Black Friday Content Calendar: A Week-by-Week Planning Guide

If Black Friday arrives and you find yourself scrambling to write emails, make creatives, launch ads, or segment audiences — you're not alone. Most brands prepare too late, miss warm-up stages, and end up relying on discounts instead of data-driven personalization.

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That’s why you need a Black Friday content calendar: a structured timeline that aligns messaging, audiences, and campaigns across channels. 

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This Black Friday planning guide provides a week-by-week strategy, including what to publish, when to publish, and how to coordinate your promotions from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday.

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Why a Black Friday Content Calendar Matters

Black Friday is now a multi-week funnel, not a single sales day. Here is a Black Friday week-by-week strategy for your campaigns:

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Brands that plan early see dramatically better results. That’s because more than 50% of shoppers expect to come across brand promotions a month before Black Friday. 

Added to this, more than 80% of businesses reported an almost 40% spike in consumer spending after they started providing a personalized experience. 

This blog can give you a deeper breakdown on how to use data-driven personalization to drive conversions. And, to execute personalization properly, your data must be unified (not scattered across Shopify, Klaviyo, Meta Ads Manager, and Google Analytics)!

So, your calendar isn’t just about scheduling posts — it’s about walking customers through a conversion journey. Let’s break down the Black Friday marketing calendar in detail.

4 Weeks Before Black Friday: Awareness & Lead Capture 

Goal 

During this stage, the focus is on warming up the audience and building anticipation without offering any discounts yet. The goal is to establish curiosity and encourage people to join the early-access list. 

You can add a prominent “Get Early Access” banner across the homepage to signal that something special is coming. Or, launch a dedicated waitlist landing page where interested shoppers can sign up to be the first to know about deals. This is also when you begin rolling out storytelling-style content that highlights brand values, customer experiences, and product benefits with the aim to create an emotional connection and interest in your product well before promotions begin.

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Suggested Pre-Black Friday Content Ideas

• Email: “Something big is coming” teaser with soft brand story

• Instagram/TikTok: Behind-the-scenes, product lifestyle shots

• Blog: “How to Choose the Right ___ for Holiday Gifting”

• Paid Ads: Top-of-funnel short-form creative driving to early-access page

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3 Weeks Before Black Friday: Education + Social Proof

Goal

This stage is about clearly demonstrating the value of your product before you mention any pricing or discounts. The goal is to help your audience understand why your product is worth considering. 

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You should prioritize UGC and testimonial content to show real customer experiences and outcomes. Share comparison posts that highlight what sets your brand apart from alternatives. Lean into problem-to-solution storytelling across social and email, showing the pain point your audience feels, and position your product as the practical, proven answer. The aim is to build trust and desirability so that when offers do arrive later, they feel obvious – almost inevitable.

Suggested-Pre-Black Friday Content Ideas

• Email: “Our most-loved products this year” + reviews

• Instagram/TikTok: Showing unboxing or quick transformations

• Blog: Product comparison or seasonal usage guides

• Paid Ads: Retarget warm audiences with testimonial ads

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2 Weeks Before Black Friday: VIP Early Access & Pre-Black Friday Content

Goal

For instance, you could offer a VIP-only discount code or an invite-only early shopping window to make your most loyal customers feel prioritized. Encourage people to opt into SMS notifications so they receive fast, direct updates at the moment deals go live. If possible, create a private access page or password-protected section of your site reserved for VIP members only. This sense of early privilege increases conversion likelihood and builds strong momentum leading into the main Black Friday event.

Suggested Day-by-day Messaging Sequence

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Markopolo’s Campaign Agent optimize your Pre-Black Friday content by:

• Triggering SMS only if email is unopened

• Triggering Meta retargeting based on landing page visits

• Tagging users who click — for priority targeting on launch day

1 Week Before: Black Friday Week Launch

This is the most intense communication phase, but it’s essential that messaging stays segmented rather than blasting one generic offer to everyone. Tailor your outreach based on customer behavior: warm subscribers, VIP members, cart abandoners, past purchasers, and new leads should each receive messaging that speaks directly to their journey. 

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Next, use consistent reminders across various channels like email, SMS, and social, but vary the angle: urgency for high-intent users, reassurance and product education for hesitant shoppers, and discovery-focused messaging for newer audiences. 

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The offers go live this week, but the real strategy is in precision, not volume. The goal is to maximize conversions while maintaining a personal, intentional tone. 

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Here is a sample Black Friday content schedule:

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Cyber Monday: Extend Momentum + Increase AOV

Strategy Shift

Once Black Friday peaks, shift your strategy from simply offering the lowest prices to promoting high-value bundles, upgrades, and loyalty incentives. The goal here is to increase Average Order Value (AOV) by encouraging customers to add more to their cart. 

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You could do this by highlighting product pairings, “complete the set” offers, add-on recommendations, and tiered discounts (e.g., spend $100 → get 20% off, spend $200 → get 30% off). Introducing loyalty perks such as points multipliers or exclusive gift-with-purchase rewards also works wonders. 

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Cyber Monday is not about beating Black Friday’s discount hype; it’s about offering smart value that nudges shoppers to leave with more than they originally planned. This phase keeps momentum high and strengthens long-term customer relationships rather than just one-time deal seekers.

Suggested Content Ideas

• “Add X to your cart and get Y free”

• “Upgrade to subscription and save 20% every renewal”

• “Double loyalty points today only”

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FAQs

1. When should I start planning Black Friday campaigns?
Ideally 4–6 weeks before. Earlier planning leads to stronger segmentation and higher conversion.

2. How often should I email during Black Friday week?
Daily — but segmented. Ensures every segment receives only relevant messaging.

3. Should I discount everything?
No. Use bundles, loyalty points, limited colors, or gift sets instead of across-the-board markdowns.

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Final Thoughts

A Black Friday content calendar isn’t just about scheduling posts — it’s about sequencing multi-channel messaging based on real customer behavior.

Here is a complete Black Friday marketing calendar template from WordStream:

Final thing before you leave, book a demo with Markopolo to get:

• Unified customer data across Shopify + email + ads

• Predictive segmentation through Audience Studio

• Automated campaign execution via Campaign Agent

• Personalized messaging at scale, without scrambling

Hurry up!

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