Black Friday and Holiday Giveaways: Plan Them Now
It's the end of September. Halloween decorations are just appearing, and the holidays still feel distant. But for small businesses, the busiest stretch of the year is close: Thanksgiving is on November 26, Black Friday on November 27 and Cyber Monday on November 30. After that, the run-up to the winter holidays moves fast.
If you want a giveaway to be part of that season, now is the time to plan it. Once November arrives, you'll be busy with orders, stock and customer questions. Here's how to get your holiday giveaways sorted while you still have breathing room.
Why plan this early?
- Prizes take time. Ordering stock, making handmade items or arranging a partner prize can take weeks.
- Shipping gets slower. Carriers are busier in late November and December. A prize meant as a holiday gift needs to arrive in time.
- Your feed gets crowded. Many brands post offers in late November. A planned giveaway with good content stands out more than a rushed one.
- You'll have less time later. Writing rules and designing posts is easier in September than in the middle of your busiest week.
Decide what role the giveaway plays
A holiday giveaway can do different jobs. Pick one before you choose a prize:
- Warm-up. Run a giveaway in early November to grow your audience before your Black Friday offer. More people will see the sale when it starts.
- Thank-you. Run it after Black Friday to thank customers and followers for a busy year.
- Gift-giving help. Give away something entrants could give as a present, and promote it as a chance to "win your holiday shopping".
- Countdown series. Several small giveaways over a few weeks, each with its own prize and winner.
A planning timeline
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Late September | Choose the giveaway's role, dates and prize; contact any partners |
| Early October | Order or make prizes; write rules; check your shipping cutoff dates |
| Mid to late October | Photograph prizes; write captions; prepare stories and reminders |
| Early November | Launch a warm-up giveaway if you're running one |
| Late November to December | Run your thank-you or series giveaways; draw and ship with time to spare |
Check your carriers' holiday shipping deadlines once they're published and work backwards from them.
Prize ideas for the season
- A gift set of your products, wrapped and ready to give.
- "Win for you and a friend": two of the same prize, one to keep and one to give.
- Store credit to spend in your Black Friday sale.
- A holiday bundle with partner businesses whose products fit with yours.
- Early access to your sale, as a bonus prize for runners-up.
Keep the giveaway separate from the sale
It's tempting to say "buy something to enter". Requiring a purchase to enter can change how a promotion is treated in many places, and platforms have their own rules. Keeping entry free and separate from your sale is usually simpler. As always, this is general guidance, not legal advice; check your local rules and the platform's promotion guidelines.
Running a giveaway series
If you're planning a series, such as a giveaway every week in December, a little structure helps:
- Use a separate post for each giveaway, with its own end date and winner.
- Decide whether one person can win more than once. If not, add past winners to the block list (Silver and up) before each new draw.
- Use the same branding on every result (Gold and up) so the series looks consistent.
- Keep a simple log of each draw: post, date, winner and substitutes.
Prepare for bigger comment counts
Holiday giveaways can attract more entries than usual. Check that your plan covers the likely volume: Free loads up to 600 comments, Silver up to 2,000, Gold up to 5,000 and Platinum is unlimited. If you'll run the same giveaway on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and TikTok, Platinum's multi-network option combines entries into one draw. Compare plans on the pricing page.
Plan the reveal, too
A holiday reveal can be festive. Record the draw with the countdown, post the winner certificate, and follow up with a photo of the wrapped prize heading out. Always pick substitutes in the same draw. In December, nobody wants to wait days for a reply before running another draw.
Your to-do list for this week
- Pick one role for your holiday giveaway.
- Choose dates for launch, deadline and draw.
- Decide on the prize and order it.
- Note your shipping cutoff.
Four small decisions now will save you a lot of stress in November. When the time comes, run your holiday draw on RaffleSelect.