For affiliate marketers, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the biggest sales days of the year. Companies offer their deepest discounts, and buyers are actively looking for deals. Your job is to put the right deals in front of your readers at the right time.
Here are 7 quick ways to boost your affiliate sales during Black Friday week, most of which you can set up in an afternoon.
| Tactic | Effort | When to do it |
|---|---|---|
| Deal posts | Medium | Early November or sooner |
| Update top posts | Low | 1 to 2 weeks before |
| Email your list | Low | Black Friday to Cyber Monday |
| Sidebar promos | Low | Black Friday week |
| Notification bar | Low | Black Friday week |
| Exit intent offer | Low | Black Friday week |
| Social media | Low | Throughout the sale |
1. Publish Black Friday Deal Posts Early
Deal posts are the biggest driver of Black Friday affiliate sales. Two formats work best:
- Roundups: a list of deals in one category, like Black Friday WordPress deals.
- Single deal posts: one post per big brand, like “[Product] Black Friday deal”.
Publish early, even before the deals are confirmed, and update the post as details come in. Pages need time to rank, and posts that are live by early November (or that you reuse and update each year at the same URL) have a much better chance. Set up Google Alerts and join your affiliate programs’ newsletters so you hear about deals first.
2. Update Your Best Converting Posts
You already know which posts make the most sales. For Black Friday week, update them:
- Add the current deal for each product, near the top.
- Add a highlighted box for the single best deal.
- Update buttons to say things like “Get 60% off (Black Friday)”.
- Remove the deal text after the sale ends so the post stays accurate.
See which types of posts generate the most affiliate sales.
3. Email Your Best Deals to Subscribers
Your email list is your most loyal audience. Do not send every deal you find. Send a personal, curated email like “My favorite Black Friday deals this year”, and a short reminder before the biggest deals end. Quality beats quantity.
4. Promote Deals in Your Sidebar
Swap your usual sidebar content for a short list of top deals during sale week. To make it work better:
- Make the deals widget sticky. See how to make a sidebar widget sticky.
- Show different deals on different posts, matched to the topic. See how to show or hide widgets on certain pages.
- Keep it clean. Too many banners confuse people.
5. Add a Notification Bar
A slim bar at the top of your site is perfect for a single big flash sale. Use Thrive Leads (ribbon form) or the free NotificationX plugin, which can show an announcement bar with a countdown.
6. Use an Exit Intent Offer
Show your best deal to visitors who are about to leave. An exit intent popup with one strong offer can recover sales you would otherwise lose. Show it once per visitor and make it easy to close. Thrive Leads supports exit intent triggers, and here are more exit intent popup plugins.
7. Share Deals on Social Media
Post your deal roundups on the social networks where your audience hangs out, pin them to your profile, and share reminders on Cyber Monday as deals are about to end.
Black Friday Affiliate Tips
- Disclose your affiliate links clearly.
- Double-check every deal and coupon, and remove expired ones quickly.
- Follow program rules. Some ban coupon-site promotion or brand bidding.
- Track results so you know what to repeat next year.
More ideas: how to increase affiliate sales and how to monetize your blog with affiliate marketing.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I publish Black Friday affiliate posts?
As early as possible, ideally by early November. Reuse the same URL every year and update it, so it keeps its rankings.
Is Black Friday or Cyber Monday better for affiliate sales?
Both are strong. Many deals now run for the whole week or longer, so plan promotions from before Black Friday through Cyber Monday.
Should I email my list every day during Black Friday?
Usually no. One curated deals email plus a last-chance reminder works well without annoying subscribers.
What products sell best on Black Friday for bloggers?
Software, web hosting, online courses, and tools your audience already uses tend to convert best, because the discounts are large.
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