This is the thirteenth day of a 30-day trial. Follow the link to Marketing Ideas En Masse to find out more.

It’s not so much that a bunch of stores are having a big sale before the holidays but rather the name that accompanies the sale. Black Friday Sale, where did that even come from to begin with? Let’s take a great holiday time and cover it with the sale to end all sales. It is like more people talk about Black Friday than Thanksgiving. When did a one-day sale become some popular, other than Valentine’s Day? Talk about marketing at its finest.

We now celebrate more holidays in retail stores than we do with our family. I can just imagine way back when people lovingly gave a few handmade or long saved for gifts to one another, that that tradition would become the bonanza it has become today. I hope that I as well as others can recognize the true meaning of all of this holiday time and be truly thankful for the things we are blessed with. I hope that all of us take the time to really reflect on the things we are thankful for and spend quality time with our friends and family. Here are a couple of videos to get you ready for Black Friday.

Tips for Black Friday Shopping

This is the third day of a 30-day trial. Follow the link to Marketing Ideas En Masse to find out more.

I find it amazing how well cutting prices works to lure people into a store. The problem with the price cut war is eventually everyone gets in on it and those that don’t cut prices get cut out by the customers. This year retailers have cut prices quick and early to attract customers into their stores. I think overall this is a good thing because I don’t like paying $80 for shoes when I know they were made for about $5 somewhere outside of the USA. The next problem to the price cut war is convincing people they will still be getting a deal if they buy today and not tomorrow when the prices are even lower. I wonder what the door buster prizes will be this year at the major retail stores on Black Friday. This could potentially be a great year for deals. Here is what the Baltimore Sun has to say:

To lure shoppers, retailers are pushing holiday promotions earlier than ever; they’re already offering extended store hours and steep cuts on items such as toys. In recent years, holiday advertisements began to appear before the Halloween candy is sold out, but the big shopping season has crept even earlier this year as retailers grapple with the economic downturn.

Wal-Mart led the way for holiday bargains by slashing the price on toys well before Halloween. The world’s largest retailer also announced it will alert shoppers about holiday deals through text-messaging.

Other retailers have also launched sales and discounts traditionally pegged to the day after Thanksgiving, the typical start of the holiday season. Kmart began hosting “Black Friday Weekends” two weeks ago. Stores such as Kohl’s and JCPenney have extended hours to midnight on some days, another shopping tradition once reserved for after Thanksgiving.

Retailers also are appealing to consumers with marketing campaigns and other programs that promote ways to stretch a budget or save a few dollars.

That’s all we have to do! Convince the consumers that they can save money while spending it at our store and not the competitiors. Genius.