How to Maximize ROAS on Black Friday with Minimum Ad Spend

1. How to Maximize ROAS on Black Friday with Minimum Ad Spend www.veicolo-agency.com/post/how-to-maximize-roas-on-black-friday-with-minimum-ad-spend 1/14

2. Every year, Black Friday sets the stage for one of the biggest shopping frenzies in e- commerce. For brands, it’s a golden opportunity to capture demand, boost sales, and build long-term customer relationships. But with opportunity comes competition—and ad costs can skyrocket during the holiday rush. That’s why the real challenge isn’t just advertising on Black Friday—it’s advertising efficiently. To thrive in this competitive environment, brands must focus on one key metric: Black Friday ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). Achieving high returns with minimal ad spend is not just about running more campaigns; it’s about smarter planning, better targeting, and optimized creative. In this guide, we’ll explore how to maximize Black Friday ROAS, even if you’re working with a tight budget. From understanding why ROAS matters to practical budget allocation hacks and real-world examples, we’ll equip you with strategies to drive high ROAS ads and achieve sustainable growth this holiday season. Why ROAS Is the Ultimate Metric for Black Friday Success Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) measures the revenue earned for every dollar spent on ads. For example, if you spend $1,000 on ads and generate $5,000 in revenue, your ROAS is 5:1. On Black Friday, this metric becomes more important than ever. While traffic surges, so does competition. CPMs (cost per thousand impressions) and CPCs (cost per click) rise significantly, making it easy for brands to overspend without seeing proportional results. Focusing on Black Friday ROAS allows brands to: 1. Measure true efficiency – It’s not just about top-line revenue but how effectively ads generate returns. 2. Prioritize high-performing campaigns – By analyzing ROAS, brands can quickly identify winning ads to scale. 3. Maintain profitability – While sales volume may rise, profitability hinges on ensuring ad spend doesn’t outpace revenue growth. Simply put, ROAS is the difference between a profitable Black Friday and one where ad spend eats up margins. Also read: https://www.veicolo-agency.com/post/bfcm-performance-creative-agency- maximize-roas-scale-with-creative-strategy 2/14

3. The Rising Cost of Black Friday Advertising Before diving into hacks, it’s important to understand the challenge. Ad inventory during Black Friday is extremely competitive. Brands large and small flood platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Google, bidding aggressively for visibility. CPMs can increase by 20–50%. Click-through rates (CTR) may decline as users are inundated with offers. Conversion rates may fluctuate depending on creative and offer strength. Without a strategy, brands risk burning through budgets without driving meaningful results. That’s why focusing on high ROAS ads is critical. Budget Allocation Hacks to Maximize ROAS Even with a limited budget, it’s possible to win big on Black Friday. The key lies in low budget scaling—making every dollar work harder. Below are proven budget allocation hacks designed to maximize ecommerce ROAS while keeping costs under control. 1. Prioritize Warm Audiences First Your warm audiences—past customers, website visitors, email subscribers—are your most cost-efficient targets. They’re already familiar with your brand and more likely to convert. Hack: Dedicate 30–40% of your budget to retargeting these audiences with personalized offers. Pro Tip: Use dynamic product ads showcasing items they’ve already viewed. Warm audiences typically deliver the highest Black Friday ROAS because acquisition costs are lower. 2. Pre-Build Momentum Before Black Friday One of the biggest mistakes brands make is waiting until Black Friday to start campaigns. By then, competition is at its peak. Instead, build anticipation early. Hack: Run teaser campaigns 2–3 weeks before Black Friday to grow email lists and warm up audiences at a lower cost. Pro Tip: Collect leads through exclusive early-bird deals or VIP access to sales. By the time Black Friday hits, you’ll have a nurtured audience ready to buy—reducing dependency on high-cost acquisition ads. 3. Lean Into Creative Testing Early High ROAS ads rarely happen by accident. They’re the result of rigorous testing. Running tests well ahead of Black Friday helps identify which creatives resonate most. 3/14

