You may ask what is Black Friday? And why do people mention it so often when November starts? Well, the answer is quite simple. Historians believe the name started in Philadelphia in the mid-1960s. Bus drivers and police used “Black Friday" to describe the heavy traffic that would clog city streets the day after Thanksgiving as shoppers headed to the stores to start Christmas shopping. As years went by, Black Friday became a tradition to open the Christmas season with great deals and fun. It also helps to stimulate the economy.
In 2020, Americans spent about $9 billion just online on Black Friday, which was a marked 21.6% increase from the year before. In 2018, over 165 million people spent the weekend shopping. The number rose to 189.6 million in 2019. In 2020, the total number of shoppers was somewhere between 174 million and 178 million. It's followed by Cyber Monday, which began in 2005 by the National Retail Federation as a day solely for online deals. However, as online shopping becomes more and more popular, Black Friday and Cyber Monday have since blurred together, making Thanksgiving weekend somewhat of a shopping (and saving) frenzy.
In 2020, the online sales on Cyber Monday reached $10.8 billion, making it the biggest e-commerce selling day of all time. Why is that? Here’s one clue:
The average Black Friday discount is around 45% with offers going from 20% to 80%. In contrast, the Cyber Monday average discount is about 50% with deals going from 20% to 90% off the original value.
While Black Friday and Cyber Monday both began as distinctly American phenomena, they quickly became immensely popular globally. So, we decided to have a quick look across Europe and compare it with the US.
Here is the total value of sales during Black Friday and Cyber Monday in selected European countries from 2018 to 2020 (in million GBP), according to Statista:
In Europe, UK shoppers are the most aware about Cyber Monday, with a share of 89%, followed by shoppers from Germany (86%), Spain (85%), Italy (80%), Netherlands (70%), and Sweden (69%).
In 2020, men were more interested in electricals and technology. They intended to spend around £373, while women set their budget at a more modest £244. The high spenders are those aged 35 to 44, with average spending of £429. This is more than twice as much as the seniors’ budget of £201.
If we analyze the trend, we can see that since 2013 Black Friday sales have grown each year with no signs of slowing down. In fact, Black Friday and Cyber Monday have become more of an online shopping event, providing a huge opportunity for retailers to introduce conversion rate optimization tactics and other e-commerce marketing strategies. When deciding whether to choose Cyber Monday or Black Friday, consumers are increasingly tired of crowds and rely on mobile devices. And if that’s not all, the COVID-19 has forced most consumers to avoid brick-and-mortar stores as much as possible. So, retailers are following that trend. And with more and more deals being tailored to Cyber Monday, it’s quite easy to save money shopping online.
One of the best ways to boost your sales revenue during Black Friday and Cyber Monday is by implementing up-sell & cross-sell tools to your e-commerce store. Want to know how using up-sell and cross-sell can drive e-commerce sales on Black Friday & Cyber Monday? Learn more here: 5 Benefits of Up-sell & Cross-sell.