Modern Insider – Online Marketing Blog

Black Friday may be the day where we all look to the malls and traditional retail for success but if my inbox is anything like that of the typical consumer, the internet is playing a larger and larger role in how we all find deals. To sum up what I saw it’s definitely all about the deal and while every Black Friday has been founded around sales, this year had more offers and stronger offers than I ever recall seeing; free shipping with [and mostly without] strings dominated the online offers while offline was all over the place from percentage discounts to bogo and beyond.

Click in for screenshots from emails and pages from all over the web.

Black Friday may be the day where we all look to the malls and traditional retail for success but if my inbox is anything like that of the typical consumer, the internet is playing a larger and larger role in how we all find deals. To sum up what I saw it’s definitely all about the deal and while every Black Friday has been founded around sales, this year had more offers and stronger offers than I ever recall seeing; free shipping with [and mostly without] strings dominated the online offers while offline was all over the place from percentage discounts to bogo and beyond.

Here are some of the emails and sites seen before, during and just after the crucial sales day.

	1 – Apple – “This Friday Our biggest shopping event of the year” While I get emails from Apple fairly regularly they definitely don’t take the volume approach and this week was no different. The email shown here was all I received from Apple teasing an online & offline event with 1 day only specials. No mention of the deals but with Christmas colors the message was clear.
	2- Bath & Body Works – “2 Days FREE SHIPPING ON ANY ORDER SIZE” The subject line really sums up this week’s emails from Bath & Body Works… lots of focus on the deal and several emails to drive in the point. The creative all looked a lot like what’s shown here, high hitting offers with no mixed message and a very unique deal for this retailer – free shipping, free shipping, free shipping – no strings. Along with the direct promotion messages I also saw a few product related emails, all with offers of course, but without the mention of the Friday sales.
	3 – Circuit City – “Black Friday 2-Day Sale savings so big, we’re giving you an extra day” Never one to shy down from lots of messages Circuit City didn’t disappoint this week. From nice creative with a few offers and images to “thanksgiving sale, 2days only, don’t miss out” quick hits they delivered and delivered every day and sometimes multiple times per day.
	4- Macys – “Avoid the rush – Get Free Shipping & Thanksgiving Specials today” Like Circuit City Macy’s didn’t hold back on volume this week. Every day had a different email, every email showcasing their offers in a slightly different light but all centered on the big sale and limited time to act. Emails tended to be pretty short with links to top level categories and highlights of the discounts although legal text often doubled the message length.
	5 – Newegg – “Ready, Set, Shop – Black Friday starts now at Newegg” While Circuit City & Macys had a lot of volume Newegg may have taken the award for best teasing. Just about every day leading up to the holiday had another teaser and introduced different discounts on different items. Sometimes landing pages were flat lists others graphical and nice but the presence was always known and the offers always clear and big. Really big.

And here’s a few more email, landing and homepage screenshots:

Of course the emails haven’t ended and while it may be a media invented concept, Cyber Monday is getting some decent build up as well. I’ve already received a half dozen emails from a range of retailers hyping up their deals for tomorrow and given the current sales climate I imagine a lot more will hit this week. Check back for more updates and screenshots.

Here’s a few other blog posts from around the web about Black Friday both online and some retail stories:

• Black Friday Morning Quarterback
• Black Friday sales up only 1%, what about Cyber Monday?
• Black Friday | Numbers and Store Gift Certificates