Festivities and sales go hand in hand. Giving a discount on the products during any national or international occasion attracts a huge number of customers. This benefits the company financially and also the customers to get products at suitable cost-effective prices. The two biggest sales of the year are – Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Black Friday vs Cyber Monday
The main difference between Black Friday and Cyber Monday is that Black Friday occurs on the fourth Friday of November whereas Cyber Monday follows after Black Friday. Black Friday focuses on sales which is physical, whereas Cyber Monday is one of the biggest online sales. Black Friday benefits the big retailer companies, whereas Cyber Monday helps the online retailers and also small businesses.
Black Friday is one of the biggest sales which occurs every year on the fourth Friday of November followed by the day of Thanksgiving. Black Friday marks the beginning of the festive season i.e., Christmas and New year eve. Every year a huge number of customers purchase electronics, household, clothing, personal care items and many more products due to the big offer on the products.
While, Cyber Monday is also one of the biggest sales but it focuses on online purchases benefitting the small retailers and also the ones who have started their fresh small businesses. Cyber Monday is followed after three days of Black Friday.
Comparison Table Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday
| Parameters of Comparison | Black Friday | Cyber Monday |
| Occurence | Day after thanksgiving. | Three days after black Friday. |
| Origin | In the year 1869. | In the year 2005. |
| Medium | Physical shopping in shops and malls. | Online shopping from home. |
| Benefits | It only benefits big retailers like Walmart, Kohl’s, etc. | It benefits small businesses and retailers as well as big retailers like Amazon, Flipkart & Alibaba express, etc. |
| Preference | Customers nowadays do not prefer Black Friday much due to the huge crowds it creates. A lot of customers prefer spending time with their family and shopping in the weekend sitting at home. | Cyber Monday fulfills that demand successfully with huge offers. |
What is Black Friday?
The term Black Friday was first coined in the year 1869 on the 24th of September and, it has no relevance with big holiday shopping. The actual reason behind Black Friday is that, in the 1950s the day after thanksgiving, the scene of the streets and market in Philadelphia was crowded with traffic and a huge number of people in the stores shopping for Christmas eve.
Big retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, Kohl’s, Target Corporation have the Black Friday sale every year. Black Friday is the biggest sale in the United States followed by Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Romania, India, Germany, France, Australia and many other countries.
Black Friday marks the beginning of Christmas and New year eve unofficially. A lot of shopkeepers or dealers open their malls and stores early in the morning even before the day starts, a massive number of customers make a crowd in front of these malls and stores to grasp the Best Deals.
Some of the large dealers advertise about Black Friday online too through, coupons and offer a discount in advance to provide customers time to understand sales and scheme for their purchase.
What is Cyber Monday?
The term Cyber Monday was proposed by Ellen Davis and Scott Silverman, on November 28, 2005. Cyber Monday is followed by Black Friday for online transactions on the fourth Monday of November after Thanksgiving in the countries like United States, Canada, Romania, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and India.
This innovative idea was brought up by retailers to uplift people to shop online and support small businesses. Online shopping is the biggest platform than physical shopping in today’s time. Cyber Monday sale is grand and profits more than the Black Friday sale.
Cyber Monday is completely based online and it benefits the small retailers to a great extent. It is the best time to have profit for the ones having small businesses by advertising their products & by giving online offer on their products. Big companies like Amazon, Alibaba express, Flipkart and many other companies provide great discount schemes on online products like cell phones, household items, toiletries, personal care items, cosmetics, clothing, shoes, electronic appliances, etc. These big online platforms also allow small retailers to sell their products.
Customers enjoy Cyber Monday for many reasons. Many people want to spend time with their family during the holiday and do not want to go to the market just to get some negotiation on the items, while many people also don’t want to stand and wait in the big crowd that form on Black Friday. Cyber Monday provides customers with a convenient, crowd-less way to shop and spend in on some or many great deals. Many dealers are now offering free shipping as a spur to shop on Cyber Monday, this makes online shopping even more appealing.
Main Differences Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday
- Black Friday is a physical shopping sale; whereas Cyber Monday is an online shopping sale.
- Black Friday is after the day of Thanksgiving; whereas Cyber Monday is three days after Black Friday.
- Black Friday benefits big retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, Kohl’s; whereas Cyber Monday benefits small businesses and retailers along with big retailers.
- Black Friday unofficially commences at the beginning of Christmas eve; whereas Cyber Monday is followed by Black Friday.
- Cyber Monday is favoured by the customers more than Black Friday as it helps customers to shop at home during the weekend.
Conclusion
Cyber Monday is the best option for shopping than Black Friday, as it is safe and contactless. Cyber Monday is versatile and benefits the retailer as well the customer whereas Black Friday is not successful much in this.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are hence one of the biggest sales on the eve of Christmas and new year. Both the sales are loved by the customers and they eagerly wait for such massive discounts on their favorite products.
Reference
- https://www.inderscienceonline.com/doi/abs/10.1504/IJEMR.2013.052884
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969698912001233