How to build a better, more personal omnichannel strategy for BFCM 2026

September 21, 2026

Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) 2026 are shaping up to be more complex than ever. Shoppers know what they want and expect brands to deliver experiences that feel personal and connected. 

The old approach of sending more promotional messages, on more channels, no longer gets the job done. But the answer isn’t to send less. Now it’s about showing up in the right places, where your customers choose to spend their time, with messages that are timely, relevant, and helpful. 

According to Sinch’s 2026 BFCM consumer survey, 67% of consumers want brands to communicate across multiple channels this year. That number dropped from 72% last year and 78% in 2024. One third of consumers now want their promotions via just one channel, and while email leads, it was only picked by 37% of this group. The remaining 63% were spread across nine alternative channels, none above 15%. 

This decline signals a crucial shift from omnichannel messaging to “optimal” channel in customer communications. What’s optimal varies by customer, and getting it right means respecting each customer’s preferences, and using context to inform every message you send. 

The insights ahead come from extensive research, including Sinch’s 2026 BFCM consumer survey and The state of customer communications report. Let’s explore how to build an omnichannel strategy that delivers what your customers want this Black Friday shopping season. 

Omnichannel marketing isn’t what it used to be, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that today’s shoppers move fluidly between channels, comparing prices via email, researching via mobile, and discovering new products on social media. They expect brands to match their precision. 

Shoppers aren’t asking brands to be present on every channel, just on the ones they picked. According to our 2026 BFCM consumer survey, 77% of consumers value personalized offers, up four points from 2025, and 14% now say personalization feels invasive, down from 17%.  

What hasn’t shifted is the 42% who accept personalization only when it’s relevant. Channel choice is part of that relevance now. 

Just how ecommerce brands must balance personalization with privacy, marketers must respect consumer boundaries while still delivering relevance. The key lies in giving consumers control over their communication preferences. The state of customer communications found that 58% of consumers want to choose their preferred channel when they opt in to communications. They expect flexibility within boundaries they set themselves. 

The rise of AI adds another layer to this evolution. Consumers are more cautious than they were a year ago: 53% say they’d trust advice from a real person more than AI, up from 51% in 2025, and privacy or data use is still their number one concern about AI at 43%. 

Efficient brands will blend automation with empathy. Instead of hitting customers with messages on every platform, they’ll use email marketing when consumers are researching products, SMS marketing for time-sensitive deals and discount codes, and social media when they’re looking for inspiration. 

Getting the timing right and building real trust with shoppers will determine which brands win and which lose this BFCM. 

Our research shows that 58% of consumers want BFCM messaging to start at least one month before Black Friday. As many as 82% expect it to start at least two weeks out. That early demand has reshaped how retailers plan campaigns. Many online stores and direct-to-consumer brands now launch their BFCM campaigns weeks in advance to capture first-time buyers and build momentum. 

Beyond timing, trust is now the deciding factor in whether consumers open, click, and convert. Trust comes from being transparent in every message you send. Modern messaging channels like WhatsApp and RCS have verified sender profiles so customers know exactly who they’re hearing from. This verification builds trust and gives shoppers the confidence they need before clicking through or making a purchase. 

That demand for reliability used to mean covering more channels but not any more. Multichannel preference for promotional messages has fallen 11 points in two years, from 78% in 2024 to 72% in 2025 and 67% in 2026. For transactional messages, it has now slipped below half, from 52% in 2025 to 49% in 2026. 

Retailers who succeed understand that sending quality messages on the right channels for each customer is better than using every possible channel. Each message needs to add value while respecting customer preferences and communication boundaries. Focus on conversion rates and profitability rather than just sending more messages.  

Choosing the right channel for each stage of your customer’s journey makes all the difference between a smooth purchase and a frustrating dead end. 

Unlike multichannel strategies that keep each platform in its own silo, omnichannel strategies connect every interaction. Our research pinpoints which channels drive the best results at each stage of the BFCM customer journey. 

Email remains the dominant channel for holiday deal announcements, with 55% of consumers choosing it as their preferred method for hearing about BFCM promotions. Social media ads follow at 40% and websites at 36%. Email’s lead is not universal. In Mexico, email comes joint third with websites at 32%, behind social media ads at 58% and WhatsApp at 47%. 

