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Black Friday: The Good, The Bad, And The Surprising

Posted December 4 by Elizabeth Benefield in Business of Business, Media, Public Relations

When the crowded lines at retailer doors are longer than the darkest nights of winter, that can only mean one thing: it's Black Friday, and the retail holiday season is officially underway.

Reports suggest that advertising for this year's shopping season began earlier than ever, with discount giant Kmart being one of the first stores to launch holiday ads before Halloween was over. Did getting the message out sooner ensure a full sleigh for Santa? Results are in, and there's a good list, a bad list and a surprising list.

The good news: according to the CNN.com article, Cyber Monday: Hope for disappointed stores, more shoppers than ever appeared to hit the stores on Black Friday and sales increased slightly from $41 billion last year to $41.2 billion. The bad news: spending per person is down from $372.57 last year to $343.31. The surprising: 49.4% of holiday shoppers visited at least one department store over the weekend, a 12.9% increase. Also, purchasers online made Black Friday the second-heaviest online shopping day so far this year, spending $595 million.

Will the spending continue? National Retail Federation president Tracy Mullin, said "Retailers are encouraged by the number of Americans who shopped over Black Friday weekend, they know they have their work cut out for them to keep people coming back through Christmas." Retailers will have to not only slash prices, but keep consumers informed of the savings in order to maximize on profits. When it comes to making the season bright and the rest of the year profitable, it's not just a matter of walking the walk. It's time to talk it, too.

For more information about this year's Black Friday shopping trends, visit cnn.com.