By this point in the year, you should already know which of your 2026 concepts are winners, and which of your angles are winners. That proven material, not net-new material, is what you can count on to carry you successfully through Black Friday.

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So the work to focus on between now and November is tailoring those winning concepts to the seasonal moment and to your BFCM offer. That can start now. And it keeps November open for quick pivots and big bets.

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You already have most of what you need for BFCM

Probably 80% of the concepts we run during BFCM are heavily underpinned by the angles that have carried us through the year to date, with seasonal motifs and an offer focus layered on. Only about two or three concepts out of ten are net new.

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A lot of people are surprised by that. I get it. But why would you gamble the most crucial moment of your brand’s year on completely unvalidated concepts?

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Testing new material still matters, though, and so does taking a big swing inspired by something you’re seeing in the moment on organic or from another brand. That’s what the two or three are for.

And I should add that 80/20 isn’t a requirement or a scientific finding. I’d have no argument with someone running 70/30. The point is not to bet the whole season on concepts that might suck.

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What giving your ads the “seasonal treatment” means

This can actually be pretty simple. Your challenge is to make your existing winners feel fresh and new while keeping everything you believe makes them work.

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Sometimes I think about it like decorating the store for the holidays. You want it to feel festive, and you want it to be clear what’s on sale. So we consider things like:

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• Switching to holiday music, if there’s music in the ad
• Changing the colors, if the brand guidelines allow it
• Swapping the b-roll for wintery or holiday gifting scenes

I’d also encourage you to weave the offer, or a holiday angle, into your winning hook, into the script, maybe into the close of the ad.

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The one thing to keep in mind is that this is really the only time of year your customer truly wants to be sold to. Chances are they’ve been eyeing your brand all year and are actually keen to see what your BFCM offer is. So don’t be shy about working it in as immediately as possible. Especially if it’s a static: go big with that percent off.

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Don’t turn off your BAU winners

Just because you’ll be launching a bunch of BFCM creative doesn’t mean you need to pause the ads that are performing well with no seasonal dressing at all. Leave them alone! You don’t need to mess with your always-on campaign or your BAU creative just because the sale started. Hedge your bets and keep both live if they’re both performing.

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Reserve the 20% for the two things you can’t make in advance

Sale-forward statics. The blunt ones. Last year the category went as big as the canvas allowed, a whole frame reading “30% OFF,” for example. You can’t rehearse these during the year because you have nothing to put in them, and once everyone is doing it the job is being legible inside that wall rather than joining it.

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Whatever pops mid-week. Last year the fake corporate apology format took off on organic and we shipped a Toybox version fast. Save some space for the trends that we won’t see emerge until the moment is here.

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The calendar

• September: pull your top performers of the year and start the seasonal versions. You already know what they are.
• By October 31: the 80% is ready to ship.
• Through November: prep your sales statics and monitor the market to take your big bets.
• Approaching sell-out: stop launching. Have your Media Buyers ease off the gas so the delayed conversions can land and ROAS can climb.

If you’re not running a promo, still show up

Maybe you don’t have an offer, and BFCM isn’t really a factor for your brand. You can probably still turn the season to your advantage, and the same formula above applies.

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I work closely with a residential cleaning brand that has never run a holiday-focused promo. But every year we make content for the moment, and every year it outperforms our BAU content.

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Part of that is your audience has already started thinking about the season. They’re consuming and creating content that naturally has the seasonal dressing on it, if you will.

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The other part is the algorithm. An enormous number of conversions are happening on ads that scream BFCM; they look and feel a certain way. And so Meta has a pretty good idea how to find the people who are responding to it. Use that to your advantage!

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And beyond that, our behavior changes at this time of year. We’re hosting, we’re cleaning, we’re shopping, we’re traveling. A brand that understands that and empathizes with the stresses and the joys that shift causes is going to win no matter what its product is, even without an offer. Meet your audience where they’re at.

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After the weekend

This is the time to go hard on organic. Repost the reactions, the unboxings, the stuff that creates value and connection and joy for the audience you just acquired. And compare notes with your strategist on what other brands were doing: what did they do well that you can learn from, and vice versa. It’s time to start planning for 2027.

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The short version

• Roughly eight in ten BFCM concepts should be proven winners with a seasonal treatment. Two or three out of ten, net new.
• Start tailoring now. The 80% should be ready to ship by October 31.
• The treatment is festive dressing plus a clear offer: music, colors, b-roll, and the discount worked in as early as you can.
• Don’t pause always-on or BAU ads that are performing with no seasonal dressing. Keep both live.
• Save the 20% for sale-forward statics and the trends you won’t see until the moment arrives.
• As you approach sell-out, stop launching and let the delayed conversions land.
• No offer is no reason to sit out. Your customer’s behavior changes even if your offer doesn’t.
• After the weekend, go hard on organic and start taking notes for next year.

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