Not so long ago, it seems, it used to be that the Black Friday and Cyber
Monday deals remained mysteries, freak days where the rules of consumerism -
as well as the etiquette - went out the window and shopping was an almost
literal free-for-all of chaos and massively discounted goodies.
Now, most companies start advertising their offers weeks, sometimes even
months, ahead of the manic weekend, ensuring that the element of surprise
has been robbed from the chase but appetite for cheap shopping remains at an
all time high.
So if you don't know your Black Friday from your Cyber Monday, we're here to
show you the ropes - so you can use them to lasso yourself a television set
for 30% of its original price.
The "Holidays"
Thanksgiving (which falls this year on Thursday November 22), being the
American equivalent of Christmas in terms of consumerism gone wild, is
quickly followed in America by Black Friday (November 23) and Cyber Monday
(November 26) - two of the busiest shopping days of the year.
According to one survey, Americans spent $682.0 billion on Black Friday
last year alone, with individual Americans spending $967.13 on average. This
year, they're expected to spend $717.5 billion in total and $1,007.24
individually, an increase of 4.3%.
And that's just one side of the world. Ireland has firmly jumped on the
bandwagon, thanks in part to our latent "Americanness" borrowed from shows
like The Simpsons as well as the accessibility of a rake of American
companies advertising their sales in Ireland.
Given the limited number of holidays in America it would be surprising if it
was made into an official national holiday but, for a number of government
employees and school goers, it is. The annual four-day weekend, which comes
only weeks away from Christmas, is a seller's dream.
Cyber Chaos
Not content with one capitalist holiday, Cyber Monday emerged as an
extension of the shopping crazy, ensuring that celebrants are spending the
entire weekend through, in some cases. The focus here is in the name - with
companies encouraging online shopping after the exhaustion of the
Thanksgiving weekend. And reader, it works a treat.
If so inclined, any number of companies are surely filling your email inbox
with offers as you read, and information on where to get the best deals is
not in short
supply online. Us? We'll be watching the carnage play out on the
#BlackFriday and #CyberMonday feeds.
===========================================================
The fb-exchange mailing list
Manage account, subscribe or unsubscribe:
//www.freelists.org/list/fb-exchange
Archives: //www.freelists.org/archives/fb-exchange ;
Administrative contact: insight@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
===========================================================
