“Ends tonight.” “Final hours.” A countdown ticking above the add-to-cart button.
Urgency has become a familiar part of Black Friday advertising in Australia. Used appropriately, it can help customers understand when an offer genuinely ends and give them a reason to make a decision.
The problem starts when the deadline advertised does not match the promotion customers actually receive.
Recent ACCC action involving James Lane and Vuly is a timely reminder for Australian retailers preparing for Black Friday. If a campaign says an offer is ending, the business needs to be able to stand behind that claim.
The issue is not simply regulatory compliance. Promotional credibility affects customer trust, conversion behaviour, advertising performance and the way people respond to future campaigns.
At Omni Online, our view is straightforward: a Black Friday campaign should give customers a compelling reason to buy without creating an impression the business cannot substantiate.
What happened with James Lane and Vuly?
On 29 September 2026, the ACCC announced that James Lane had paid a $19,800 penalty and Vuly had paid penalties totalling $39,600 after infringement notices were issued over allegedly misleading representations about the duration of their sales.
According to the ACCC, James Lane advertised that its 2025 Black Friday sale would end on 3 December. Discounted prices then continued for another week. The ACCC said its investigation found James Lane had decided before the promotion began that the discount would be extended beyond the advertised end date.
Vuly’s promotions raised similar concerns involving countdown timers. During its Click Frenzy promotion, products were advertised at up to 30% off alongside a countdown. When that timer expired, the advertised discount increased to up to 45% off and a new countdown appeared.
Later that month, Vuly advertised its Black Friday sale at up to 45% off with another timer. The discount continued after the timer expired and the countdown was reset.
The ACCC alleged that these practices created a false sense of urgency by suggesting customers had a limited window to secure an offer when the same or a better discount remained available.
As ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said:
“Businesses must ensure any sale end dates, countdown timers or limited-time discount claims are genuine.”
It is also worth noting that paying an infringement notice is not, by itself, an admission that Australian Consumer Law has been contravened. The distinction matters when discussing regulatory action accurately.
The commercial risk goes beyond a penalty
Think about the experience from your customer’s perspective.
They bring forward a purchase because your email says the offer ends tonight. The next morning, the same discount is still available. Perhaps it is even better.
Our concern is what that teaches them about your brand. The next “last chance” message may carry less weight. They may start waiting for an extension or questioning whether your offers represent good value.
That matters when your Black Friday strategy is designed to acquire customers who will return throughout the year. A sale should help build that relationship.
The promise made in your marketing is part of the customer experience.
Start with the promotion plan before writing the countdown copy
Before your team creates banners, ads or email subject lines, agree on what will actually happen.
Confirm the offer, eligible products, exclusions, start time and end time. Then map any promotions planned immediately afterwards.
If the same discount is scheduled to continue through Cyber Monday, that needs to inform your Black Friday messaging. A change in campaign name does not necessarily change what customers understand about the offer.
We recommend keeping one approved promotion brief that everyone works from. Your website team, advertising team and email team should all be communicating the same terms.
It is much easier to get this right before launch than to untangle conflicting promises during your busiest trading period.
Check the whole customer journey
A promotion can become confusing when different channels tell different stories.
Your website might show the correct end date while an active ad still says the sale ends today. An automated email might include an expired offer. A countdown app might reset even though nobody intended it to.
Before launch, review:
- Website: Homepage banners, product pages, pop-ups and countdown timers.
- Advertising: Headlines, creative, offer dates and campaign schedules.
- Email and SMS: Scheduled campaigns, subject lines and automated flows.
- Checkout: Discount codes, eligibility and expiry settings.
- Campaign close: Who removes the messaging and checks that the offer has ended?
Assign someone to check the live customer experience when the promotion finishes. Scheduling an expiry is useful; verifying what customers actually see is better.
Give customers a real reason to act
There is still room for urgency in a strong campaign. Build it around something genuine and clearly explained.
That could be an offer with a firm end date, a gift available to the first 100 qualifying orders, or a limited quantity of a particular bundle.
The operational detail matters. If you promote a stock limit, your messaging needs to reflect availability. If you advertise a gift threshold, your team needs to track it and remove the claim when it is reached.
Alongside that urgency, make the value clear. Show customers why the product suits their needs, what makes the bundle useful and what they receive for their money.
A timer cannot do all the selling.
Review more than the deadline
Sale duration is one part of a broader promotion review.
The ACCC’s Black Friday sweep has also targeted misleading sitewide claims, exclusions buried in fine print, “up to” discounts where few products receive the maximum saving, and misleading comparison prices.
Our practical recommendation is to read your campaign as a customer would. What does the headline lead them to expect? Does the offer deliver that expectation?
That review should happen across the creative, landing page and checkout, rather than relying on the terms and conditions to explain everything later.
Build a Black Friday campaign you can stand behind
At Omni Online, we approach Black Friday with a commercial view: your margins, customer experience, campaign execution and opportunities for repeat purchases all deserve attention.
Clear, credible offers belong in that same plan.
Before adding “final hours” to your next campaign, make sure the deadline is real, the team is aligned and the customer journey reflects what you have promised.
Need a fresh pair of eyes on your Black Friday strategy? Connect with Omni Online to plan your offers, messaging and customer journey.
