtable Podcast, Glenn Marvin, Nick Thorpe, and Marty Jenkins-Lyttle explored the evolving strategies that e-commerce leaders should adopt, including Klaviyo and Shopify to Meta, Google, and TikTok, and offered a comprehensive look at what has changed since 2024.
Watch the full discussion here:
Table of Contents
- Why Black Friday & Cyber Monday 2025 Matter
- Klaviyo: Hyper-Personalisation at Scale
- Shopify: Mobile, SEO, and Optimisation
- Meta: Creative Strategy and AI-Driven Campaigns
- Google & TikTok: Expanding Reach and Visibility
- Core Principles to Protect Your Brand
- Preparing for Success: Practical Takeaways
- Watch the Full Roundtable Discussion on YouTube
- Conclusion
- FAQs
Why Black Friday & Cyber Monday 2025 Matter
Every year, the competition intensifies, and so do advertising costs.
This means brands can no longer rely on simple discounting or last-minute campaigns. Success comes from understanding customer behaviour, using first-party data intelligently, and building a strategy that stretches across multiple channels. What once worked in 2024 will not be enough in 2025, because consumer expectations have shifted towards personalised, relevant, and seamless shopping experiences.
Klaviyo: Hyper-Personalisation at Scale
Klaviyo remains a powerhouse when it comes to owned media. One of the standout developments for 2025 is the ability to personalise at scale with AI. Instead of needing technical queries to segment audiences, marketers can now ask simple natural-language prompts like “show me everyone who purchased product X in the last six months” and instantly generate an audience.
Dynamic product recommendations, personalised subject lines, and optimised send times are also easier to deliver than ever. Importantly, Klaviyo has expanded from just a handful of essential email flows in 2024 to more than a dozen in 2025, with nuanced segmentation for prospective, new, and returning customers.
First-party data is at the core of this shift. By understanding what products customers browse, how often they buy, and when they might churn, businesses can deliver highly relevant content that feels tailored rather than generic.
Shopify: Mobile, SEO, and Optimisation
Shopify continues to dominate as the e-commerce platform of choice, but brands must refine how they use it. Mobile is the clear priority, with many retailers now seeing over 80% of BFCM traffic coming from phones. Running a site audit on mobile is no longer optional; it is the difference between holding a customer’s attention and losing them in seconds.
Another major consideration is structured data. As AI search grows, platforms like Google and ChatGPT increasingly rely on structured product information to recommend items. Implementing schema and building dedicated Black Friday and Cyber Monday landing pages not only improves visibility in search but also helps capture early interest through list sign-ups and waitlists. Beyond this, Shopify’s reporting tools make it easier to spot which products sell well together and create bundles that increase average order value, something that can significantly boost revenue during peak sales periods.
Meta: Creative Strategy and AI-Driven Campaigns
Meta advertising has changed dramatically. Where campaigns once consisted of a handful of ads, success in 2025 requires testing as many creatives as possible for your brand, with the standard recommendation being a minimum of 20 creative variations per concept. The emphasis is no longer on manual targeting but on supplying the system with quality data and a wide variety of creative assets. Meta’s algorithms are now powerful enough to run a full funnel and take audiences from awareness through to conversion, provided the inputs are strong.
AI makes the creation of copy, images, and video faster and cheaper, making large-scale creative testing more accessible than ever. This shift demands that marketers focus less on micromanaging campaigns and more on strategic oversight , feeding Meta the right data and creatives, then letting the system optimise. Brands that embrace this approach are likely to see stronger performance at a lower cost.
Google & TikTok: Expanding Reach and Visibility
Google is being reshaped by AI search behaviour, with customers increasingly asking conversational questions about what to buy. Ensuring your products appear in Google AI Overviews requires structured data, clear product categorisation, and relevant landing pages. Smaller businesses that adapt quickly may even find themselves outperforming larger competitors that are slower to change.
