In the dynamic and rapidly evolving digital marketplace of the UAE, high-volume e-commerce events like Black Friday serve as pivotal milestones for brands aiming to capture significant market share, enhance brand visibility, and deepen consumer relationships. In the following paragraphs, we will delve into the strategic importance of this event, explore the nuanced consumer psychology that drives buying behavior during such times, assess current market trends, and highlight how the innovative use of data and technology can forge a competitive edge.
Black Friday, aka. White Friday in the UAE, is one of the most awaited shopping events of the year. As consumers eagerly prepare their wallets and curate their lists to seize the best deals, brands in parallel are rolling out one of their most crucial growth and financial strategies for the last quarter. White Friday is considered to be one of the last occasions to help brands achieve their business KPIs for the year.
Closing targets and maximizing revenue mean developing, six months ahead, the most effective marketing strategy that will bring together all ingredients for success and which include: understanding their shoppers’ behaviors, choosing the right mix between the choice of channels and technology, gathering or using the right data that will allow them to retarget smartly.
Having said this, let’s get into how brands can maximize their success this upcoming White Friday.
Consumer behavior in the UAE during high-volume sales events is characterized by an intricate blend of excitement, urgency, and the fear of missing out (FOMO). The limited-time nature of deals and the high stakes involved tap deeply into these psychological triggers, compelling shoppers to make quicker and more impulsive purchasing decisions. However, the same shoppers would also be struggling to fight off the urges to spend money and not succumb to the temptation. As inflation continues to go up, the need to save is rapidly increasing but saving has been proved to be difficult due to the temptations that surround and interrupt shoppers anywhere they are. As a result, shoppers are becoming unapologetic about buying items on promos and are focusing on finding the best deal. As a matter of fact, they take pride in having found a good deal or in saving up on a high value item. This, psychologically eases their spending worries but ironically would encourage them to spend more. It’s a vicious cycle that many can fall into. Brands that come up with relatable campaigns, impactful messages or the ones that are constantly visible and pushing the right promos at the right time, are the ones that will make the most out of this occasion. Brands that effectively leverage this understanding through targeted marketing campaigns can significantly enhance their engagement and conversion rates, capitalizing on the heightened consumer activity during these periods.
Now that our shoppers’ mindsets has been identified and understood, we will next get into the back-end work required to develop the right strategy to success:
The e-commerce market in the UAE is projected to reach a volume of $9.3Bn by 2028, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.7% from 2024 to 2028*. This growth trajectory underscores the critical importance of these periods for testing new products, clearing inventory, engaging with a broader customer base and recruiting a new one.
In 2023, we have witnessed substantial growth in 3 key sectors in the e-commerce landscape: Electronics with a significant jump of 33.3% of the total e-com revenue, Fashion at 30.2%, and groceries at 17.0%. This highlights a significant shift in the shopping behavior and digital landscape, opening up more opportunities for brands to be accessible to their shoppers. Partnerships among brands or cross merchandising initiatives tend to increase more during this period to ensure reaching a wider audience or tapping into a potential one.
The growth in the industry is a clear testament that our shoppers are increasingly shifting to mobile shopping, placing the latter as their primary browsing tool. This also places some pressures on brands as the audience is exposed to many options, the decisions happen much faster and content fatigue is real. To cater to the on-the-go consumer, digital strategies would need to take into account the implementation of channel friendly and native content.
In today’s data-driven market, the usage of contextual targeting or Amazon DSP tools provide brands the capability to harness extensive consumer insights, enabling highly targeted marketing strategies and enhanced customer engagement. This is currently considered as a base of advertising. The integration of AI and the creation of dynamic content optimization not only facilitate fast personalization at scale but also provide predictive insights into consumer behavior, inventory needs, and potential market trends. This advanced use of technology empowers brands to stay ahead of the curve and adapt swiftly to changing market needs, and prepare to move into a cookie-less world. Thus, the use of tools like Google’s advanced contextual targeting platform and Amazon’s DSP will become pivotal in a brands presence during events like White Friday whilst staying compliant to data privacy laws.
The intersection of smart marketing strategies, understanding of our shoppers’ psychology, and innovative use of data and technology form the cornerstone of successful e-commerce operations in the UAE and will play a critical role in shaping its future. By effectively leveraging these elements, brands not only can maximize their performance during high-volume sales events but also set the stage for sustained growth and market leadership. It’s a chance to introduce the brand under a new light but also show a fun and creative side of it.
Happy White Friday!
* https://www.arkasoftwares.ae/blog/cost-to-develop-ecommerce-website-in-dubai/#:~:text=The%20UAE%20is%20the%2045th,US%249%2C378.6%20million%20by%202028