Different generations have different expectations when it comes to the awareness stage: 

• Gen Z often discovers deals through social media before signing up for email lists. It’s the only generation that doesn’t put email first: social media ads lead at 58%, with email second at 49%. 
• Millennials are split, with 53% wanting promotions by email and 50% by social media ads, the narrowest gap of any generation. 
• 58% of Gen Xers like promotions sent via email but here’s no obvious second channel to lean on, which makes detailed email previews of upcoming sales worth the investment: clear categories, price comparisons, and organized lists they can review on their own time.  
• Boomers are the most email-led generation at 61% and only 59% value personalized messages. 

Of course, these findings could vary widely within your own customer base, and success will depend on what you know and learn about your audience. Email can stay the foundation, and then you can also layer on other channels that your customers actually prefer. 

During the consideration and purchase phases, relevance becomes everything. Around one third of consumers find irrelevant promotional messages frustrating, making targeted communication essential for keeping shoppers engaged rather than annoyed. In Sinch’s 2026 BFCM consumer survey, 42% of shoppers said they value personalized messages as long as they’re relevant. 

The key lies in personalization that helps people rather than scares them away. 

Useful personalization might include sending cart abandonment reminders with the specific items left behind, product recommendations based on browsing history, or personalized discount codes for subscribers based on their average order value (AOV). 

Invasive personalization crosses the line when messages reference too much personal information or make assumptions about lifestyle and income. 

SMS and messaging apps can excel during these critical stages. Quick order confirmations, shipping updates, and time-sensitive offers perform best through instant channels. Email works for detailed product comparisons and reviews, while retargeting campaigns can bring hesitant shoppers back to complete their purchase. 

Give shoppers the information they need exactly when they need it, using the channel they check most often during their decision-making process. 

Post-purchase communication needs to be quick and reliable above all else. A staggering 93% of shoppers say shipping updates are important during the holiday season. 75% expect those messages to arrive within five minutes of purchase, and 48% expect this immediately.

_{Sinch’s 2026 BFCM consumer survey shows 75% expect order confirmation within five minutes and 48% expect it immediately.}

Over half of shoppers now want their transactional messages on just one channel, and the chosen channel depends on the customer: 

•  49% of shoppers prefer multichannel delivery for customer updates and transactional alerts, down from 52% in 2025. 
• Email still leads for transactional messages at 72%, followed by SMS at 39% and WhatsApp at 28%. 

But post-purchase expectations don’t look the same everywhere. Channel preferences vary significantly by region, reflecting different digital cultures and regulations. WhatsApp leads in LATAM, where 68% of consumers say they want their order updates there. For all other regions, email still leads, and is strongest in the US at 82%. Email also holds firm in Europe at 72% but in APAC SMS comes out as the top preference.  

For brands selling globally, that diversity brings both opportunity and complexity. You have to both be present on the right channels and also know which channels your customers actually trust. The brands that get this right work with local experts and partners who understand regional preferences, privacy requirements, and compliance standards.

A diverse mix of channels will help you win, too, like a quick confirmation through a preferred messaging app, a detailed receipt by email they can save, and real-time shipping updates by text or phone notification. It’s good to have all the options available while giving your customers the ability to choose how they want to hear from you. Being flexible ensures customers stay informed without feeling overwhelmed, especially during the hectic holiday season.

Customer service during BFCM faces unprecedented volume spikes that can overwhelm even the most prepared customer support teams. Chatbots can help manage this peak demand, with 48% of shoppers saying they’d like to use AI chatbots for order tracking, and 81% confident AI can handle it. That confidence drops to 66% when the use case involves account changes, and 62% for payment and billing. 

These acceptance rates reveal an opportunity to handle routine inquiries efficiently while freeing human agents for complex issues. Chatbots excel at instant order status updates, return policy questions, and basic product information. They provide 24/7 availability when customers shop outside traditional business hours or across time zones. 

