2,000 British customers’ comments were used to create our third annual study report on Black Friday buying tendencies. It offers crucial insight into how brands can benefit from this retail milestone event by examining the emotion, shopping patterns, and important factors surrounding Black Friday.
Regarding our 2019 Black Friday Report
The results of this October 2019 study show that, while rising popularity year over year, Black Friday hasn’t yet won over everyone. 39% of respondents (down from 63% in 2017 and 53% in 2018) said they wouldn’t shop the Black Friday sales.
Recommendations from friends and family continue to outperform all other ways of brand discovery, demonstrating the continued strength of referral marketing.
Mention Me’s business philosophy is to question the current quo. To help businesses grow, we’re on a mission to restore trust to the core of marketing. This research demonstrates how referrals can assist important objectives, from fully utilising existing client bases to promoting the acquisition of new customers.
We hope that this information will enable merchants to conduct their greatest marketing yet as Black Friday 2019 gears up to be the biggest one yet.
The Outcomes
For consumers who are budget-conscious, discounts are still crucial.
The 11% of consumers who refrain from making significant purchases in the two months before to Black Friday are an example of how consumers are still careful with their spending yet tend to regard the retail event as coinciding with their desire to save money.
This frugal shopping strategy is especially common among millennials, with 30% of consumers between the ages of 25 and 34 making Black Friday purchases solely on discounts. While this suggests that shops can influence consumers with sizable discounts, it also serves as a reminder that new clients are more likely to be transient bargain hunters than devoted, long-term clients.
However, this discount-driven strategy is not appropriate for all age groups.
Sustainability and brand loyalty are becoming more crucial.
(Up from 12% in 2018 and 11% in 2017) 23% of consumers who buy on Black Friday only use brands they are familiar with and feel loyal to. When compared to all other age groups, Gen Z accounts for 33% of those between the ages of 18 and 24, demonstrating a significant shift from their predecessors’ reliance on buying at the stores with the best deals.
Millennials are more concerned with ethics and sustainability than they are with brand trust. 25% are more likely to purchase products from companies that act morally and sustainably. Gen Z consumers (29%) care the most about this factor, whilst Black Friday shoppers 55 and older (12%) care the least.
These statistics emphasise the need for brands to take into account their values and behaviour while trying to appeal to younger consumers, especially Gen Z, who are less susceptible to being persuaded by large discounts than previous generations.
The best way to find new brands is through referrals from friends and family.
14% of Black Friday buyers rely their purchases on the advice of friends and family.
The age range with the highest popularity for this strategy is 18 to 34 years old (26%), closely followed by 35 to 44 years old (25%) and 45 to 54 years old (24%). Within the 55+ age group, this percentage falls to just 16%.
Compared to 13% of men, 15% of women are more inclined to follow an advice from a friend.
Customers shop both in-person and online.
Black Friday shopping is a hybrid activity for 9% of consumers, highlighting the value of firms offering a unified experience across analogue and digital channels.
Women don’t have a preference, but men who plan to take advantage of Black Friday are considerably more likely to complete their research in-store before making a purchase online—13% of them do so as opposed to doing their research online before making a purchase in-store.
The majority of people who study Black Friday offers in-person before making an online purchase are between the ages of 25 and 44 (19% vs. 12% for those 55 and over).
… Between devices
The importance of providing consistent user experiences across platforms for brands is highlighted by the fact that over a quarter (23%) of people under 44 years old shop on their mobile devices on Black Friday. Only 6% of consumers over 55 shop on mobile, whereas older consumers are considerably more likely to shop in-store or on a desktop.
In addition, only 9% of hard-working Brits shop online on Black Friday while they are at work, while 15% wait until the evening. Even millennial workers prefer to shop in the evening (29%), with 23% of them doing it while at work.
Black Friday customers spend more money on themselves than on others.
Most consumers purchase items for themselves during Black Friday sales.
The age group most likely to act selfishly is Gen Z (36%), followed by those 55 and older (33%). While 30% of millennials are more likely to shop for gifts for friends and family, 27% are also likely to buy for themselves.
Across genders, this pattern is largely stable. On Black Friday, just 17% of women shop for friends, while this percentage falls to 15% for males.
Conclusion
With 61% of consumers expected to participate in the discounts, Black Friday continues to be a significant event in the retail calendar. But an event that was previously purely focused on pricing is starting to be impacted by a clear movement towards brand trust and ethical shopping. Giving the best discount on Black Friday is no longer sufficient to attract long-term, devoted customers; merchants must struggle to maintain their image before and after the event.
The outcomes also emphasise the significance of focusing marketing efforts on target markets for Black Friday and other occasions. Gen Z is unlikely to be won over by a significant bargain, and Baby Boomers are unlikely to be convinced by an ethical message. But merchants can succeed if they provide the appropriate message to the right demographic. Referral marketing supports this, as seen by consumers’ propensity for hearing about new products through friends and family.
Source: promotion strategy , promotional strategies
