How Does a Boxing Day Sales Strategy Differ from Black Friday?
Unwrapping the distinctions between Boxing Day and Black Friday sales strategies, we’ve gathered insights from five seasoned professionals, including CEOs and digital marketers. They explore everything from a post-holiday-clearance focus to the international appeal that influences sales. Dive into the varied tactics that set these major shopping events apart.
- Post-Holiday Clearance Focus
- Consumer Mindset Shifts Strategy
- Encourage Sustainable Post-Holiday Purchases
- Clear Inventory Before New Year
- International Appeal Influences Sales
Post-Holiday Clearance Focus
A key difference between Boxing Day sales plans and Black Friday is that one is ahead of a specific holiday season, whereas the other is after the particular holiday season at a set time. On Black Friday, the sales day that frequently starts the holiday shopping period, you will find many products that are marked low and sometimes even have doorbusters, unlike the Boxing Day sales, which are normally clearing out the remaining stock after Christmas.
For a retailer client, we specialized our marketing and advertising strategy to comply with this trend. Although we avoided the general discounts throughout Black Friday, instead, we marked the appropriate post-holiday deals and clearance promotions at the Boxing Day sales. We used the post-Christmas bargain hunters as a target audience in 2020, and that generated for us an 85% rise in site visits as well as 20% more sales than that of the previous year’s Boxing Day sales.
Kartik Ahuja
Digital Marketer, kartikahuja.com
Consumer Mindset Shifts Strategy
In the realm of digital marketing, and from my extensive work at Cleartail Marketing, we’ve always approached Boxing Day sales with a different strategy compared to Black Friday, primarily due to customer behavior and sales lifecycle. Boxing Day, occurring right after Christmas, captures an audience that is generally more relaxed and possibly looking to spend their holiday money or gift cards. This contrasts with Black Friday, where the urgency and competitive deals drive consumer actions.
For instance, during a recent campaign for one of our B2B clients, we noted that while Black Friday was all about slashing prices to compete with the market frenzy, Boxing Day sales were more about value addition. We found that offering comprehensive bundles or packages that added real value to our clients’ purchases saw a significant uptick in interest and conversions during Boxing Day. This strategy capitalized on the consumer mindset of seeking self-reward after the holiday spending on others, highlighting the aspect of indulgence and self-investment.
Moreover, the shift towards online shopping has further emphasized the need to adjust our digital marketing tactics between these sales events. For Boxing Day, we leveraged more storytelling in our content marketing, focusing on the narrative of starting the new year with a bang, equipped with the best tools or services—thus tapping into the New Year’s resolution mindset. Collectively, these subtle yet effective shifts in strategy between Black Friday and Boxing Day have allowed us to tailor our campaigns more closely to consumer behavior, driving better engagement and results for our clients.
Magee Clegg
CEO, Cleartail Marketing
Encourage Sustainable Post-Holiday Purchases
A key difference in our Boxing Day sales strategy compared to Black Friday lies in our focus on sustainability and mindful consumption. While Black Friday often drives a “buy more for less” mindset, our Boxing Day approach encourages customers to invest in high-quality, eco-friendly cleaning products that offer long-term value rather than short-term savings.
We aim to educate our customers on the benefits of choosing sustainable options, making Boxing Day an opportunity to support not just their own health and home, but the environment as well.
Steven Renn
Co-Founder, ACTIVE Clean
Clear Inventory Before New Year
One key difference in a Boxing Day sales strategy compared to Black Friday is the focus on clearing inventory before the new year. Boxing Day sales often feature deeper discounts on a wider range of products, including seasonal items, to make room for new stock, whereas Black Friday tends to focus on high-demand products at competitive prices to kick off the holiday shopping season.
Nicolas Krauss
Founder and CEO
International Appeal Influences Sales
One key difference between Boxing Day sales and Black Friday is their international appeal. For instance, at my company, which specializes in protective shipping supplies, we’ve noticed a significant uptick in orders from Canada and the U.K. around Boxing Day. These regions have a strong tradition of Boxing Day sales, unlike the U.S., where Black Friday is more prominent.
This past year, we prepared by increasing our inventory of desiccant bags and insulation blankets ahead of time, which really paid off with a 30% boost in sales from these areas compared to the previous month.
Sandra Malouf
President, Eurolog Packing Group
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