At the best of times, running a business can feel a little like a classic video game—dodging obstacles and gathering rewards, only to do it all over again once you hit the next level. Sometimes you feel like you’re falling into a pit over and over. Sometimes you’re supersized, throwing fireballs at every challenge.
Apps that integrate with your Shopify store are the 1UPs and invincibility stars you’ll need to get through this part of the game.
Then you reach the big castle: Black Friday Cyber Monday. BFCM is a little bit different this year. We know that many of you have had other things on your mind lately, from the health of your family to the future of your business. You’ve spent this year rethinking your strategies and keeping up with evolving consumer trends (all without cheat codes). Maybe you’re not sure if you’ll participate in BFCM. Maybe you haven’t thought about it yet.
Here’s where you’ll need to bring in reinforcements. If friendly dinosaurs are in short supply, apps that integrate with your Shopify store are the 1UPs and invincibility stars you’ll need to get through this part of the game. They enable you to get more done, attract more customers, and process orders more smoothly during the busiest shopping weekend of the year. Sorry, they can’t save a princess.
6 types of apps to help you sell your best this BFCM
We looked at six challenges that store owners may face during BFCM season (in the middle of a pandemic) and matched them with apps that can make them, well, a little less challenging. While your mind is on other things, let apps power up your processes and supersize your success.
1. Apps to help you meet customers where they are—online
In a recent survey, we found that buyer habits have shifted more toward online shopping in 2020. Of those who reported shopping online, 60% said they did so more during the pandemic versus the beginning of the year—and 6% did so for the first time ever. If you’re a retail store shifting to an online model or starting an online store from scratch, these apps can help you meet customers where they’re shopping.
🔎 Instant Search+ and Filters is a smart search app that helps customers find the exact product they’re looking for, with customizable filtering, search autocomplete, and a product recommender feature.
🔈 Add Announcement Bar puts your BFCM deals in the spotlight—front and center at the top of your homepage. You can also use this space to share important news like your COVID-19 policies or updated BFCM shipping information.
🗣️ Heyday Sales & Support Chat knows that you can’t be everywhere at once. While you’re managing other areas of your business, this AI chatbot can lighten the load with automated support responses for frequently asked questions.
🔖 Bulk Discount Code Generator lets you instantly create multiple unique one-time-use discount codes for loyalty programs or pop-up email acquisition campaigns.
Bonus level: Get your products in front of huge audiences by enabling sales channels like Google and Facebook. And explore even more apps to help you sell online.
2. Apps for simple and effective BFCM marketing campaigns
There’s a lot of information competing for your customers’ attention right now. And once BFCM season is upon us (it’s here!), inboxes and Instagram feeds will be flooded with deals. How can you stand out from your competitors? How do you cut through the clutter and launch memorable and clickable BFCM campaigns? These apps take the guesswork out of BFCM marketing.
🔮 Octane AI Quiz, Messenger, SMS is a one-stop marketing solution that lets you create quizzes, collect data, and launch personalized Facebook and SMS campaigns, including conversational ads.
📸 Shoppable Instagram & UGC by Foursixty puts your organic Instagram posts to work, generating a clickable, shoppable clone of your feed. You can even pull your customers’ posts (user-generated content) into one place and power them with shopping links, too.
📱 Tone SMS Cart Recovery texts customers with prompts to re-engage with your brand. Real agents sit behind an AI to make conversations more human.
📽️ Promo Video Maker helps you easily create promotional video content—no film school required. Enter text and a few details and this app pulls content from your site into videos optimized for web, instagram, or Stories.
✉️ Shopify Email lets you launch and track email campaigns right inside Shopify, with easy templates that pull logos, images, and copy directly from your store. New to email marketing? Start here.
Explore more apps to help you with BFCM and holiday marketing.