4. Hack: In October or early November, test different hooks, offers, and ad formats. Pro Tip: Use metrics like CTR and add-to-cart rates to find winners, then double down on them during Black Friday. This ensures you’re scaling proven ads rather than experimenting during the most expensive ad period. 4. Allocate Budget by Funnel Stage Not all ad spend should be treated equally. Distribute budgets across the funnel strategically: Top of Funnel (TOF): 30–40% of spend on broad targeting to attract new prospects. Middle of Funnel (MOF): 20–30% on people who engaged with your brand recently. Bottom of Funnel (BOF): 30–40% on retargeting warm leads. This funnel-based strategy ensures balance between acquisition and conversion, optimizing overall ecommerce ROAS. 5. Optimize for Lifetime Value, Not Just One Sale Chasing one-time purchases may give short-term gains, but the real winners focus on customer lifetime value (CLV). Hack: Create bundle offers or upsells that increase average order value (AOV). Pro Tip: Promote subscription options or loyalty perks to turn Black Friday shoppers into repeat buyers. Focusing on CLV ensures your Black Friday ROAS extends beyond the holiday season. 6. Use Automation Rules for Smarter Scaling Manual scaling during Black Friday can be stressful and error-prone. Instead, set automation rules in ad platforms to optimize campaigns on the fly. Hack: Create rules to pause ads below a certain ROAS threshold. Pro Tip: Set rules to increase budgets on high-performing ads by 20–30% automatically. This allows for agile adjustments without constant monitoring, ensuring budgets go where they’re most effective. 7. Invest in Retargeting Post-Black Friday Don’t let the momentum die after Black Friday. Many shoppers browse during the sales but don’t immediately purchase. 4/14

5. Hack: Retarget cart abandoners and browsers with urgency-driven messaging in the following week. Pro Tip: Offer limited-time extensions like “Cyber Week” deals to close hesitant buyers. This ensures you squeeze maximum value from your ad spend. 8. Cross-Channel Budget Diversification Over-relying on one platform is risky, especially when CPMs surge. Spread your budget across multiple channels for stability. Hack: Test Google Shopping for bottom-of-funnel buyers while running awareness campaigns on TikTok. Pro Tip: Compare ROAS across platforms and shift spend dynamically. Diversification keeps your campaigns agile and ensures your high ROAS ads aren’t platform-dependent. A Note on Strategic Partnerships Managing all these moving pieces—audience segmentation, creative testing, automation, and cross-channel scaling—requires expertise and time. Many brands partner with specialists to unlock maximum returns. For instance, expert Paid Media Advertising Services can help streamline campaign management, creative optimization, and data analysis, ensuring no ad dollar is wasted. The right partner doesn’t just manage spend—they help engineer campaigns designed for sustainable growth and high Black Friday ROAS. Real-World Case Examples of Maximizing Black Friday ROAS Theory is valuable, but seeing strategies in action makes them more concrete. Let’s explore how brands have achieved high ROAS ads on Black Friday, even with limited budgets. Case Example 1: Fashion Brand with a Tight Budget A mid-sized fashion e-commerce brand wanted to scale its Black Friday sales but had limited ad spend. In past years, they overspent on prospecting ads with poor returns. Approach: Focused 60% of their budget on retargeting warm audiences. Ran creative tests two weeks before Black Friday, identifying which ad style (user- generated content vs. polished product video) resonated most. 5/14

6. Pre-launched teaser campaigns to build an exclusive VIP list. Result: Achieved a Black Friday ROAS of 7:1, double their previous year. Generated 40% of sales from their email/VIP list, which required far less ad spend. Proved that low budget scaling is possible with smart segmentation and pre- campaign planning. Case Example 2: DTC Skincare Startup A skincare startup faced fierce competition from bigger brands dominating ad space. They couldn’t outspend them, so they focused on efficiency. Approach: Leveraged storytelling through UGC (user-generated content) ads highlighting real customer experiences. Used automation rules to reallocate spend daily toward ads exceeding a 3:1 ROAS. Focused on bundles to increase average order value. Result: Drove a 5.5:1 Black Friday ROAS despite having a fraction of competitors’ budgets. Post-Black Friday retargeting captured another 15% in incremental sales. Built long-term loyalty through bundle offers and repeat subscriptions. Case Example 3: Electronics Retailer Using Cross-Channel Strategy An electronics retailer wanted to scale aggressively but avoid putting all their eggs in one basket. Approach: Identified that TikTok was effective for top-of-funnel engagement, while Google Shopping delivered high-intent buyers. 6/14

