Black Friday is that one day a year that retailers look forward to with anticipation, saving up the very best deals for that one particular day. Although this year many retailers, both online and offline, went beyond the usual weekend sale, to include Cyber Monday or even offering customers week long, or even month long, saving opportunities.
This year saw a huge spike in online sales, with Adobe Analytics recording a 21.6% spike for this retail channel. This data was based on the website transactions of 80 of the United States’ top retailers. Adobe said that the day was the second largest online spending day in the United States ever, sitting just behind Cyber Monday where online sales reached $10.8 million.
However, even with an increase in online sales seen this year, in large part due to the ongoing worldwide pandemic, many retailers are saying that this year’s Black Friday was one of the worst on record, with land-based retailers seeing a 52.1% fall in foot traffic.
But why did Black Friday fail for some this year, let’s take a closer look:
Cautious Consumers
In a year when many consumers have lost their jobs or been forced to take pay cuts, and who knows what else on the horizon, many are being cautious with their budget when it comes to their end-of-year spending habits. Instead of shopping the trends this year, many consumers are on the lookout for bargain deals on the things they really need most.
Thus, any growth seen on Black Friday sales this year was primarily driven by the food industries, with clothing and tech taking a back seat.
A Virtual Stumbling Block
With a big shift to online shopping, the virtual world proved a stumbling block for some shoppers. While online shopping did see a rise in spend and consumer use over Black Friday this year, it has proved to be the realm of a few core businesses.
Smaller operations still need to build up a trust with their customers when it comes to making purchases online, with website crashes, unclear shipping information and unclear return policies all putting hurdles in the way of consumers making that final purchase. These frustrating experiences can have damaging effects on businesses that tried to do a hasty approach to online shopping as the trust with the consumer is now broken for future buys.
A Season Of Shopping
With retailers now spreading out their deals for longer, it is becoming more difficult to track the true success of Black Friday. Consumers can now apuestas deportivas en mexico and spread out their shopping through the festive season, taking more time to compare different deals and decide if they really need or want that item after all. The frantic rush and fear of missing out on a one day only deal is thus something that has proved to now be something of the past.
Concerns over social distancing and visiting malls has also caused consumers to stay away from actual shops on massive stretch tents for sale days.