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BLACK FRIDAY
Tips for marketers as the Black Friday shopping frenzy approaches
By our News Team | 2022
Consumers are more savvy and have tighter purse strings, so brands must be on their game, offer value and avoid cheap tricks.
As brands plan to make the most of the annual Black Friday shopping frenzy – this year happening on Friday, 25 November – digital marketing agency Incubeta has listed six things for South African marketers to look out for.
1. Consumers are much more aware of brand trickery
With tighter purses going into Black Friday, brands must expect a more savvy consumer to know if they are offering meaningful savings. Whatever they do, brands should not try to get away with bumping prices in the weeks ahead of sale days to make the savings look bigger on the day.
Photo by Karolina Grabowska from Pexels
Many consumers have a longstanding wishlist and have been tracking products across retailers in anticipation of Black Friday. Any disingenuous price manipulations will be exposed and could end up costing brands dearly.
2. Don’t expect the latest products to be discounted
Similarly, consumers should adjust their expectations. Most brands won’t be discounting their latest and greatest products, but rather looking to shift older stock ahead of the festive season. Brands are keenly aware of minimising slow-moving stock and leveraging all the hype of the event can help them do this.
3. Work those loyalty cards
Brands that understand just how tight budgets are and who offer the options to buy using loyalty points, such as Discovery Miles and eBucks, are likely to win big.
4. BNPL will hit its stride
In the same vein, having buy now, pay later (BNPL) payment options at the checkout will really count, especially when trying to move big-ticket items as well as encouraging shoppers to load up their baskets.
5.Load shedding will have taken its toll
Another consideration when choosing what to mark down, and by how much, is to remember that many South Africans will have spent a good deal of disposable income buying generators or other solutions to mitigate the effects of ongoing electricity load shedding. This may well impact shoppers’ appetite for big-ticket items.
6. People will be doing their festive shopping early
People will be shopping early this year. Not just because they are being frugal and will be planning well in advance, but South Africans are expecting to travel again in 2022 and so they will be looking to buy and have their gifts delivered before they leave on their December holidays.
“Global energy costs are already inflating prices and will of course add to delivery costs. All of this is squeezing margins and brands will have to apply every value-add they can to lure customers,” advises Calvin Van Rensburg, Media and Platform Consultant at Incubeta.
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