Pricing & PromotionsBFCM

Black Friday Cyber Monday

The four days from Black Friday, the day after US Thanksgiving, through Cyber Monday: the biggest sales weekend of the year for most online stores.

2 min readLast updated Nov 2026
Reviewed by Golden Digital·Operator-reviewed ecommerce reference

Use our free Marketing Calendar Planner to map out your BFCM promotions and the weeks around them.

Why It Matters

A discount lowers the margin on every order, and a lower margin raises the return on ad spend (ROAS) you need just to break even. Brands that keep their usual ROAS target through BFCM can sell more than ever and still lose money on the weekend. Planning the offer and the ad budget together is what keeps the busiest weekend profitable.

Practical Example

Scenario

You sell a $60 product that costs you $24 to make and ship, so your margin is 60%. For BFCM you run 25% off, which drops the price to $45.

Calculation

Everyday break-even ROAS = 1 / 0.60 = 1.67x. BFCM margin = ($45 − $24) / $45 = 46.7%. BFCM break-even ROAS = 1 / 0.467 = 2.14x

Result

The same ads now have to return $2.14 for every $1 just to cover the product, up from $1.67. A campaign at 2x ROAS that was profitable in October loses money on every BFCM order.

In-Depth Explanation

Shoppers arrive expecting a deal, so most brands run their deepest promotion of the year. Ad costs climb too, because every brand bids for the same attention at once. That squeeze from both sides, lower margin per order and higher cost per click, is why BFCM needs its own numbers rather than your everyday ones.

Pro Tips

  • 1Work out your BFCM break-even ROAS from the sale price before you set the discount, not after.
  • 2Build your email and SMS list in the weeks before. Selling to people who already know you costs far less than buying new clicks that weekend.
  • 3Plan stock and shipping cut-offs early, and say them clearly on the site so the order surge does not turn into a support surge.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Keeping your everyday ROAS target while running a deep discount.
Starting the promotion cold, with no warm-up content or early-access list to carry it.
Discounting your best sellers so deeply that the weekend moves volume but leaves no profit.

Frequently asked questions

Black Friday Cyber Monday. It covers the four days from Black Friday, the day after US Thanksgiving, through the following Monday. Many brands now start their offers earlier in the week or run them through the whole of November.

Start from your margin at the sale price. Divide 1 by that margin to get the ROAS (return on ad spend) your ads need to break even, then check that your ads can realistically clear it. If they cannot, use a smaller discount, a gift with purchase or a spend threshold instead of a flat cut.

Put it to work

Related Terms

Flash Sale

Limited-time discount creating urgency. Typically 24-48 hours with deep discounts.

Discount Code

Alphanumeric codes customers enter at checkout to receive a discount.

Tiered Discount

Increasing discount percentages at higher spending thresholds.

Break-Even ROAS

The lowest return on ad spend (ROAS) at which your ads pay for the product costs of the sales they bring in, so you neither make nor lose money on the first order.

Gift with PurchaseGWP

Offering a free item when customers spend above a threshold.

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