Black Friday Research Paper

Black Friday is known as the biggest shopping day of the year in the United States. Where did Black Friday come from? The Friday after Thanksgiving has always been the day to kick off the Christmas season. The term Black Friday was first used in the 1960s. “Black” refers to the stores moving from “red” to “black.” Back when accounting records were kept by hand red ink was used to indicate loss and black ink was used to indicate profit. For years it was common for retailers to open at 6AM but starting in the early 2000s stores started opening at 5AM or 4AM. In 2011 it was taken to a new extreme where many retailers opened their doors at midnight. Black Friday was always the kick off to the Christmas season and in 1993 to 2001 ranked from 5th to 10th for the busiest shopping days of the year, with the last Saturday before Christmas ranking number one. However in 2003 Black Friday was the busiest shopping day of the year and has maintained that position ever since. Why is Black Friday such a popular day to shop? Many employers give their employees the day off and schools are shut down as well, increasing the number of consumers drastically. Retailers use different tactics to attract customers. Many are opening earlier and earlier every year, some do this just to keep up with competition. But some use other tactics, for example Forever 21 opened at normal hours, but having their sales go until 2am. Starting in 2011 Black Friday started to reach other countries such as
the United Kingdom because of companies online such as Amazon who are starting to participate in black Friday as well.
Although Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year, it has been taken to new extremes starting in 2008 when the first death was reported.
In Valley Stream, New York at a Wal-Mart an employee was trampled to death when the crowd of customers came rushing in when doors opened. In 2012, in Wisconsin a woman was arrested outside a Toys 'R' Us store for threatening to shoot other customers. Most recent in 2012, two people were shot outside a Wal-Mart in Florida after a dispute over a parking
space.
An advertising campaign is a set of interrelated and coordinated marketing communication activities that center on a single theme or idea that appears in different media across a specified time period. A Campaign theme is a strong idea, as it is the central message that will be communicated in all advertising and other promotional activities. For example, in Target’s 2010 campaign theme for Black Friday was a woman “preparing” for the Black Friday battle which is all about being the first one there to get all of the best deals. Jerome Jeweler states, "Major Selling Idea should be the strongest singular thing you can say about your product or service. This should be the claim with broadest and most meaningful appeal to your target audience." During Black Friday, companies have to advertise to differentiate and set themselves apart from all other companies. Thus, having the best products at the earliest times at the best possible prices.
With the constant development of technology in today’s society Cyber Monday has grown in popularity over the years. Cyber Monday made its first appearance in 2005 on the Monday after Black Friday. When companies started to take part in introducing Cyber Monday sales they saw a drastic increase in their profit. Cyber Monday is growing in popularity over the years. More and more people are starting to shop on this day because of the convenience; No more long lines, hoards of people, “endless” supply of merchandise, and at times better discounts. Black Friday’s main advertising campaigns are done on billboards, TVs, or print ads unlike Cyber Monday that mostly advertises online. In addition, the evolution of social media has opened up new windows of opportunity for businesses to mass advertise. Companies use social media sites such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook just to name a few. Unlike Black Friday, Cyber Monday is known worldwide and has the potential to take the name for “the busiest shopping day of the year.”