If you’ve ever felt the pressure of scrambling to launch a last-minute Black Friday sale, you know how stressful and ineffective it can be. That’s why this year, I’m focusing on Black Friday 2025 email segmentation with Flodesk and Showit—a simple but powerful strategy that helps me identify my warmest leads months in advance.
In this blog post (YouTube video and podcast episode), I’ll walk you through how I’m using Flodesk to create targeted email segments and Showit to design confirmation pages that prime my audience early, so when November arrives, I already know exactly who’s ready to buy. By segmenting your audience months in advance, you’ll know exactly who’s interested in your Black Friday offers—and you’ll be able to nurture them with intentional emails well before November.
Most small business owners make the mistake of waiting until the week before Thanksgiving to announce their sale. But that’s the most oversaturated time of year—your emails are competing with hundreds of others, and the algorithm likely buries your social media posts.
Instead, think of Black Friday as a pre-launch runway. By starting in August or September, you can:
Identify your warmest leads through email segmentation
Prime your audience with consistent, intentional messaging
Avoid the chaos of last-minute marketing
Increase conversions when your offer finally drops
For me, that looks like preparing my branding photography Black Friday special months in advance. My goal? To fill my slower season (January + February) with high-value branding clients while serving my warm audience well.
Flodesk is my email platform of choice, and it makes segmentation so simple. Here’s what I did:
Logged into Flodesk and created a new segment called “Branding Photography 2025 Black Friday Interest.”
Sent an email to my list with a teaser about my upcoming Black Friday special.
Added a clickable link with a link action that automatically placed anyone who clicked into this new segment.
That way, my audience is self-segmenting—only those genuinely interested in my Black Friday offer are added to this group.
Once someone clicks the link in my email, they’re redirected to a custom Showit confirmation page.
Here’s what mine says:
“Thank you for showing interest in my Black Friday branding photography specials for 2025! You’ll be the first to hear when details are released.”
This page not only confirms their interest but also builds anticipation. Pro tip: Don’t forget to update your SEO settings, meta description, and page title in Showit so the page works for you on the backend too.
Now that I know who’s interested, I can send specific pre-launch emails just to that segment between August and November. Instead of flooding my entire list with Black Friday promos, I’m delivering targeted value to the people most likely to purchase.
For example, I add a small P.S. line in my weekly emails:
“Interested in my upcoming Black Friday branding photography offer? Click here to make sure you’re on the early access list.”
This gentle approach primes my audience without feeling salesy—and ensures they’re already excited when my Black Friday deal opens.
When I tested this strategy in 2024, I was surprised at how quickly spots filled for my branding photography packages. And because I started segmenting and priming early, I avoided the stress of chasing clients in January and February.
By warming up my audience months in advance, I positioned my Black Friday deal as a valuable, time-sensitive opportunity rather than a desperate last-minute sale.
Here’s how you can get started today:
Pick one service you’d like to promote for Black Friday. (Don’t discount everything—focus on a strategic offer!)
Create a new email segment in your platform of choice.
Build a simple confirmation page on your website.
Start priming your audience now with intentional messaging.
Use survey links or multiple offers early on to gauge interest and finalize your Black Friday package.
Remember: this strategy isn’t limited to photographers. Whether you’re a designer, educator, or service provider, segmentation is applicable across various industries.
Black Friday doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. By segmenting your email list now using tools like Flodesk and Showit, you’ll be able to step into November knowing precisely who you’re serving confidently—and how to speak directly to their needs.
So grab a quiet hour, set up your segment and confirmation page, and start priming your audience today. Future you (and your Q1 calendar) will thank you!
✉️ Flodesk (get 50% off your first year) → https://flodesk.com/c/DOLLYDELONGEDUCATION
🌐 Showit (get 1 month free) → https://showit.com/r/40ggld0m
How to Use Flodesk for a Black Friday Launch
Hi! I’m Dolly DeLong—a Nashville-based family photographer turned systems + marketing educator and Fractional CMO for family photographers and solo business owners. After years of juggling motherhood, running a thriving family photography business, and helping other creatives behind the scenes with their launches and marketing, I realized something: the backend matters just as much as your booking calendar.
Now, I serve two kinds of faith-driven creatives:
Family photographers who want to stop ghosting their audience and finally stay consistent with Instagram + email marketing.
Solo business owners who have a digital offer they want to launch—but feel completely overwhelmed by the pre-launch phase
Through my weekly podcast, YouTube channel, and blog, I offer strategic (but doable) content on systems, workflows, launch planning, and consistent marketing rhythms that won’t burn you out.
I’m here to help you stop duct-taping your backend together and instead build systems that support your life and values—whether you’re marketing mini sessions or launching a course.
When I’m not strategizing a launch calendar or batch recording content during nap time, you can find me photographing families in and around Nashville, watching reruns of Survivor, eating something sweet, or walking with a podcast in my ears. (Yes, I’m that girl.)
Are you Ready to finally market with intention and launch with clarity?
Let’s get started—because you don’t have to do this alone.
👉 Work with me to plan out your launch
👉 If you are a family photographer needing marketing help click here
Unlock the secrets to a well-organized and strategic launch with this must-have checklist designed for small business owners who need guidance on the essential puzzle pieces of a launch!
Need help growing your email list? Start with a Lead Magnet! As a launch strategist, I advise focusing on email list growth in all launch phases,
including pre-launch.
Don't go home empty handed!