What sets brands apart during BFCM?

BFCM is changing. The rise of AI search and skyrocketing CAC mean that customers who do connect with your brand are more precious than ever. Once they’re on your site, app, or in-store, you have two choices:

• Sell them a product or two.

• Increase your chances of selling those products AND supercharge your revenue growth – not just during BFCM but in the following months and years.

That’s the difference a loyalty program can make. Fast-growth brands like Au Vodka and P&Co have been using them to drive BFCM advantage for years. But what are the proven tactics for a BFCM that drives long-term revenue gains in 2025?

We’ve crunched the numbers from 600k orders, surveyed 4,000 consumers, and analyzed top industry trends to find out 👇

Should you launch a loyalty program before BFCM 2025?

“Yes! Even the freshest new programs reap the rewards and drive a significant uplift in total revenue during BFCM. In fact, a brand that launched just in time for BFCM and achieved excellent results is Au Vodka.”

Luana Stoica, Onboarding Team Lead, LoyaltyLion

How can BFCM drive longer-term impact on revenue?

“BFCM offers typically burn bright for a short amount of time, but when integrated with a loyalty program, their impact is lengthened. Positioning the program and its benefits as part of your exciting BFCM promotions encourages shoppers to give their data to unlock the best experience. This unlocks the lucrative ability for you to communicate with them long-term.”

Hannah Gill, Partnerships Executive, LoyaltyLion

What rewards do customers want during BFCM?

“Not sure what incentives are working best during BFCM? Why not poll your program members? You can even award points for taking part in the survey. By asking members, you can unlock invaluable insights about what rewards and activities to drop, or which you could put even more effort into promoting for top results.”

Harriet Bingham, Director of Customer Success, LoyaltyLion

What makes BFCM messages most impactful?

“Communicating with your loyalty program members is far from a heavy lift. With advanced integrations that automatically pull loyalty data about points, rewards, and tier status through to your ESP, all you need to do is dream up the next exciting BFCM offer to shout about! Check out amazing examples of automated BFCM loyalty comms below.”

Sathiya Raveendran, Customer Support Executive, LoyaltyLion

How can you maximize revenue after BFCM?

“Brands that don’t have a program will be relying on revenue gained during the event to power the following months. But if you’ve enrolled members in a program, you’ve kickstarted a recurring cycle of repeat purchasing that increases CLV as it lowers CPO – the route to real revenue growth.”

Rossano Bhandal, Principal Account Manager, LoyaltyLion

Economic uncertainty

It’s steering shoppers towards brands offering reassurance and value. Our new research found 71% of consumers are more likely to join loyalty programs during turbulent times, rising to 81% among Millennials. The impact of tariffs hasn’t died down yet, so neither have trends around discount-hunting and subscriber churn.

The solution: Pull your customers away from competitor discounts by emphasizing the financial and non-financial benefits of joining your program during BFCM. 10% off AND a free product reward? Count us in!

Customer acquisition costs are still rising

With ad costs at their most competitive ever, securing new customers will come at a very high price this BFCM. Ask yourself: are we getting the best value from our existing customers?

The solution: Focusing on retention for revenue growth is what many Shopify brands are already doing this BFCM – in fact, if you don’t have a program already, you’re in the minority. 

AI will impact search traffic

The rules of SEO are well and truly changing. Brands are asking themselves:

1. Is the volume of new visitors to our site down? 
2. What is AI’s perception of the customer sentiment about our brand?
3. Can shoppers find our BFCM promotions via AI search?

The solution: All of these factors mean typical traffic volumes to your site during BFCM could change this year. Are you prepared with a reliable strategy to increase revenue from retained customers instead?

Starting with points-incentivized reviews could also help raise your brand’s profile in AI search results – 70% of customers would be happy to leave a review for points.