Hey Newsies,
Today we’re looking at an article from Forbes reporting on changing customer habits for Black Friday and Small Business Friday. I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences on this!
Forbes: Why Are Shoppers Opting For Small Business Saturday Over Black Friday?
The article explains that US customers may be shifting away from Black Friday sales, and over to support more small businesses for Small Business Saturday. This takes place on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 30, 2024, to celebrate and support local businesses. It was founded in 2010 by American Express and cosponsored by the Small Business Administration (SBA).
The article attributes this shift away from Black Friday to changing customer priorities to care more about quality, sustainability, customer service, and an overall better shopping experience. Customers know that they won’t get these by just shopping sales at big box stores, and are shifting over to support more small businesses that can deliver on these priorities. As a result, customers are latching on to Small Business Saturday campaigns around the holiday season. They are embracing the slower pace, smaller crowds, and supporting local businesses.
I owned an ice cream shop so Black Friday wasn’t the most applicable to us, but having Small Business Saturday was a nice way to be involved in these shopping days. In general, we tried to cultivate a higher end feel and culture in our shop. We didn’t do sales or deals, and didn’t necessarily want to lean into a discount feel. Our only exception was setting up a Black Friday sale for our gift cards in order to encourage higher spending. This was a great strategy to get some extra cash flow around our slowest time of the year, bring in potential new customers, and give a discount and incentive to our customers.
We didn’t necessarily see a massive boost in sales on Small Business Saturday, we did have some customers come in to say that they’re specifically there to support us on the day. We did our best to get involved in the day, to put up signs, promote it on social media, and acknowledge it when our customers came in. It has definitely grown over the years, and if we were still in business today, we would do more to make it a bigger event.
What’s your perspective:
- Have you felt a push away from Black Friday sales and towards Small Business Saturday?
- What are you planning for Small Business Saturday to attract these customers?
Can’t wait to hear your thoughts!
Pesso
This article is for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance or advice specific to your business, you should consult with a qualified legal professional.
