Black Friday Trends Every Shopify Brand Should Know in 2025

With Black Friday just a few weeks away, most Shopify brands that are veterans of Cyber Week are already preparing. What may have once started as a single-day shopping event is no longer so simple; it’s a global e-commerce powerhouse driving billions in sales each year, and a clear defining moment for many Shopify ecommerce brands.

In 2024, U.S. online sales on Black Friday alone reached $10.8 billion—a 10% increase YoY— and the trajectory when it comes to Black Friday ecommerce has been fairly consistent over the years, meaning 2025 is set to break even more records.

Before we delve into trends, it’s essential to acknowledge that consumer behavior has undergone a significant shift—they now look beyond a slashed price and are more digitally savvy, are highly value-driven, and expect seamless brand experiences and services. This means that successful Black Friday ecommerce strategies in 2025 require not just a discount, but also smart personalization, innovative ecommerce technology, and trust-building tactics that strengthen long-term loyalty rather than just a one-off purchase.

In this article by Ecommerce Pro, we’re helping your brand stay competitive, with 10 Black Friday ecommerce trends every brand should know in 2025, backed by real data and insights.

More from the Blog:  The Ultimate Shopify BFCM 2025 Guide: Master Your BFCM Sales Prep

1. Mobile Shopping Dominates

It’s really no surprise that mobile continues to dominate Black Friday ecommerce. When it comes to shopping, convenience tops everything. Imagine this: shoppers are scrolling through deals while being sat on the couch, comparing prices between apps and sites, and checking out while waiting in line for coffee, or on the bus—all from their cellphones. Mobile phones mean you can shop anywhere at any time, even while doing other things.

In Black Friday 2024, mobile accounted for over 80% of US traffic, with $5.9 billion worth of sales completed on mobile devices. It’s clear that consumers now shop primarily from their phones, and this highlights a clear priority for Shopify ecommerce brands—mobile is more important than the desktop experience. As for brands without a mobile-first design, they risk losing customers to competitors daily. 

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

Mobile is king, so Shopify brands need to focus on a lightning-fast experience to go with how fast modern phones and apps perform in 2025. Even a few seconds of delay can cost you the sale. Simplify checkout so shoppers can buy in just a tap or two, no matter where they are.

2. Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Keeps Growing

BNPL helps you make the sale. Having the option of flexible payment eases the hesitation at checkout, and for a lot of shoppers, BNPL options have quickly become an expectation.

Shoppers, especially younger ones, are turning to flexible payment options to help spread out the cost of purchases without interest. In 2024, BNPL spending grew 8.8% YoY, generating $686 million on Black Friday alone. For Shopify brands, this surge highlights a powerful truth: affordability is what’s driving conversions.

BNPL options are also phenomenal for brands that sell high-ticket items, which shoppers tend to hesitate to buy outright. With BNPL, suddenly, the item feels attainable when broken down into smaller, manageable, monthly payments. This unlocks sales opportunities that may have otherwise been lost.

Beyond just affordability, BNPL also creates psychological ease. Shoppers feel like they’re making a smarter choice, keeping their budgets intact while still treating themselves or buying gifts. That reassurance is valuable.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

Don’t let cost be the reason customers walk away and abandon their carts—offering BNPL and digital wallet options can give hesitant shoppers the confidence to hit “buy now.” Flexible payments make your products feel more accessible, especially for high-ticket items. Position BNPL as a convenience, not just a feature. Check out these BNPL options:  Affirm, Afterpay, and Klarna. 

More from the Blog: Maximize 2025 Holiday Sales with a Shopify Retainer on Your Team

3. AI & Generative AI Supercharge Conversions

Artificial intelligence, or AI, used to be a buzzword and future possibility, but AI is now here, and it’s a practical tool for many, especially in ecommerce, and it can now directly impact Black Friday performance.

From product recommendations to customer service chatbots, AI helps brands deliver faster and smarter experiences to customers. Generative AI (AI that generates content), in particular, is powering everything from ad and product description copy to automated, personalized email campaigns—features that can boost your Black Friday ecommerce strategy.

For customers, this means seeing deals that feel tailor-made for them. That level of personalization not only drives conversions but also builds loyalty, because shoppers feel understood.

AI also helps brands handle customer service more efficiently with the help of chatbots. During Black Friday, the need for customer service tends to ramp up, and having a dedicated chatbot in place helps customers get answers to questions and concerns instantly.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:
Lean into AI tools that help you streamline your Shopify business’s operations.  Use them for smarter recommendations, segmented emails, and to handle customer service. When shoppers feel like your store “gets” them, they’re more likely to hit checkout.

