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Forecast: Electronic retailers to see largest uplift in Black Friday sales

November 22, 2024

Electronic retailers could be in for bumper sales this Black Friday [November 29th] after figures show the sector is expected to see a big uplift in web traffic this year.

Digital PR agency Tank analysed keywords for over 150 retailers from November 2023 to October 2024 to reveal which companies and products are set to dominate search results – putting them in poll position to generate sales.

It comes following growing criticism that Google updates are directing more online traffic to news sites with affiliate links, rather than retailers’ pages – potentially disadvantaging even big brands. However, with Google announcing a November core update on November 11th, businesses will be paying an even closer eye on visibility and traffic in the coming weeks.

Google’s LinkedIn page provided some rationale behind the update, noting: ““This update is designed to continue our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on Search.”

Electronics topped the list after fashion, with an expected 76 per cent increase in web traffic this Black Friday. Tech giant Apple is currently set to receive the biggest jump in website traffic compared to last year at 270 per cent, followed by Lenovo (255 per cent) and Very (185 per cent).

Tank’s Black Friday Readiness Report also revealed the sectors that could struggle to be seen against news sites or affiliate content. Furniture has seen the biggest drop in organic traffic compared to last year, followed by fitness and sporting equipment.

Fashion topped the list with an expected 123 per cent increase in web traffic this Black Friday. High street favourite Marks & Spencer is currently set to receive the biggest jump in website traffic compared to last year at 1,456 per cent.

John Lewis & Partners and IKEA are also seemingly staying ahead of Google’s updates with traffic set to increase by 134 per cent and 28 per cent, respectively.

Martin Harris, head of digital at Tank, commented: “Fierce competition is standard during events like Black Friday and while retailers probably didn’t expect to be competing with news sites in search engine results, they can stand out by maintaining high positions in organic search. Not only can they drive traffic to their website and improve sales, they can take back traffic and revenue from affiliate content.  This year, the run up to Black Friday is even more important  – particularly given the rollout of a new Google core update – as sales are expected to rise dramatically. It’s never too late – retailers still have time to strategise and improve visibility, whether that’s creating Black Friday keyword content, implementing paid ads or social media marketing. It’s important that businesses do not resort to a knee jerk reaction should they see a decline in visibility and to refer to Google’s guidelines when it comes to producing content; focusing on elements such as original insight to ensure its people-first as opposed to over search engine-first content”.

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