Mark your calendars with these top five retail events for brands aiming to boost their sales in the lead-up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Get inspiration for your holiday planning by browsing BFCM examples, templates, and more in our Complete BFCM Archive.

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The key events leading up to BFCM—Spring Sales, Father's Day, Click Frenzy, Single’s Day, and Vogue Online Shopping Night—offer retailers opportunities to engage shoppers thinking about the festive season early and capture new diverse audiences.

To tap into the seasonality of the Spring Sales and leverage the high traffic of Click Frenzy, start preparing as soon as possible, allowing enough time to create promotions and strategies that resonate with your audience. Maintaining communication and nurturing consumers during these events can encourage previous shoppers to return, increasing customer loyalty and sales.

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Offer personalized gifting recommendations  for Father's Day

With Australians expected to spend $820 million for the September 1 celebrations this year, kick off your Father’s Day marketing strategy in the days leading up to the event to win early shoppers.

To cut through the noise, use direct, personalized SMS messages using Attentive’s  Two-Way Journeys™. Discover more about who your subscribers are buying for, and share tailored product and category recommendations with a strong call to action, focusing on popular items like men’s best sellers, to drive conversions. Send a text message that calls out the last day that orders can be placed to guarantee delivery by Father's Day to create a sense of urgency, encouraging them to act swiftly.

Recognize that this holiday can be sensitive for some individuals and provide them with an easy way to opt out of receiving related communications. This helps maintain a positive relationship with your customer base, respecting their circumstances.

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Celebrate Spring Sales with priority access for loyal shoppers

A great Spring Sales campaign idea is to emphasize the limited nature of the sale and focus on offers that encourage shoppers to rejuvenate their lifestyles with fresh products—such as lighter skincare, new-in, and Spring staples. Reward your most engaged customers by giving them early access.

Your follow-up SMS to those who didn’t make a purchase could offer an additional incentive, like a larger discount or a free gift with their purchase, to help convert interest into orders.

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Make SMS subscribers feel like VIPs for Vogue Online Shopping Night

Created to increase online traffic and sales with exclusive three-day deals from September 5 on the Vogue Online Shopping Night (VOSN) hub, the event attracts shoppers across Australia, eager to buy discounted luxury items—such as clothing, accessories, and fragrances. This allows brands not featured on the VOSN hub to also tap into the event's excitement.

Transform SMS into your VIP channel to add a layer of exclusivity and reward customer loyalty with early access and extra discount codes.

Start by pinpointing and engaging subscribers who have shown interest in products and categories featured in your VOSN campaign. You can also focus on customers with high AOVs and those who are already highly engaged. Tailor your messages to reflect the chic allure of the event and include countdown timers to create a sense of urgency, mirroring the limited-time nature of the event and motivating customers to act quickly. This approach not only leverages exclusivity but also makes the customer experience better targeted, encouraging engagement.

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Tap into the Click Frenzy buzz by engaging customers with timely messages

The highly anticipated five-day Click Frenzy event, often called the "Cyber Monday" of Australia, attracts shoppers looking to score great deals from November 11, ahead of Black Friday.

Consider sending a teaser SMS the day before Click Frenzy to alert your customers about the upcoming deals and follow up with messages throughout the event to keep the momentum going. For example, send a morning message to announce the start of the sale, followed by reminders across the remaining days highlighting one-day deals or specific products that are popular. Follow-up messages can be sent to a segmented audience—based on engagement levels, category views, or past purchases for better relevancy.

Finally, close the event with a last-call message in the evening of the last day to push for final sales. This strategy ensures that potential customers are reminded of the limited time left, encouraging them to place an order.

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Increase Single's Day impact with SMS retargeting

Celebrated on November 11 (11/11), Single’s Day is the world's largest online shopping day. Originally popularized in Asia as a day for individuals to celebrate being single with self-gifting, it is now a major global shopping event offering discounts and promotions. Use SMS marketing to ensure time-sensitive promotions reach a broad audience quickly and effectively.

For your Single’s Day campaign, focus on offers that resonate with individuals looking to indulge themselves or surprise friends with gifts. Consider sending messages that spotlight exclusive, time-sensitive promotions such as 11% off, two-for-one specials, or hourly deals at 11. Retarget those who have shown buying intent through recently abandoned carts or clicked on an initial message but did not make a purchase and re-engage them with personalized offers or reminders, converting their initial interest into a finalized sale.

With these insights and tactics, you're fully equipped to turn the upcoming period leading to BFCM into a success for your brand.

Explore Texts We Love to find inspiration from leading brands and check out our Marketing Calendar, filled with tips and templates for key retail dates.