Retail events extended by online shopping

Tuesday, April 10, 2018 - 10:55 by Sarah Collinson

Black Friday was traditionally focused to a single day of the year, but the rise of safe shopping online now means that events like this end up stretching over much longer periods.

This is according to the results of a new survey from Econsultancy, in which retailers themselves were questioned about the tactics they adopt in order to promote this pre-Christmas sale as effectively as possible.

Thirty five per cent of respondents said that their firms chose to run Black Friday offers throughout the entire weekend and on into Cyber Monday each November, capitalising on the momentum that has been gained over the past few years.

A fifth said that their offers continued after Cyber Monday had been and gone, making even more of a connection with consumers looking to carry out safe shopping online and get a bargain before the holiday season kicks off in earnest.

Forty five per cent admitted to extending Black Friday offers in both directions, making them available ahead of the event itself to draw the crowds to digital platforms rather than focusing all of the sales activity into a single 24 hour period.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most ardent supporter of Black Friday is Amazon, which often creates offers around the event which are available for up to two weeks in total. Daily discounts and constantly changing bargains help it to outdo the competition, at least in terms of the variety of products which are subjected to a price cut.

In 2017 Amazon also leveraged its hefty marketing budget to promote Black Friday with TV and web-based ads. This meant that it was engaging with consumers and drawing attention to the event long before it had begun, which in turn increases the amount of competition surrounding it and spurs on rival retailers to keep pace.