Black Friday VIPs

The general consensus is that Black Friday resulted in an increase in store traffic, but a decrease in spending per shopper for some overall mild sales gains. But the big question remains, what needs to happen to turn retail browsers into retail buyers? Some brand marketers played the shopper experience card by offering VIP treatment on the busiest shopping day of the year.

A story in the Boston Globe documented some unique approaches. Best Buy offered a limousine ride, special seating outside the store prior to opening, a private shopping tour before opening and a $1,000 gift card. All of this was for winning an essay contest.

The early results of Black Friday show that deep discounting isn’t enough to coax consumers. It also takes an equal amount of clever promotions and some good old-fashioned customer service to close the deal. According to one retail analyst, “The combination of value and service will be the great differentiator,’’ According to the National Retail Federation, sales for November and December are expected to decline 1 percent.

Some other examples of VIP treatment are free cookies, holiday tote bags, gift cards, subscriptions, limousine rides, wardrobe consultations, shopping butlers, gift-wrapping assistants, video cameras and celebrity wake-up calls. Most of these special offers and VIP contest were advertised via social networking outlets like Facebook and Twitter.

Thanksgiving Weekend Shopping as a Social Event

Crowded stores and lines don’t seem to dissuade tens of millions of shoppers from hitting the market over the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend. Many are looking to cash in on the great deals and others are just taking advantage of some additional time off from work. The National Retail Federation is reporting that 134 million consumers will hit the stores this weekend. That’s a six million person increase over last year. However, there is a developing set of consumers who have a different mindset about Black Friday. They enjoy the event.

In this Retail Customer Experience article, the author discusses how consumers are starting to take power over the event by attacking it like a military exercise. Teams of consumers enjoy plotting a strategy and executing their game plan as not only a bargain hunting trip, but also as a fun social event.

The trend is not going unnoticed by retailers who are ramping up their efforts to cater to this type of social consumer. In many cases they are reshaping the, “Waiting in line experience,” by offering coffee and treats to those in line, making every effort to make the lines faster, and in general just trying to keep the tone friendly. This concierge level of customer care plays in perfectly with the mindset of the “Black Friday as a Social Event” shopper.

Black Friday Launch Pad for Brand Social Media

There is mounting evidence in the use of social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, as an advertising medium. A prime example is the way that brand marketers are targeting Black Friday by sending out messages featuring special deals for their followers. Why? A recent blog post on Simple Thoughts quotes Deloitte Research as saying that, “One in five shoppers plans to use the sites in their holiday shopping this season.”
 
It has been widely reported that retailers and manufacturers have been effectively using sweet deals to attract consumers to follow their company presence on various social media outlets. The hope is that shoppers will continue to follow and build brand loyalty. Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, presents itself as a great jumping off point to disseminate information and gain followers. Hundreds of special offers are being leaked to vigilant consumers.
 
Brand marketers get additional penetration from special deal sites such as dealnews.com who also track and list Black Friday offers. Many e-commerce deals extend to the Monday after Thanksgiving, now known as Cyber Monday, because of consumers’ propensity to shop from their computers that day.

On Target for the Holiday Shopping Experience

The news is awash with stories on how the country’s retailers are gearing up for the mad holiday rush that begins with Black Friday. Most of the news has to do with price promotions, store hours and staffing to handle the increase in store traffic. As an example, a story on DSN Retailing Today outlines how mass market giant Target is preparing for the holiday’s with the customer experience in mind.

Not unlike others, Target will expand its store hours and feature price promotions. For example, the stores will open at 5 a.m. and the first 500 guests will receive a gift. Those who spend $100 or more (not hard to do at Target) between 5:00 and Noon will get a $10 gift card.

As far as price, the retailer will offer its Low Price Promise. In other words, if a guest finds a lower price at a competitor, Target will match the price during the competitor’s valid ad date.

Perhaps more eye opening is the improvement being made to the return policy. As a standard, Target has a 90 day policy for returns or exchanges accompanied by a receipt. However, a recent expansion allows you to return or exchange up to $70 in merchandise without a receipt on a rolling 12-month cycle and new and unused items over the $70 can be exchanged for items in the same department.

The on-line function is also getting into the act with free shipping on most items when you spend $50 or more.

Other retailers are also offering similar programs. This is just one example of how a company is using their customer satisfaction data to directly enhance the customer experience for the holidays and beyond.