4. Black Friday Sales Break Records

Every year, Black Friday outdoes itself—and it's been a fairly consistent trend. As we mentioned in the intro, in 2024, ecommerce Black Friday sales in the US  alone reached $10.8 billion, a 10% increase. The momentum is fairly clear: Black Friday isn’t slowing down, because brands aren't slowing down their Black Friday ecommerce strategies, and, for brands that prepare, it’s likely going to be a lucrative opportunity for Shopify Brands in 2025.

For Shopify merchants, this surge wasn’t just about more sales; it was about scale. Shopify reported record-breaking traffic across its merchants’ stores during BFCM 2024, and they made $11.5 billion in global sales.

The key takeaway? These record-breaking sales, while consistent, aren’t accidental—they’re powered by merchants who prepare early, build strong campaigns, and ensure their online stores can perform under peak pressure.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:
Expect 2025 to set new records, and build your operations around that assumption. Test your site’s load speeds, optimize checkout flows, and forecast inventory with analytics tools. If your store is slow or unreliable, you risk losing your share of this surge to better-prepared competitors.

5. Social Commerce Shapes Shopping Journeys

Black Friday ecommerce isn’t limited to online stores anymore—social media has become a massive shopping destination. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook power many purchase decisions—and it’s where a lot of shoppers get “influenced” and plan their future purchases.

Today, social media has built-in shopping features with checkout options, many of which integrate seamlessly with Shopify. In 2024, TikTok Shop tripled its US shopping sales, topping over $100 million on Black Friday, proving that social commerce is here to stay and that it can be a great revenue source for Black Friday ecommerce.

For Shopify brands, it’s an opportunity to meet customers where they already spend their time— and this is easily done by integrating your website with social media.

Influencer collaborations, shoppable posts, and live selling events attract both new and returning buyers—especially Gen Z and Millennials, who prefer to shop within their favorite apps.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:
Don’t let your brand sleep on the power of social media. For Black Friday 2024, create shoppable content and meet customers on their favorite social media apps. Use Shopify’s social commerce integrations to leverage the power and influence social media already has on consumers, and start driving conversions directly inside social apps. The easier you make it for shoppers to buy on the spot, the more sales you’ll capture.

6. Free & Fast Shipping Remains a Deal Maker/Breaker

Shoppers expect free and fast shipping—for many, it’s the norm, and not the exception, especially on Black Friday.

During Black Friday, when every brand is competing for attention, offering paid shipping results in cart abandonment. Slow shipping also has a similar effect. From a shopper’s perspective, when a brand doesn’t offer free and fast shipping, they think of another brand that does. According to studies, up to 77% of online shoppers abandoned their cart because of unfavorable shipping options, whereas 84% are likely to make a purchase when they qualify for free shipping. 

Imagine this: your potential customer has scored a discount, and now they expect to receive it quickly and at no extra cost. Any friction here—like hidden shipping fees—can sour the experience and lead to lost sales.

For Shopify merchants, meeting the expectation of free and fast shipping is important. Offering a minimum spend threshold to reach a free shipping option or partnering with shipping and fulfillment solutions can help absorb the cost while still satisfying customers.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

Make shipping a strength, not a weakness. Use Shopify Shipping or Shopify Fulfillment Network to be upfront about delivery times, offer free shipping where possible, and communicate clearly with shoppers. When customers know they’ll get their order quickly and without hidden costs, they’re far more likely to complete the purchase.

7. Product Pages Outperform Homepages

Shoppers aren’t starting their journey on the homepage anymore. Many online shopping sessions started on product pages compared to homepages, which means shoppers are discovering products from search engines, ads, and social media, landing directly on PDPs instead of your storefront’s welcome page.

For Shopify merchants, this changes the game from being homepage-focused. If a shopper’s first impression of your brand is a product page, that page needs to do most of the heavy lifting.

Product pages need to communicate trust, show clear benefits, and make the path to purchase seamless. 10% of customers feel that product content is often insufficient for user needs, so optimizing each product page for SEO, improving product descriptions, adding compelling visuals, and building in reviews all matter more than ever, because customers are less likely to navigate the home page.

Homepage design—while still important—is no longer the primary driver of conversions. Your product pages are now the storefront.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

It’s time to regard the PDP with a higher sense of respect and audit your Shopify product pages for speed, SEO, and clarity. Ensure each PDP answers key buyer questions without forcing a detour to other parts of your site. Invest in rich media like videos or 360-degree images, and highlight shipping and return policies right on the page to remove friction.

Not sure where to start with optimization? Our Shopify Website Audit pinpoints exactly what’s holding your Shopify store back. Book your audit today and get your store Black Friday-ready.

