Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving and is the single biggest sale day of the year. Stores open early and have doorbusters, BOGOs, sales, promotions, and rebates.
1)Think about the time you would like to open. Stores are opening earlier and earlier every year. However, if you are a small business you do not need to open as early. You can open between 6 and 8 in the morning and still have great sales.
2)Think about the sales and promotions you want to run on Black Friday. Check our posts about holiday sales and holiday promotions for more information.
3)Create your advertisements and remember to include pictures and a full description of the sale or promotion.
4)Get your advertisement out there. Post it on your website and social media accounts. Remember to send out an email campaign. Print postcards and mail them out about two weeks before. Also, print flyers and hang them up at the beginning of November.
Small Business Saturday is the Saturday after Thanksgiving. This day was created by American Express® and began in 2010. It was created to remind customers to also shop at their local businesses. All small and local businesses should take advantage of this day.
1)Sign up with American Express for free online. They will provide you with Downloadable Signage for Small Business Sales.
2)Think of a promotion or sale to run on Small Business Saturday.
3)Create your advertisements and remember to include the signage you downloaded. You should also include any pictures and a full description of the sale or promotion.
4)Get your advertisement out there. Post it on your website and social media accounts. Use the templates to send out email campaigns. Print postcards and mail them out about two weeks before. Also print flyers and hang them up at the beginning of November.
Cyber Monday is the Monday after Thanksgiving. It began in 2005 to encourage customers to shop online. Recently, Cyber Monday has become more and more popular and has seen more commerce than Black Friday some years. Cyber Monday is mostly for e-commerce websites, but there is no reason a local business cannot also participate.
1)Think of a promotion or sale to run on Cyber Monday.
2)Create your advertisements and include pictures and a full description of the sale or promotion. If you do not sell products online, create a coupon that will be posted on Cyber Monday. Inform the customers that this coupon must be printed and brought into the store to receive the offer.
3)Get your advertisement out there. Post it on your website and social media accounts. Print postcards and mail them out about two weeks before. Also print flyers and hang them up at the beginning of November.
Giving Tuesday is the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. It is a way to kick off the Giving Season. Customers like to see that a business helps the community.
1)Think of a local charity or organization that your business can help. You can help them financially or by donating items you sell.
2)Talk to the charity about your sale and see if they will help you promote it.
3)Create your advertisements and include pictures and a full description of the promotion. Include some information about the charity for anyone who might not have heard of it.
4)Get your advertisement out there. Post it on your website and social media accounts. Print postcards and mail them out about two weeks before. Also print flyers and hang them up at the beginning of November.
Written By: Stephanie Dunaieff, September 2, 2014