Thanksgiving, Black Friday & Cyber Monday 2011

Skip the crowds this year by shopping online

In addition to some traditional time off with family, the Thanksgiving shopping season generally offers the best sales and promotions of the year. Now with the ease of online shopping you have another reason to skip the crowds this year. Instead, you can shop conveniently from home this Thanksgiving holiday without missing the big sales!

Thanksgiving Day 2011 is November 24. The day marking the traditional beginning of the Christmas shopping season is Black Friday which is the day after Thanksgiving. It’s been called Black Friday for many years now and that’s because for some retailers it’s the first time of the year in which they are in the black — as in they are finally making a profit instead of being financially “in the red.” Black Friday is known for its big sales, huge discounts, and other promotions designed to lure customers into the store.

Interestingly, however, while Black Friday is usually one of the most crowded days of the year in terms of customers, it is not always the largest in terms of expenditures. That day is usually the Saturday before Christmas which is probably due to all those who procrastinate or finally just give up and settle for something instead of their ideal gift item.

About a decade or so ago the new wave of Internet shopping created another interesting consumer trend — kind of an “Internet Black Friday.” That day occurred when millions of weary shoppers return to work after the Thanksgiving holidays. Many had shopped themselves silly on Black Friday only to find the sale items out of stock or not what they really wanted. They arrived at work on Monday and had access to their office computers which, unlike many homes at the time, had high speed Internet connections. There they ordered many of the items they had hoped to buy on Black Friday. After analysts noticed this new trend they called it Cyber Monday. This shopping pattern became stronger as online retailers responded with even better coupon codes, free shipping discounts, and other online promotions.

Cyber Monday 2011 is November 28. Like Black Friday, Cyber Monday used to mark the official start of the online shopping season for Christmas gift buying. However, that trend has been pushed back as more and more homes were wired with high speed Internet access. Now millions of people actually begin their online shopping on Thanksgiving afternoon — either by finding great bargains while planning their Black Friday conquests or by taking advantage of the always-on Internet and now common Thanksgiving Day-only sales online.

So now that we’ve introduced you to the online world of Thanksgiving shopping, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday we hope you can relax more this year and enjoy this Thanksgiving season. We also hope you can save more on Thanksgiving. Please take advantage of the big sales and special coupon codes for this season. When you shop with us be sure to check out our Thanksgiving Deals and Black Friday & Cyber Monday Promotions pages for a list of seasonal coupons and offers that can save you greatly.