Survey: Most Like 1-Day Black Friday Shopping Over Monthlong Sales Deals

Retailers have transformed a Black Friday one-day deal into a monthlong savings event to accommodate consumers who don’t want to wait, but most Americans don’t like the tradeoff, a new survey showed.

Consumer research firm Attest’s online poll found 58% of consumers believe Black Friday is best for shopping deals, and 69% think the deals out to be limited to one to three days, the Washington Times reported Tuesday.

The survey found 46% said they will buy something on Black Friday, and 22% will spend between $300 and $500, but around one-third were wary about shopping in person, the news outlet reported.

The poll also found that 58% said they plan to buy products both in-person and online this year, with 25% purchasing items exclusively online, and 17% planning to shop solely in-store. Also, 65% of respondents, most of them millennials, said they feel comfortable shopping in-store regardless of the pandemic.

"While this data doesn’t necessarily point to a reduction in crowds, it does show that Americans have become dependent on e-commerce and quite like having the option to skip lines and buy online," Attest CEO Jeremy King, citing supply chain disruptions and COVID-19 concerns, told the Washington Times.

"What’s even more interesting is that in light of the ongoing pandemic a sizable majority of nearly two-thirds say they are ‘comfortable’ shopping in-person, while only 17% cite being apprehensive about journeying into brick-and-mortars," King added.

In other findings, the survey showed that:

• 41% of consumers still want to see masks required in stores, and 31% want retailers to limit the number of shoppers allowed inside at the same time.
• 42% of consumers started their Christmas shopping earlier than usual due to fears that global supply chain issues will result in empty shelves closer to the winter holidays.
• 69% of Black Friday buyers will look for technology products, 68% will look for clothing deals, 5l% will hunt for home goods, 39% will pursue beauty products, and 30% plan to hunt for kitchen appliances.
• About 1 in 5 consumers won’t buy anything on Black Friday.

Attest said consumers planning to shop on Black Friday itself were most likely to select Walmart as their top choice for sales, followed by Amazon, Target, and Macy’s, the news outlet reported.

• Target Will Keep Stores Closed on Thanksgiving for Good
• Black Friday: Record $9B Spent Online as In-Store Sales Drop 52%