7. Allocated budget dynamically during the weekend based on live ROAS performance. Result: Achieved a 6:1 ecommerce ROAS with consistent performance across multiple platforms. Reduced risk by not relying solely on one ad channel. Created scalable insights they could apply to holiday campaigns beyond Black Friday. These examples prove that high ROAS ads don’t come from massive budgets—they come from smart strategies, efficient allocation, and data-driven decision-making. FAQs About Black Friday ROAS and Ad Spend To make this guide actionable, here are answers to common questions brands have about Black Friday ROAS and scaling with limited ad spend. 1. What is a good ROAS benchmark for Black Friday? A typical healthy ROAS for e-commerce ranges between 3:1 and 5:1. On Black Friday, because of higher competition and elevated ad costs, hitting 4:1 or above is considered strong. Some brands with optimized funnels achieve Black Friday ROAS above 6:1 or 7:1. 2. How can I scale ads with a low budget? Focus on low budget scaling strategies: Prioritize warm audiences. Test creatives early to avoid wasting money during peak competition. Use automation rules to reallocate budget to top-performing ads. Scaling isn’t about spending more; it’s about spending smarter. 3. Should I only run ads on Black Friday itself? No. The most successful brands build momentum weeks before Black Friday. Pre-sale lead generation, teaser campaigns, and early access deals ensure you have a warm audience to target when competition peaks. Waiting until the day itself usually means higher costs and lower efficiency. 7/14

8. 4. How can I improve ecommerce ROAS beyond Black Friday? Black Friday is a short window, but its effects can be long-lasting. Improve ecommerce ROAS by: Retargeting shoppers who browsed or abandoned carts during the weekend. Building loyalty programs and email nurture sequences. Offering subscription models or bundles to maximize CLV. 5. Do smaller brands stand a chance against bigger competitors? Absolutely. Smaller brands often achieve higher ROAS because they can be more agile. With precise targeting, personalized offers, and efficient creative testing, smaller players can outperform big-budget competitors who rely on generic campaigns. 6. What’s the role of creative in achieving high ROAS ads? Creative is the single most important factor. Even with precise targeting, poor creative won’t convert. High ROAS ads typically feature: Strong hooks in the first 3 seconds. Clear value propositions (discounts, bundles, exclusivity). Social proof such as testimonials or user-generated content. 7. Is it worth working with an external partner? If your team is stretched thin, yes. Managing campaigns, creatives, and optimizations during Black Friday can be overwhelming. Partnering with experts in Paid Media Advertising Services ensures you avoid costly mistakes and make the most of your budget. Veicolo’s Role in Driving High Black Friday ROAS At Veicolo, we specialize in helping brands scale profitably through the power of performance-driven creative and paid media. We understand the stakes of Black Friday— budgets are under pressure, competition is fierce, and every ad dollar counts. Here’s how Veicolo supports brands in maximizing Black Friday ROAS: Creative Testing Frameworks: We develop multiple creative variations ahead of Black Friday, ensuring only the top performers are scaled. This guarantees high ROAS ads when costs are highest. Data-Driven Budget Allocation: Our team applies real-time adjustments, moving spend toward campaigns delivering the strongest returns. Full-Funnel Strategy: From prospecting to retargeting, we ensure every stage of the funnel is optimized to drive both new customers and repeat buyers. Cross-Channel Expertise: Whether your audience is on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Google, we know how to adapt campaigns for maximum impact. 8/14

9. Post-Black Friday Retargeting: Our approach doesn’t stop at the weekend. We build campaigns to capture missed opportunities and extend momentum into Cyber Week. The result? Brands working with us don’t just survive Black Friday—they thrive. We help them transform limited ad budgets into record-breaking sales while setting the stage for long-term profitability. Final Thoughts Black Friday offers a once-a-year opportunity for e-commerce brands to capture outsized sales. But opportunity without strategy leads to wasted ad spend. The brands that win focus on Black Friday ROAS, crafting high ROAS ads through smart budget allocation, creative testing, and funnel-based strategies. Even with limited budgets, low budget scaling is achievable when campaigns are data- driven, targeted, and optimized for conversion. And beyond Black Friday, applying these principles ensures sustainable improvements in ecommerce ROAS. If you’re ready to maximize returns this holiday season, consider partnering with a team that knows how to engineer performance at scale. With expertise in creative testing, media management, and full-funnel optimization, Veicolo provides the Paid Media Advertising Services you need to turn Black Friday into your most profitable campaign of the year. 9/14

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