Black Friday Blues

Black Friday Blues

For many retailers, Black Friday offers an opportunity to attract customers and drive up sales. From promoting a limited number of products, to an ‘across the store’ approach, it takes considerable planning and effort to successfully pull off such a peak in demand.

Black Friday promotions may now have come to an end, but for retailers, the chances are the job is far from complete. For shoppers, the opportunity to grab a bargain is hard to resist, but impulse buying typically results in a high volume of returns. According to Experian-IMRG figures, up to 40% of Black Friday purchases are sent back.

So, after all the effort, the high volume of sales might not translate to a significant boost in profits. What’s more, retailers are faced with processing the returns during the busy pre-Christmas period.

Minimising Black Friday Returns

So, if things haven’t gone as planned, what measures can be put in place to improve the value of next year’s Black Friday promotions?

1. Be Selective – Discounting a limited number of products can be more effective than a blanket offer. This approach is less likely to attract a spending frenzy, but buyers are more likely to be genuinely interested in buying and keeping the items.
2. Never sell poor quality goods. The reputation of your business holds far more value than short term sales. What’s more, a premier product is less likely to be returned.
3. Invest in suitable product packaging. Cutting corners on packaging increases the risk that goods will be damaged in transit. Don’t give customers an easy excuse to process returns.
4. Provide really good discounts on Black Friday promotions and then return the goods to full price immediately after the event. This strategy will encourage buyers to keep hold of their purchases.
5. Employ additional resources to effectively manage returns. Your investment will keep customers happy and minimise the impact on Christmas sales.

If damaged goods were a big issue this year, Aylesbury Box Company can help. Use our expertise to provide suitable ecommerce packaging solutions for your products. We offer robust, cost effective and environmentally friendly cardboard packaging for online retailers. It could be all you need to minimise returns.