Black Friday remains the biggest retail event in Canada, and 2025 is expected to set new records. In 2024, Canadian consumers spent an average of $488 on Black Friday, with sales spiking 1,732% compared to a typical Friday. Top spending categories included cosmetics and apparel.
For brands, this represents both opportunity and fierce competition. Discounts alone won’t cut through the noise. Success depends on strategies that connect with the right shoppers, in the right place, at the right time.
Why Consumer Insights Drive Success
To maximize ROI, marketers need to go beyond demographics and uncover real-world consumer behaviors. Data-driven insights help brands:
- Identify where target shoppers spend time, both online and offline.
- Understand which competitors they also consider.
- Uncover lifestyle affinities and purchase motivations.
By leveraging tools like Locala’s Audience Explorer, marketers can design personalized Black Friday campaigns that outperform generic mass messaging.
Black Friday Power Shoppers: Who They Are and How to Reach Them
Different types of shoppers dominate Black Friday in Canada. Knowing their motivations is essential to crafting compelling offers and creative.
1. Bargain Hunters: The Deal Seekers
Profile: Aged 18–55, both male and female.
Behavior: Compare prices online and in-store, use coupon apps, follow brands for flash sales, and participate in deal forums.
Best Strategies:
- Highlight “limited-time” deals in mobile and DOOH ads.
- Use retargeting to follow them across devices with updated offers.
2. Holiday Shoppers: The Gift Givers
Profile: Aged 25–65, primarily female.
Behavior: Plan ahead, value holiday traditions, subscribe to newsletters, and seek festive deals online and in-store.
Best Strategies:
- Use warm, holiday-themed creative that highlights gifting moments.
- Optimize mobile experiences for quick browsing and purchasing.
- Deliver localized DOOH ads near shopping centers and malls.
3. Tech Enthusiasts
Profile: Early adopters, brand-conscious, often higher-income.
Behavior: Research-driven, eager to test the latest gadgets, motivated by exclusivity and innovation.
Best Strategies:
- Create interactive in-ad video experiences to showcase product features.
- Use geo-targeted campaigns around tech stores.
- Highlight innovation and limited editions to build urgency.
By tailoring messaging and offers to each segment, brands can increase conversion rates and maximize ad spend efficiency.
How Locala Powers Black Friday Success
Locala helps marketers connect with shoppers by turning real-world behavior into actionable strategies. Using Insights AI, Locala analyzes store-level behavior to craft campaigns that resonate with shoppers in specific locations.
With Dynamic Commerce Areas, brands can pinpoint high-affinity consumers, uncover foot traffic trends, and identify cross-visitation patterns to separate loyal customers from switchers and new prospects.
To take this further, Locala’s Omni Planner unites online and offline data in one platform, making it easier to view the full consumer journey, build hyper-local media plans, and benchmark performance against competitors. From planning to activation, Omni Planner transforms insights into action quickly and effectively.
Omni-Channel Campaigns: The Winning Mix
Consumers don’t shop in silos, and neither should your marketing. A strong Black Friday 2025 strategy in Canada requires a balanced mix of channels:
- DOOH: Broad reach, especially in high-traffic areas like shopping centers, capturing attention at moments of purchase intent.
- Mobile & Desktop Display: Precision targeting with localized creative. Interactive formats like swipeable carousels and in-ad video drive higher engagement.
Locala helps brands identify their winning mix with AI-driven tools like the Panel Optimizer, which transforms DOOH planning with real-time scoring. By knowing who your audience is, where they will be, and when to reach them, you maximize impact while minimizing wasted spend.
How Locala Boosted Site Visits for a Tech Retailer
A leading European tech retailer used this omni-channel approach to drive e-commerce sales during Black Friday. By blending DOOH, display, and SMS with real-time adjustments, they achieved:
The takeaway: Omni-channel campaigns rooted in local data drive tangible results.
Ready to Win Black Friday 2025?
This Black Friday, the Canadian brands that harness localized insights, omni-channel execution, and data-driven optimization will rise above the noise and achieve stronger results.
Want to see how localized strategies can boost your brand? Request a demo today.