Thanksgiving is a great day for families to relax, enjoy a tremendous feast, and catch up on old times with relatives. However, the Friday after Thanksgiving, also known as Black Friday, is typically a tumultuous and hectic day where shoppers frantically try to find the best deals. However, according to research from BFAds.net, Black Friday shoppers’ behaviour is getting easier to predict, which can help your business generate more money this holiday season with the help of online marketing.

Research plays a key role

According to the study, over 51% of shoppers will conduct preliminary research on upcoming Black Friday sales before they actually happen. For online marketing professionals, the key piece of data lies in the demographics: this segment of shoppers is predominately male (59.2%), with almost 30% of all researchers falling in the 25-35 age range. This comes as no surprise as the best deals are often related to tech products, ranging from computer parts to mobile devices.

“Why do I shop on Black Friday?”

Of all the primary reasons listed for shopping on Black Friday, the two overwhelming responses were 1) “to get holiday gifts” with 44.2%, and 2) “if the prices are low, why not shop?” with 41.3%. For business owners, this is the perfect time of year to leverage the holiday season and focus on generating as much traffic as possible to promote their specials. While some brands feel that discounting products may have a negative effect on their image, even a slight reduction in the sales price will make shoppers curious.

Advertising deals can in advance can be effective

Businesses prefer to keep their upcoming Black Friday specials private because they want to avoid the competition undercutting their prices. However, 88.5% of respondents indicated that they would be more likely to shop at a store that posts their specials in advance. To effectively broadcast deals without giving away all information, brands should utilize email marketing and social media channels to announce select specials. These special deals should be good enough to drive people to the store on Friday where businesses can further market the remaining promotions, cross-sells, and up-sells.

Online or in-store?

These results are effective for both brick & mortar stores and e-commerce websites. 51.7% of respondents indicated that they would use a combination of in-store and online shopping, whereas only 11.2% said they would stick with the Internet. For marketing professionals with only a brick & mortar store, this doesn’t mean you should ignore online marketing; in fact, increasing the online promotional efforts through pay-per-click advertising, social media, and email marketing will only increase the likelihood of driving foot traffic to your store.

Infographic and stats credit: Mashable