Across the demanding fintech and retail sector, data is the ultimate differentiator. But raw data alone doesn’t capture headlines or generate leads. It requires a strategic narrative to give it power.
A DUO Marketing and Communications client since 2023, Ecentric Payment Systems processes 20% of South Africa’s card transactions and serves as a trusted payments partner to 65% of the JSE-listed retailers, serving their in-store, online, mobile and omnichannel payments requirements.
In preparation for Ecentric’s upcoming 2nd Annual Black Friday / Cyber Monday (BF-CM) Index, the objective was clear:
- Establish Ecentric as a definitive industry voice through high-value data insights
- Build broad market awareness
- Fuel a high-performing lead generation pipeline.
DUO executed a multi-phase, fully integrated campaign across owned, earned, and paid media channels to dominate the holiday retail conversation.
The strategy: Moving from real-time commentary to retrospective authority
Building on the success of the 1st Index, DUO shifted the strategy for the 2025/2026 report toward deep retrospective analysis. Instead of simply reporting real-time numbers, we focused on the why behind the trends, unpacking critical shifts in transaction volumes vs. value, in-store vs. e-commerce performance, and peak time-of-day trading dynamics.
Phase 1: Pre-release (Securing the newsroom early)
To dominate the conversation, you have to start it.
- We re-engaged the market two months ahead of peak trading using “Throwback” insights from the 1st Index. We drafted and pitched a trend article: “The Black Friday Remix: What 2025 Will Look Like After a Rule-Changing 2024”.
- We extended industry reach by placing an exclusive thought leadership piece by Rory Bosman, Executive for Sales and Marketing at Ecentric, in the ITWeb Insights Column.
Phase 2: Index creation & strategic messaging
Working closely with Ecentric’s raw data, we focused on weaving crucial business topics into a highly professional downloadable document aligned tightly with Ecentric’s Corporate Identity. Topics included:
- The evolution of retail technology
- Omnichannel consumer habits
Phase 3: The integrated launch & amplification
Once the report was complete, we executed a coordinated rollout across the media landscape:
- Earned media: Pitched a core press release titled “Black Friday has become a strategy test for the retail sector” to premium business publications.
- Owned media: Designed and optimised a gated landing page on Ecentric’s website featuring an active BF-CM Index download pipeline.
- Paid media: Deployed highly targeted sponsored content with BizCommunity and high-impact Social Display advertising on Business24.
- Social amplification: Ran paid and organic LinkedIn campaigns using key visual assets to drive professional audiences directly to the BF-CM Index download page.
The results: Double the benchmarks, total share of voice
By initiating public relations and communications services and digital marketing activities well ahead of the holiday rush, Ecentric independently captured and led the narrative before, during, and long after the peak Black Friday-Cyber Monday shopping weekend wrapped up.
Comparing the baseline metrics of the previous index to this campaign highlights a monumental leap in media and awareness growth:
- Independent references increased from 2 in 2024 to 44 in 2025, showing that newsrooms relied on Ecentric’s data for their own editorial content.
- Published content increased from 43 articles to 77 published articles across mainstream networks (including Business Report, Eyewitness News, IOL, TechCentral, and Sunday Tribune).
- Published content generated a reach of 27.1 million impressions, cementing unmatched brand authority during South Africa’s most critical retail window.
- Digital performance that exceeded benchmarks
Our paid media strategy targeted niche retail and tech decision-makers with incredible efficiency:
- The Business24 Social Display campaign generated 150,084 impressions and 1,556 direct clicks.
- This resulted in a 1.04% Click-Through Rate (CTR), exceeding the industry benchmark of 0.50% by delivering more than double the expected performance.
- High-value web traffic
The campaign successfully turned temporary media attention into lasting web engagement:
- Over the launch period, the website pulled in 4,480 users and triggered 5,723 unique sessions.
- Traffic was exceptionally high-quality: Organic Search yielded a 55.8% engagement rate, while referrals from premium news channels like News24 and Bizcommunity maintained high viewer engagement.
- Aside from the homepage, the Black Friday Index gated landing page was the single most visited page on the entire site, capturing 885 active users primed for lead conversion.
Key takeaway for tech brands
The success of Ecentric’s 2nd Annual Black Friday Index proves that tech and B2B marketing shouldn’t happen in a vacuum. By combining data-driven PR with digital lead generation, we didn’t just earn Ecentric media space; we created a digital asset that continues to build credibility, engage prospects, and win market share, while journalists use the data from the BF-CM Index for their broader retail articles, giving it more legs in the media space.
Looking to turn your company’s internal data into a powerful marketing engine? Explore our previous case studies to see how DUO Marketing + Communications transforms B2B tech brands into industry leaders, or contact us today.
