As we’re based in the UK the idea of Black Friday is still somewhat new, though Cyber Monday is long established on this side of the pond. We’ve watched the Black Friday mania that erupts every year in the US with intrigue and we’re starting to see more and more sales happen internationally in the pre-Christmas rush, usually linking Black Friday and Cyber Monday into one long shopping weekend.
So-called because the boost in sales would help companies get ‘into the black’, Black Friday takes place annually the day after US Thanksgiving, with companies offering heavily discounted goods and services to shoppers wanting to snap up a bargain before Christmas. Although the sales used to be confined to retail shops, brands from all industries have realised what a fantastic opportunity Black Friday is, which is why we now see companies of all descriptions and sizes running Black Friday promotions.
Taking place four Mondays before Christmas, Cyber Monday is the most popular online shopping day of the year and sales often surpass the figures seen on Black Friday, particularly in the UK.
To put things into perspective and show you why your business should consider running a Black Friday weekend promotion, in 2015 more than £3 billion was spent in the UK between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with Amazon selling over 7.3 million items in a single day and online traffic surging 60% higher than usual on Cyber Monday. See what we mean?
If your business hasn’t yet embraced the Black Friday madness, it might be something you want to add to your marketing strategy for 2017. It’s worth taking some time to consider what sort of promotion would add value both for you and your customers and how you can work this into your existing sales strategy to maximise the impact of the campaign.
To give you a few examples of successful web companies who are running great deals this year (and to help you bag a bargain!), we’ve gathered a list of some of our favourite brands who are getting involved with both Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year:
Yoast
The WordPress plugin giants are running deals on all of their products, from their renowned plugins to courses. The deals will be going live tomorrow morning so head over to the Yoast site while you enjoy your morning coffee to see which discounts are available.
WPEngine
One of our partners, WPEngine, are running a fantastic deal which is set to be very exciting for any of you who are looking to save a whole heap of cash on your hosting services for 2017. To be one of the first in the know, make sure you swing by the WPEngine website tomorrow morning.
Siteground
Another popular hosting site, Siteground, are offering one of the best deals for website owners that we’ve seen this year. A whopping 70% off of their hosting packages is set to go live at 3am EST tonight. It’s due to run for the whole weekend and throughout Cyber Monday, ending at 3am EST on November 29th.
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What’s your company’s experience of Black Friday and Cyber Monday? Do you run promotions at this time of year to maximise sales and web traffic, or is it something you’re going to consider for next year? On the other side of the coin, do you search the web for deals at this time of year or will you be skipping the Black Friday madness?
