Lights Out or Opt Out: Black Friday

American consumerism is at an all-time high, and we want the most for less. Black Friday sales are beginning earlier and earlier, some even starting Thanksgiving evening. This not only means that more employees need to be on the clock during the holiday, but they also have to come in much earlier than previous years. On average, it takes three hours to set up for such a large-scale sale.

A recent trend, however, has taken over the retail scene during the Black Friday festivities. More and more employee-conscious retailers are choosing to opt-out of the craziness. This allows their employees to spend the holiday with their families.  Research has revealed that, even though stores are closed during the shopping frenzy, they stand to gain both revenue and brownie points. It plays with the emotions of their consumers, giving retailers the opportunity to capitalize on Cyber Monday. It also draws customers to their stores to do more of their holiday shopping, because they appreciate what was done for the employees.

The biggest retailers participating in ‘opting-out’ are Macy’s and R.E.I., and more locally the Grand Rapids Bicycle Company is opting out of Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Small Business Saturday. When R.E.I. announced their big “#OptOutside” campaign, the social media world went crazy. Within 30 minutes of their CEO making the official announcement they were trending on Twitter and Facebook.

After Cyber Monday, retailers are able to check their sales and compare them to previous Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.  If the technique has been effective, they will find that e-commerce sales still bring in major revenue for them.

The bottom line: if you aren’t already doing it, then you’re already behind. Cyber Monday is the single biggest event this year for advertisers. Sources from AdGrooroo say that 225 retailers started advertising for Black Friday and Christmas on September 27th of this year. Amazon is the leader for the category with Target and Walmart in a close second. To show support for businesses staying closed this holiday, spend Thanksgiving at home with your loved ones, and do your holiday shopping from the comfort of your own home on Cyber Monday.

Happy holiday shopping!

Lauren is a senior at Grand Valley graduating in April with a BS degree in Advertising in Public Relations. Besides participating in GrandPR and PRSSA, she enjoys watching sports and Grey's Anatomy. She have a passion for sports, and would one day enjoy being a sports publicist. If you can't find her somewhere on GVSU's campus she is probably in the most beautiful place on earth, Glen Lake, MI.