Name: Joana Felicia Latief

Student ID: 2201798332

Class: Academic English 1 L1BE

Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday

At the end of the year, most people around the world celebrate the holiday season with
their family and friends. They enjoy their time together by doing fun activities, and most people
do holiday shopping. Near the holiday season, notably after Thanksgiving, there are huge
discounts and deals almost in every store. People do not want to miss out the best deals to buy
their desired items. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are two events which offer the best deals
for the shoppers during the holiday season. Both Black Friday and Cyber Monday are trending
during the holiday season especially, after Thanksgiving. According to the National Retail
Federation, the number of shoppers from Thanksgiving until Cyber Monday was 165 million
(Parmar and Rupp, 2018). Both events occur in the United States, Europe and increasingly
many other parts of the world. Although both events are thought to be similar, Black Friday
and Cyber Monday are quite different.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday have a different history. Black Friday has been going
on since the 1950s. It occurs in the first Friday after Thanksgiving. “Black Friday” is a term
given by the Philadelphia Police Department as it describes the chaos during that event
(Amadeo, 2018). It often brings bad traffic and accidents as the shoppers are heading to the
stores (Stout, 2017). On the other hand, Cyber Monday has only been going on since 2005.
Black Friday is more popular than Cyber Monday because it has been going on for a long time.
“This year, the expected average spending for Black Friday ($472) beats Cyber Monday
($415)” (Howland, 2018). Cyber Monday is on the first Monday after Thanksgiving. It occurs
on Monday because, in the early 21st century, people waited until Monday to shop online while
working at the office, where they had computers with faster internet connections (Investopedia,
n.d.). The term “Cyber Monday” is given by the National Retail Federation to describe that
people shopped online on the Monday after Thanksgiving (Slaybaugh, 2018).
Black Friday and Cyber Monday offer the best deals differently. Black Friday is the
day when retail stores massively decrease their product’s price by offering huge sales. In other
words, it offers “doorbuster” deals. It means “a particular item or a selection of items is offered
at a special discount price for a limited period to get customers in the door or "bust open the
doors" to get them” (Investopedia, n.d). By offering special discounts at the brick-and-mortar
store, it often causes a long queue for customers to get in. Even in some places, people will
start to queue in front of the retail store in the early morning before the store is open. On Black
Friday, retailers offer not only in-store shopping but also online shopping. As technology
becomes advanced, some retailers compete with one another by offering an online shopping
alternative for customers to avoid the crowds and long queue line. In contrast to Black Friday,
Cyber Monday is the day when online retailers offer online shopping deals to compete with
retailers that offer Black Friday deals. Some online deals on Cyber Monday may not be found
on Black Friday (Dumais,2018). The increasing number of social media and technology usage
allows online retailers to promote their store and deliver more information to the customer
about Cyber Monday special discounts and promotions (Amadeo, 2018). The number of online
retailers offering discounts is increasing from 2016 to 2017 (Martin, 2018). Shoppers do not
need to queue in the long run to enter the store; they can avoid the crowds by shopping online.
They also can shop whenever they want because it provides 24-hour service.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday offer different types of products deals. It depends on
the customer needs to decide which one has the best deals. On Black Friday, electronics are
more likely to have the biggest discounts every year (Colella, 2015). According to Matthew
Ong, senior retail analyst, “Black Friday offers serious savings on items like computers and
other electronics” (Wise, 2018). Black Friday also give the best deals on home goods and
kitchen appliances. Many retailers offer low prices on kitchen appliances to attract the shoppers
to get in the store (Collela, 2015). Unlike Black Friday, Cyber Monday offers the biggest
discounts on clothing and shoes. “According to The Sun, there were 50% more deals on shoes
and clothing saw 45% more deals than Black Friday” (Moorhead, 2018). Not only apparel, but
online retailers also offer the best bargains on beauty products, toys and travel tickets.
In conclusion, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the biggest shopping event during
the holiday season, but they are not as similar as they seem to be. Even though both of them
occur almost at the same time during the holiday season, it is clear that both are different in
many aspects. Black Friday and Cyber Monday have different backgrounds, and both are
different on how they offer the best deals. On Black Friday, retailers offer in-store and online
discounts. Differ from Black Friday, online retailers offer discounts on websites during Cyber
Monday. The products that are offered are also different. Electronics, home goods, and kitchen
appliances are more likely to have the biggest discounts during Black Friday. Whereas apparel,
beauty products, toys, and travel tickets have the biggest discounts during Cyber Monday. It is
up to the shopper to determine which one offer the best deals.
Resources:
Amadeo, K. (2018). Cyber Monday, When It Starts, and Current Trends. Retrieved from
https://www.thebalance.com/cyber-monday-what-it-is-when-it- starts-and-current-
trends-3305715

Amadeo, K. (2018). Why Is Black Friday Called Black Friday?. Retrieved from
https://www.thebalance.com/why-is-it-called-black-friday-3305712

Broida, R. (2018). Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday: What’s the Difference?. Retrieved from
https://www.cnet.com/how-to/black-friday-2018-vs-cyber-monday-whats-the-
difference/

Colella, K. (2015). Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday: Which Day Has the Hotter Deals?.
Retrieved from https://www.thestreet.com/story/13376789/1/black-friday-vs-cyber-
monday-which-day-has-the-hotter-deals.html

Dumais, E. (2018). Are Black Friday & Cyber Monday Actually Different, Anymore?.
Retrieved from https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/differences-between-black-
friday-vs-cyber-monday

Howland, D. (2018). Black Friday Poised To Edge Out Cyber Monday This Year. Retrieved
from https://www.retaildive.com/news/black-friday-poised-to-edge-out-cyber-
monday-this-year/539770/

Investopedia. (2018). Cyber Monday.

Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cybermonday.asp

Investopedia. (2018). Doorbuster.

Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/doorbuster.asp

Martin, N. (2018). The Data Behind Black Friday & Cyber Monday. Retrieved from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolemartin1/2018/11/21/the-data-behind-black-friday-
cyber-monday/#5d5841f87d92
Moorhead, A. (2018). Net A Bargain. Retrieved from
https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/2253849/black-friday-deals-uk-2018-cyber-
monday-discounts-deals/

Parmar, H. & Rupp, L. (2018). Black Friday. Retrieved from

https://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/black-friday

Slaybaugh, S. (2018). 7 Ways Cyber Monday Is Different From Black Friday. Retrieved from
https://www.dealnews.com/features/ways-cyber-monday-is-different-from-black-
friday/

Stout, H. (2017). Why Do We Call It “Black Friday”?.

Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/23/business/black-friday-meaning-
definition.amp.html

Wise, A. (2018). How to Get the Best Deals on Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Beyond.
Retrieved from https://www.realsimple.com/holidays-entertaining/holidays/more-
holidays/black-friday-cyber-monday-wait