Every channel plays a different role during BFCM. Here’s how to use each channel’s strengths—and sequence them so shoppers get a coordinated experience.

If you’ve determined the campaigns you’ll send before, during, and after Cyber Week, you’re ready to start drafting.

Here are the best practices for creating stronger SMS, email, push, and RCS campaigns that drive results.

Start with a coordination mindset

Before you draft anything, keep in mind the arc you’re aiming for with your campaigns.

57% of shoppers say they’re more likely to buy when they see the same promotion across channels, but 73% prefer follow-ups that add something new rather than repeating the same thing.

So coordinate your campaigns within and across channels to create a cohesive experience, where each message builds on the one before it:

• Lead with your fastest channels, then follow with detail: Subscribers see texts and push notifications within minutes—use them to announce. Follow up shortly after by email, where you have room for full details and more visuals.
• Build sequential campaigns where each message adds something new: For example, move from an initial sales announcement to a bestselling product feature to a gift guide that helps undecided shoppers find the right product.
• Target based on channel affinity: If certain subscribers are more engaged on one channel—or only subscribe to one—segment by that behavior, so every subscriber gets a cohesive brand experience.

Go deeper: Cross-Channel Marketing: How to Make SMS, Email, and Push Work Together for BFCM

SMS: your fastest path to shoppers

Shoppers see texts within minutes, making SMS the channel to announce your deals and prompt quick action during Cyber Week.

When drafting your BFCM texts:

• Create a sense of urgency: Scarcity and urgency lift conversion rates by 12% in SMS campaigns with offers. If urgency is usually off-brand for you, BFCM can be an exception—your deals really are time-sensitive.
• Use percentages in your offer: Percentage formats drive 10% higher conversion rates than dollar amounts in SMS campaigns. Percentages require less mental math and communicate value that shoppers can process quickly.
• Speak directly to your subscribers: Second-person language yields 9% higher conversions in SMS campaigns with offers.
• Keep it to 75–115 characters when possible: Messages over 240 characters see 8.5% lower conversion rates than shorter ones—and shorter messages perform best.

Go deeper: The Anatomy of High-Performing SMS Campaigns: 25 Billion Messages Reveal What Works

Save MMS when visuals add value

MMS drives a 2.8x higher conversion rate on average than SMS—but it can take longer to deliver. Use each format for what it does best:

• True SMS for time-sensitive sends: Inventory updates and time-running-out notices should arrive quickly.
• MMS for the sends that benefit from visuals: Your sale announcement, a product spotlight, a branded moment. Plan on MMS for roughly a quarter of your total Cyber Week sends.

Email: the detail-driven channel

Email is where you have space the faster channels don't: full offer details, rich visuals, and the social proof shoppers may need before they buy.

Write subject lines that make the value clear

Your subject line plays a major role in email performance in a crowded BFCM inbox:

• Be direct about your offer: Clear, benefit-focused subject lines outperform clickbait—tell subscribers exactly why your email is worth opening.
• Use real urgency: Communicate limited time or limited inventory.
• Use emojis to accent your message, not replace words: Inboxes will be full of gift boxes (🎁), alarm clocks (⏰), and sirens (🚨). Choose something that feels fresh and fits your brand—and use caps sparingly, since all-caps subject lines can hurt deliverability.
• Match the subject line to the segment: For subscribers who joined before BFCM, including "live" in subject lines has performed well ("Black Friday sale LIVE now: 30% off everything"). For subscribers who joined during BFCM, mentioning "Cyber Monday" has performed best.
• Use the subscriber's name to re-engage: A name in the subject line has been especially effective at lifting opens and conversions among shoppers who haven't opened in weeks.

Prioritize the most important details at the top

Give email subscribers the essential sale details, starting with the most important:

• Lead with your strongest offer: Put your deal—with a standout CTA—above the fold.
• Reference real deadlines and inventory: If your sale truly ends at midnight, say so. If quantities are limited, be specific about what that means.
• Showcase social proof: Reviews, star ratings, UGC, or purchase counts help shoppers feel confident when they can't spend time researching.

RCS: a richer messaging experience

RCS for Business takes everything that works about SMS and adds the visual, interactive layer of your best emails: a verified sender with your brand name and logo, media-rich messages, tappable carousels, and suggested replies.

RCS use cases for your BFCM plan:

• Product showcases: A tappable carousel can feature your top BFCM deals in one message—letting shoppers browse without leaving their texts. Use it for gift guides, bestseller roundups, category spotlights, and personalized product recommendations.
• Interactive engagement: Suggested replies make a campaign interactive. Let shoppers tap to see deals by who they’re shopping for or by budget.

Go deeper: Get answers to common RCS questions

Push: the shopping app activator

Push notifications reach your app audience on their lock screen—without having to open an email or text messaging app. During Cyber Week, that makes push your channel for time-sensitive moments: your sale going live, final hours, and inventory alerts.

Here’s how to craft for push:

• Front-load the offer: Lead with the deal and the deadline.
• Deep link past the homepage: Send shoppers straight to the sale collection or the product you're featuring. Extra taps between the lock screen and the cart can reduce conversions.
• Add an image when the product is the message: Rich push with a strong product shot works for drops, bestseller spotlights, and inventory alerts—moments where seeing the item does the selling.
• Offer app subscribers early access or exclusive discounts: Perks rewards high-intent shoppers—and gives others a reason to download the app and turn on notifications.

Amplify campaign performance with AI Pro

When every message competes for attention during Cyber Week, Attentive AI Pro helps you create stronger email and SMS campaigns at scale:

• Refine each segment: Audiences AI optimizes your audience for each campaign—adding conversion-ready subscribers and excluding those unlikely to buy—driving a 15% revenue lift across SMS and email.
• Align send time with engagement patterns: For sends that aren't time-sensitive—your pre- and post-BFCM campaigns—Send Time AI delivers each message when that individual subscriber is most likely to engage.
• Identify more high-value site visitors: Identity AI recognizes shoppers beyond their browser cookie lifetime to improve segmentation and behavioral targeting so you catch more opportunities to engage them with personalized messaging.
• Write on-brand copy in half the time: Brand Voice AI learns your brand voice from your historical messages and drafts SMS campaigns and email subject lines that sound like you.

High-performing brands like Little Sleepies are already using Attentive AI™ to drive great results.

“Attentive AI is critical to enable before a big promotional period. It helps identify the best times to send campaigns, and how to engage and re-engage your customers effectively. A big bonus is leveraging your list properly by leaving off people who are unlikely to purchase, so you’re not paying more for less!”

- Elizabeth Krupka, Owner, Nomadd Marketing

Go deeper: The BFCM AI Guide: How to Put Attentive AI to Work During Cyber Week

Next read

Your campaigns are drafted—next, build the schedule. During Cyber Week, when you send, and how often, can matter as much as the message itself.

Get the data on timing and frequency through Cyber Week:

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More from The Edit

• Cross-Channel Marketing: How to Make SMS, Email, and Push Work Together for BFCM
• The BFCM AI Guide: How to Put Attentive AI to Work During Cyber Week