MARKETING ADS FOR BLACK FRIDAY

JC PENNEY THE CLEAR LEADER


Some of the pharmacy ads were beyond ridiculous never stating the exact times they will be open on black Friday just pushing the fact that they would be open during certain times on Thanksgiving.  This was the first year I have ever attempted to bundle up for the long lines outside in the cold to see exactly what this Black Friday buzz is all about.  First I needed to prepare as I am a true organizer and rarely do anything without a bit of research and preparation.  Since the final decision was not made until after 10pm I needed to start coordinating the route and to do that the ads would be my best friends.

Separating each ad by the time the doors would open seemed to be the logical place to start.  The pharmacy store ads were of little use as none stated anything but their Thanksgiving day hours.  If the hours were not marked clearly in large print on the front of the page they were discarded into a pile for later review.  It became increasingly difficult to navigate through the ads, sorting through each one locating times the doors would open.  Here are our Top 4 best ads to locate times where the companies sometimes took a step back for self promotion and concentrated on getting the customer to their store first.  First is JC Penney had the font size set larger than their name stating "4am be there."  So we knew little would keep us from heading to JC Penney first.  A close Second is Bon Ton who like Penney's put their pride aside to get the customer and enlarging the font for the store opening hours.  Sadly for Bon Ton their sales had too many small print exclusions so they were left in the pile of "no goes."  Third was Kohl's even though they held strong in self promotion as their name was in larger print than the store opening hours.  They did however have the times printed across the top of the ad.  Coming in at number Four was Radio Shack who left the self promotion to get the customers attention drawn to the store hours.  The word SALE out did both the company logo and the time which is why they were our number four instead of maybe number two.

Kmart, Toys R Us and Lowe's had file like tabs that stuck out from the side of the AD.  Lowe's was the only add that was not either ripped or crumbled.  Toys R Us would obviously be one of the most popular during the start of the Christmas shopping season they will get a second look from most shoppers.  Offer the women who are looking to shop early for their man Lowe's will get your attention quickly.

Delaware Camera a local store had one of the worst ads as the opening times not only did not seem any different but were stated in small print on the bottom corner of the ad.  Office Max and Dave and Adam's had folded ads that made our research take up more time by noting their hours at the bottom of the flip side in small font.  So these were the worst of the worst giving us pause to consider who these companies  designated with the responsibility to get the customer to their stores first. 

If you want the customer to your store first you need to have large font indicating when your doors will be open.  Do not be fooled by opening your doors at midnight in hopes of getting the customers to your store first.  Often those who shop between midnight & 5 am will be the biggest returners in line within days of purchase.  I wish someone would do a legitimate survey.  Maybe Rustyscage.com will look into this further for 2012's Christmas Shopping Season. 

Happy Holidays

RUSTYSCAGE.COM