Are Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sales Right For Your Biz?

Black Friday is growing in popularity globally and right here in little old Aotearoa.

In fact, it has become one of the biggest shopping days in the world.

So, are you planning a Black Friday bonanza or discounting your online products for Cyber Monday?

Before you start slapping discounts onto everything, you need to put a bit of thought into your strategy. There are lots of benefits to be reaped from one of the biggest shopping weekends of the year, but a few pitfalls too.

So you need to plan carefully to make the most of it. Here’s how you can do that.

Are Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sales Right For Your Biz?

What Is Black Friday/Cyber Monday?

Black Friday originated in the United States in the 1960s and takes place on the first Friday after Thanksgiving. It traditionally marks the start of the Christmas shopping season in the States and has been the busiest shopping day of the year for several years.

Cyber Monday is a more recent trend started around 20 years ago by online retailers who wanted to reap the same benefits as brick-and-mortar stores. It takes place on the Monday after Black Friday.

Black Friday sales have started getting longer, with some retailers offering a whole week of discounts in the week before the Friday leaving the sale on all weekend. Retailers that offer both in-store and online shopping sometimes provide different deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Black Friday In New Zealand

In recent years, Black Friday has spread to other countries, including New Zealand. Although it is still not as popular here as it is in America, it is becoming a ‘thing’. Its popularity is increasing.

Last year Kiwis spent $88.5million in online Black Friday sales. This was down 21% YOY (which we can attribute somewhat to the fact that Auckland was in lockdown over this period in 2021) but up 35% from 2019.

TOTAL retail spending, across online and instore for the Black Friday to Cyber Monday four-day period in NZ was $793.5 million, down 8% on last year.

Many of the major retailers have jumped on the Black Friday bandwagon. As November comes to a close, there seem to be advertisements and signage for various Black Friday deals everywhere you look.

So, if you are a small business retailer, you might be feeling that you need to get in on the Black Friday action. Let’s look at the pros and cons of taking part in Black Friday/Cyber Monday and see whether it’s worth your while.

The Pros And Cons Of Black Friday/Cyber Monday

Deals and Discounts

PRO The most obvious benefit of Black Friday/Cyber Monday is that you will likely increase sales. Shoppers are primed to expect deals but are willing to spend money over Black Friday weekend, so it can be an excellent time to cash in.

CON The downside of that is that people are expecting deals. And as Black Friday grows, so does the competition for customers and the deals are likely to get more extreme. In the US, this is what Black Friday is known for – huge discounts on a few big ticket items and smaller savings across the store.

As a smaller business, you may struggle to match the discounts offered by bigger retailers, especially international chains on Cyber Monday.

With the growing popularity of Black Friday, there has also come a growing scepticism among the public that the deals are not as good as they first seem which may put people off shopping. For example, retailers may put prices up just before Black Friday to look like they are giving bigger discounts on the day.

Sales Boost?

PRO It can give you a sales boost in what can be a quiet time leading up to Christmas. People often reduce spending in the months before Christmas to save for the end of the year. But, more and more, they are conditioned to expect a Black Friday sale and want to spend money.

CON The downside is that they are still spending money at a discount, not full price, so you might not make as much as you would if they bought the same thing at Christmas. The other downside is that you might find it simply moves your quiet period closer to Christmas. Supply shortages, delivery delays due to Covid and other recent world events have led to people shopping earlier to avoid disappointment. Combined with the idea of getting a bargain and you might just find that people do their Christmas shopping in November and don’t come back.

Brand Exposure

PRO It’s a good time to get your brand out there before Christmas. Even if you don’t have an extensive sale, you could market just a few items as big offers to get an advertising campaign going and bring some brand awareness before the Christmas shopping period.

CON Black Friday/Cyber Monday is a big thing, so you’ll be competing against all the other brands advertising at the same time, many of whom will have a bigger budget. And, of course, just like the price of strawberries at the supermarket always goes up at Christmas, because there’s a captive market, Google, Facebook and other advertisers will charge you more for an ad at this time. That means you might need to get creative about your advertising and look at other channels like social media posts or email newsletters.

If you are a small business, then the good news is that another newer initiative Small Business Saturday (sometimes marketed as Shop Local Saturday) usually falls in the same weekend as Black Friday/Cyber Monday. This is aimed specifically at boosting smaller, local businesses, so thinking outside the box and targeting your marketing here instead could set you apart.

Get Your Online Marketing On The Right Track

Whether you are planning to get involved in Black Friday/Cyber Monday or you just want to get your online marketing on track for the future, we can help.

Together we’ll look at your current presence and develop the best advertising strategy for your business. You’ll learn about your ideal audience and the best platforms to use for online advertising and develop a marketing plan.

Book a complimentary 30-minute call now to see if we’d be a good fit to work together.