I finally arrived back in North Carolina last night. After not having any Internet for four days, of course one of the first things I did was boot up my computer and get online. I have made it my personal mission to get all of my holiday shopping done before I go home in three weeks for Christmas break! Sounds almost impossible I know. I never go shopping on Black Friday…I usually split my purchases between online, and in-store finds! But once I had Internet, and caught up on my daily dose of nerdy reads…I was surprised to see how much of a part technology is playing today in the Black Friday extravaganza.
I came across an article on CNN Tech talking about how stores are “re-vamping” their mobile applications in order to appeal to customers during the holiday season, especially on Black Friday. Stores such as Target and Wal-Mart offer maps of your local store to show the shopper where the items they are looking for are located, short cuts, and what some of the best deals in the store are. The article failed to mention though how many shoppers are actually using these applications. Personally, if I was out on Black Friday, about to be trampled my hundreds of crazy shoppers hyped up on a turkey fueled dinner, my first thought would not be, “Hey! Let me pull out my phone and see where I need to go!” I imagine though that shoppers are using this application, before they even enter the store, in order to “strategize” their purchases.
Of course, today, Black Friday cannot be mentioned without the conversation of Cyber Monday following soon after. It seems like this year, everyone forgot what day Thanksgiving was on, and that Cyber Monday is technically the Monday after the holiday, because almost every online store I came across was pushing holiday specials, sales, free shipping…whatever it is..before our Thanksgiving turkey was even in the oven! It’s almost like the feeling you get when your neighbors start putting up Christmas decorations before Halloween..like, “Hey can we just slow down here a second! I’m not ready for this yet.” But I guess when it comes to the holidays, and everyones shopping lists, the sooner it is done, the better! I imagine this is why mobile apps are being re-vamped for the holidays, and Christmas specials have started before Thanksgiving is even over with.
It will be interesting to see what the ‘numbers’ from this week say. Did all of this new technology, and the rush to get specials to the consumers early really pay off? Or are people put off by it and want a break? I doubt the later is the case. I may have been out in the middle of no where during my Thanksgiving Break, but from the pictures I have seen, and the articles I have read in just the last few hours…the customers is taking to this holiday technology bate just how little kids go sled ridding…very fast…and without any control!….Let’s just hope there isn’t any crazy crash at the bottom.