A pretty bold statement, right?
You're probably thinking, "Well, Black Friday is the single biggest shopping day of the year. And, Cyber Monday? That's just for online shoppers."
Both of those are decidedly true, but Cyber Monday is the biggest shopping day of the year online. Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year in person. Granted, there are a lot of people that do their online shopping on Black Friday, but most of them wait until the fury dies down over the weekend and see how much retailers are cutting prices.
Often, there are bigger deals on Cyber Monday than on Black Friday. Businesses that are expecting ridiculous sales numbers from Friday through Sunday may be disappointed by the results. They, then, slash their prices and throw the overstock up online.
Further, Cyber Monday is decidedly different from Black Friday because of the ease of shopping online. Both online retailers and customers created that holiday all for themselves. So, here are a bunch of other reasons why you shouldn't have your entire online marketing focus squarely on Black Friday.
1. Customers buy more when they're comfortable, not frantic.
Sitting in your pajamas with a cup of coffee in one hand and a charge card in the other makes everyone feel just a little bit more generous, instead of elbowing their way through the sweaty, crowded masses. Also, many Black Friday shoppers strategically plan out which stores they're going to hit, setting themselves up for additional stress. Shopping online does the same thing, but you don't have to load up the car with packages, screaming kids and battle traffic at the mall.
2. Customers comparison shop across the web for better deals. So, you need to do a little homework and see what your competitors are offering. If there's no time, then pull a Wal-Mart and offer a price-match guarantee. Or, if you don't know what your competitors are offering, then don't play fair. Give your customers free shipping or upgraded products. Customers shopping on Cyber Monday take more time to consider deals rather than in person.
3. Customers like quick and easy.
Online, customers can choose whether their browsers keep their credit card information on file. This drastically reduces the amount of time waste and hassle if people don't need to keep filling in their billing information and super-secret credit card code. And, there aren't any lines to wait in. Also, consider partnering your company with an online payment service, like PayPal. Customers can load their accounts with their holiday shopping budgets and pay with ease across the web.
So are you ready for Cyber Monday??