Use chatbots for simple questions and routine requests, then hand off complicated issues to real people. This keeps wait times short during the holiday rush while making sure customers with tricky problems get the personal help they need. Just be upfront about whether they’re talking to a bot or a person – transparency prevents unsubscribes and maintains customer trust. Shoppers will accept the handoff if it’s reliable. When asked about AI voice agents, 15% specifically call out the option to transfer to a human as key to trusting the technology. 

There’s no one-size-fits-all channel mix for BFCM success. Your optimal combination depends on understanding your specific audience demographics, shopping behaviors, and regional preferences. Test different channel combinations before the holiday rush hits, see what works, and adjust based on your own results.

Conversational commerce turns one-way marketing into actual conversations. Customers can ask questions, get help, and buy products directly in a chat without jumping to a different website or app. 

The shift has already happened behind the scenes. A remarkable 96% of retail leaders say they’re using conversational commerce for two-way customer communications. Shoppers are catching on too, with 52% saying they’ve noticed more two-way messaging from brands in the past year. As many as 93% of shoppers now say it’s important to be able to respond to or interact with post-purchase messages, and preference for plain text messages has fallen from 16% in 2025 to 11% in 2026. 

What makes conversational commerce work during BFCM? Speed and context. 

Customers can ask questions, get recommendations, and complete purchases without leaving their messaging app. AI handles simple queries instantly while remembering previous interactions. 

When combined with human agents for complex issues, this creates shopping experiences that feel more like chatting with a knowledgeable friend than navigating a website alone.

Picture Amanda, a busy parent shopping for BFCM deals. Three weeks before Black Friday, she gets an email preview of upcoming sales from her favorite electronics retailer. She clicks through, browses a few items, then closes the tab when life gets busy. 

The next day, she gets an SMS reminder about the items she viewed, with a 10% early-bird discount. She adds a tablet to her cart via the SMS link but doesn’t complete the purchase. 

A few hours later, a WhatsApp message arrives from the retailer’s verified business account with her saved cart and a quick video highlighting the tablet’s kid-friendly features. Amanda asks a chatbot about warranty options and receives and instant, clear answer. She completes her purchase right in WhatsApp. 

Minutes later, she receives: 

• A detailed email receipt with return policy information 
• A WhatsApp message confirming the delivery date and tracking link 

When she has a question about delivery timing, she messages the retailer on WhatsApp and gets connected to a human agent who can see her full purchase history. Post-BFCM, she receives a thank-you email with recommendations for accessories and an invitation to join the loyalty program for future holiday sales. 

This is what an omnichannel strategy looks like in action: connected, consistent, and customer-led. Behind the scenes, Sinch ties all channels together, so messages reach customers and follow local rules. It handles the technical heavy lifting of linking everything together and making sure messages get delivered, so brands can focus on creating great shopping experiences during BFCM. 

Put these strategies into practice now to prepare for the holiday shopping season. 

• Audit your channels: Map where your customers engage most and match each channel to a stated preference, rather than adding coverage for its own sake. 
• Start earlier than you think: 58% of shoppers want to hear from brands at least a month before Black Friday, so kick off your first campaign no later than October 27. 
• Integrate your tech stack: Connect your messaging platforms, CRM, and inventory systems for unified data. 
• Respect privacy: Let customers choose their preferred channels and frequency during opt-in. 
• Automate wisely: Use chatbots for order tracking and FAQs, but keep humans available for complex issues. 
• Optimize for conversions: Review your landing page performance, test pop-ups for email capture, and analyze how price and promotions affect both new customers and retention. 

Success this BFCM isn’t about maxing out your marketing budget across a dozen platforms. 

Start by asking your customers how they want to hear from you, then design every touchpoint around those choices. Send deal announcements by email, deliver order updates via text, and handle questions through chat. Retire the channels no one picked, not because shoppers want less, but because they want the right ones. 

This BFCM, remember that the opposite of more isn’t less, it’s right. The right message, at the right moment, on the right channel for each customer. The brands that understand that difference will stand out this Black Friday and Cyber Monday. 

For more data on customer preferences, channel performance, and regional differences around the year, read Sinch’s full State of customer communications report.