TikTok, meanwhile, continues to grow as a platform for discovery and conversion. With short-form video and community-driven commerce, it presents an opportunity to reach new audiences in a highly engaging way. For 2025, it is not enough to rely solely on traditional channels; brands must consider how TikTok complements Meta, Google, and email in their overall mix
Core Principles to Protect Your Brand
One of the strongest cautions about BFCM is the risk of discount culture.
Although this can be a controversial take, it’s worth getting a broader perspective when it comes to revenue and customer lifetime value. While Black Friday is an opportunity to boost sales, businesses need to be careful about training their VIP customers, who usually pay full price, to wait for discounts.
It is well-known that discounts work as a retention strategy to build loyalty over time, but protecting your brand’s value means thinking carefully about who receives offers and how those offers are framed. For some segments, it may be better to provide early access, exclusive bundles, or value-added incentives rather than deep discounts that might erode long-term margins.
Preparing for Success: Practical Takeaways
Preparation is everything. Brands that audit their systems now, checking deliverability, ensuring data flows correctly between Shopify, Klaviyo, and ad platforms, and warming their email lists early, will enter the BFCM period with an advantage. Customers should not hear from you for the first time in November; communication needs to start well in advance. Campaigns, flows, and creative assets should be planned and tested ahead of time so that when the sales go live, execution is seamless.
Preparation is everything. Brands that audit their full stack early, from site performance and SEO to email, SMS, and ad platforms, will enter BFCM with a clear advantage. Now is the time to ensure Shopify, your ESP or CRM, Meta Pixel, Google Analytics, and feed tracking are working seamlessly. Warm your lists so customers are not hearing from you for the first time in November, and test creative assets, campaigns, and flows so execution is effortless once sales go live.
Do not rely on email alone. Every channel needs to be BFCM-ready. Refine Meta and Google Ads targeting, product feeds, and retargeting. Optimise your site speed, user experience, and seasonal SEO. Decide whether TikTok or Pinterest fit your audience, and run small tests now to give you confidence to scale later.
Most importantly, the mindset shift is critical: think like a shopper, not a merchant. Ask yourself why a customer would add that extra item to their cart. Is it to reach free shipping? To unlock a limited-time bundle? To feel part of an exclusive group?
When you understand the shopper’s motivation, your strategy becomes far more effective.
Watch the Full Roundtable Discussion on YouTube
This article captures the highlights, but the full Roundtable Podcast episode dives deeper into each platform with practical advice and real-world examples. To explore the full conversation and stay ahead of your competitors this Black Friday, watch the episode on our YouTube channel and subscribe for future discussions.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2025 are shaping up to be more competitive than ever. The fundamentals remain: plan early, optimise your systems, and focus on your customers, but the tactics continue to evolve.
AI, personalisation, and creative strategy are no longer optional extras; they are essential tools for success. Brands that adapt quickly, protect their value, and embrace data-driven decision-making will be the ones celebrating strong results this holiday season.
FAQs
What is the best way to prepare for Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2025?
Start preparation months in advance. Audit your systems, warm your email lists, check and optimise your Shopify site for mobile traffic, and ensure your Klaviyo flows are in place.
How can I make my Black Friday campaigns stand out in 2025?
Focus on hyper-personalisation, creative testing at scale, and segmentation. Use AI-powered tools to deliver relevant content and avoid generic mass promotions.
Do I have to give the same discount to all of my customers?
No. Protect your brand by avoiding broad discount culture. Consider excluding loyal full-price buyers from heavy promotions, offering them early access or exclusive bundles instead.
Why is mobile optimisation so important this year?
More than 80% of BFCM traffic now comes from mobile. A slow or clunky mobile experience can result in immediate drop-offs.
How is AI changing Black Friday marketing?
AI enables businesses to segment audiences with natural language, generate dynamic creatives, and optimise campaigns in real time. Platforms like Klaviyo, Meta, and Google are embedding AI deeper into their systems, making it essential to become familiar with the recent changes in these tools and be ready to utilise them to your advantage through BFCM 2025.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are no longer about last-minute discounts but a smart strategy, personalisation, and readiness. If you want to dive deeper into the trends shaping 2025 and hear our full discussion on each platform, head over to our YouTube channel and watch the complete Roundtable episode.
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