For as long as you could probably remember, Black Friday was the zenith of bargain shopping in the US. So much so, that the trend found its way around the world so quickly that it is now used as a global marketing strategy to sell goods and services. However, in the past few years, Cyber Monday has come to replace it as the biggest shopping event in the US. At least, this is what the recent trends are suggesting due to development in technology, consumer shift towards convenience and the discounts available in the market on both events. So, what is the difference between Black Friday and Cyber Monday?
Is Cyber Monday or Black Friday better for discount shoppers? The short answer is that Cyber Monday has the overall better deals but it’s still very close.
What is Cyber Monday?
Cyber Monday traditionally comes just three days after Black Friday and revolves around online deals rather than physical shopping. It’s even bigger than Black Friday as retail sales in 2019 are expected to top $10 billion.
Is Cyber Monday now superior than Black Friday?
Cyber Monday is believed to be better than Black Friday in recent times as consumers began to notice more savings on it as compared to Black Friday. Moreover, consumers shifted their purchasing channels online with the emergence of e-commerce and website-based digital stores. It was estimated that Cyber Monday average savings per user and purchase peaked at 21 percent as compared to 19 percent on Black Friday. Savings are not the only thing consider though as different products receive better discount each day, and retailer offers will vary from time and place.
When it comes to shopping this holiday season, here are a few rules of thumb:
Shop Black Friday for high-priced products and Cyber Monday for gadgets.
Shopping mostly includes items like groceries, electronic items clothing like kids clothing, mens biker leather jacket or you buy on a regular bases and those you are more likely to buy once a year or even less. For exclusive items, you will probably find better discounts on Black Friday. Products such as gifts are likely to have better discounts on Cyber Monday.
“Black Friday equals big-ticket items,” said Steve Koenig, Vice President of Research at the Consumer Technology Association. “With big deals on TVs, laptops, game consoles, and more during Black Friday week, many [people’s] purchases end up being for themselves or their own households.”
“TVs and appliances, you tend to get really great deals on Black Friday,” said Vivek Pandya, Digital Insights Manager at Adobe. “Cyber Monday, you see more of a focus on other types of electronics that are newer niche, experimental technologies.”
In 2018, the most discounted items in the market were televisions and computers which were down by approximately 18 percent according to Adobe Analytics. Popular deals included the likes of iPhones, cameras, laptops, echo devices, drones and high-tech devices.
Shop Black Friday for major stores and Cyber Monday for secondhand products.
“For Black Friday, look to the biggest retailers, the ones who can afford to have smaller margins,” said Janet Alveraz, executive editor of the personal-finance publication Wise Bread. “Places like Walmart and Best Buy tend to offer the best deals on Black Friday.” The exception here is Amazon, which tends to have better deals on Cyber Monday — as long as you’re a Prime member.
For those customers who are willing to buy products from resellers, Cyber Monday is a perfect for shopping on eBay as thousands of people are looking to resell items they just purchased on Black Friday.
Shop Black Friday for this year’s products; shop Cyber Monday for older generations.
The latest-generation products are comparatively cheaper on Black Friday than on Cyber Monday and Cyber Monday is perfect for buying smart home devices, TVs, consoles and other tech items that are older.
Shop Black Friday if you plan to visit a store. Even with Black Friday’s reputation as a brick-and-mortar shopping day, over 70 percent of survey respondents said they’d spend the day shopping online. Retail giants like Amazon and eBay aren’t limited to Cyber Monday as they will be offering discounts on Black Friday as well as the preceding days leading to the events. However, the reverse is not true as you cannot simply walk in to Costco on Cyber Monday and expect to find specific discounts for that occasion.