8. Black Friday Is No Longer Just One Day

What may have started as a one-day sale event is no longer. Research shows that as many as 24% of shoppers plan to shop sales earlier, with many retailers launching promotions as early as the first week of November. Sometimes, these sales are exclusive events for loyal brand members.

For Shopify merchants, this extended season represents both opportunity and challenge: the sales window is bigger, but competition for attention is fiercer. Essentially, consumers have learned to expect early discounts and have time to shop around.

If your Shopify store waits until Thanksgiving weekend to promote, you risk losing customers who have already completed their purchases with competitors earlier in the month. Early promotions also allow brands to spread out demand, reducing logistical strain during peak days.

This shift underscores the importance of planning your Black Friday campaign well in advance.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

Launch teasers and pre-Black Friday deals weeks in advance to capture early demand. Use Shopify’s scheduling tools to roll out promotions gradually, and consider segmenting your email campaigns to reward loyal customers with early access. By getting ahead of the rush, you’ll avoid being drowned out during the peak noise of Cyber Week.

9. Bounce Rates Are Rising

As Black Friday traffic grows, bounce rates also grow with it—and it's to be expected. However, for some brands, it’s a sign that their user experience is lagging. In 2024, bounce rates rose by 3.8% from 2023, showing that while shoppers are landing on ecommerce sites, they’re leaving before completing a purchase.

Why does this matter? Because every abandoned session is a missed revenue opportunity. The truth is, shoppers during Black Friday are impatient—they have endless tabs open, and are constantly price-checking across multiple sites, waiting for sales to drop. If your store doesn’t deliver an ultra-smooth, distraction-free experience within the first seconds, they’re likely to leave.

The main culprits? Slow load times, cluttered pages, and a complicated checkout.

For Shopify merchants wanting to do Black Friday ecommerce right, optimizing site performance, streamlining navigation, and removing friction at every step are critical if you want your Black Friday traffic to convert into sales.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:
Before a big event like Black Friday, we always highlight the importance of auditing your ecommerce shop. Audit your store for speed, eliminate unnecessary pop-ups, and simplify checkout to just a few taps. Consider adding guest checkout options and digital wallet integrations (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay) so buyers can complete purchases instantly. Remember, every click saved is a bounce prevented.

10. Trust & Loyalty Still Matter Most

Building trust still matters most when it comes to making the sale. While discounts may drive clicks, at the end of the day, it’s trust that drives conversions. Even during the chaos of Black Friday, shoppers are still choosing brands they feel secure buying from— and this is something that takes time to build.

Why? Because Black Friday has also become a high-risk event. For Shopify brands, building trust isn’t just about security badges—it’s about the entire customer experience. Shoppers want to know: Can I return this easily? Will it arrive on time? Do I feel confident giving this site my money? If the answer is “yes” to all three, your chances of winning the sale skyrocket.

At the same time, loyalty programs are seeing a surge in use. During Black Friday, loyal customers are not only more likely to open your emails and shop your deals first, but they’re also more likely to spend more per order. Offering exclusive early access or special rewards can turn bargain hunters into long-term brand advocates. Studies show that  38% of consumers remain loyal to the brands they buy from during Black Friday, showing how trust and loyalty programs can turn seasonal sale-driven purchases into long-term relationships between brand and customer.

Black Friday Ecommerce Strategy:

Put loyalty and trust at the center of your campaign, not just to serve Black Friday ecommerce, but across the calendar year, because it takes time to build trust. During Black Friday, make sure to highlight transparent return and refund policies directly on your product pages so shoppers feel reassured before they buy. Lastly, leverage your loyalty program by giving members exclusive early access to your biggest deals or extra rewards points during Black Friday—making them feel valued and more likely to repeat purchases.

Winning Black Friday Ecommerce 2025 

Black Friday in 2025 isn’t just about offering the biggest discounts you can manage—it’s about understanding how shoppers actually behave, what they value most, and how to turn a short-term surge into long-term growth, fueled by brand loyalty and trust.

From mobile-first shopping to flexible payment options and trust-driven loyalty programs, the brands that win aren’t the ones with the lowest price, but the ones providing a seamless, reliable, and personalized customer experience that inspires them to come back.

For Shopify merchants, the lesson the stats present is clear: prepare for Black Friday ecommerce early, optimize to the T, and focus on building relationships that last well beyond Black Friday and Cyber Week.

Get your Shopify store Black Friday 2025 ready! Maximize sales this Black Friday with Ecommerce Pro expert Shopify support. Contact Ecommerce Pro today.