Why Retailers Shouldn't Be Focused on Black Friday
Don't quit reading just yet. I haven't lost my mind.
While Black Friday can be one of the most profitable days of the year for retailers, relying too much on this crazy day of shopping to generate profits may not be the best approach.
Disillusioned by ridiculously long lines, overnight camping in chilly parking lots, and outrageously early sales that infringe on Thanksgiving, many shoppers have given up. They instead choose to stay home, relax with family, and watch football rather than deal with the stress associated with Black Friday shopping.
Consumers look for deals that continue throughout the month of December; they don't want to rely on Black Friday to accommodate all of their shopping needs. As a retailer, your job is to give them what they want.
In order to make the most of the entire holiday shopping season, here are a few tips:
1. Utilize retail technology. Modern retailers know that it's necessary to implement a variety of technology tools to enhance a consumer's shopping experience. Consumers have come to expect bargains on Black Friday; use the tools at your disposal to keep them coming back for more promotions and deals! Reports generated using retail technology enable you to find stock items that are slow movers or poor sellers. Use this information to make strategic markdowns that entice shoppers to enter your store and give those full-priced items another glance.
2. Use historical sales data. Hopefully you collected sales data from last year's holiday season. (If not, we should talk.) By analyzing sales data and customer data from prior seasons, you can begin to see trends that reveal what sells, at what point in the season, at what price. For big-ticket items, for example, you might find that pushing a promotion earlier in the shopping season moves more product, while for smaller stocking-stuffer items, sales tend to increase around Dec. 23. Closely monitor data throughout the holiday shopping season in order to make smarter marketing decisions and move product quickly and efficiently.
