11.11 and 12.12 are the campaigns where marketplace sales peak for the year, so many shops increase their ad budgets at the same time, raising competition and pushing up cost per click. Shops that prepare 4–6 weeks ahead have an advantage over those that only start advertising on campaign day.
4–6 weeks before: get your shop ready
- 1Optimise product images, product names and keywords so they're easy to find in search
- 2Collect enough reviews for your key products, because people decide based on reviews
- 3Set up promotions and discount codes in advance, and check you have enough stock
- 4Test several ads with a small budget to learn which products and keywords drive sales
1–3 weeks before: warm up and build interest
Increase budget for products that tested well, encourage people to follow your shop and add products to their cart or wishlist, and run off-platform ads on Facebook or TikTok to drive people to your shop. These are the people most likely to buy on campaign day.
Campaign day: push budget in the golden hours
Sales usually spike right after midnight and when the platform releases discount codes. Set a high enough daily budget and keep checking that it doesn't run out before peak buying times. Check ROAS regularly, and if a product isn't paying off, move its budget to best-sellers immediately.
After the campaign: don't stop yet
Retarget people who visited your shop but didn't buy, and follow up with new customers to review their products. Reviews collected now will make your shop easier to sell in the next campaign.
Don't forget to have enough admins to answer chats, because many people message with questions before buying on campaign day. If you reply slowly, customers will buy from another shop straight away.
Summary
Sales on 11.11 and 12.12 don't come from one day's budget. They come from preparing your shop, testing and building interest in advance. Shops that start now will get more value from their budget than those that wait until campaign day.