Black Friday has become a global phenomenon.
Often detested in the sustainability community as everything that’s wrong with over-consumption, it remains an important date in the retail calendar, and the start of Golden Quarter – where small businesses make up to 90% of their annual revenue.
This leaves purpose-driven brands with a dilemma. Should they participate to boost their revenue, or should they stick to their values and boycott the day all together?
Over the years some brands have tackled this head on. Perhaps most notably in 2011, Patagonia ran their ‘Don’t Buy This Jacket’ ad in the New York Times (A PR stunt that increased sales by 30%).
As a full service communications agency that supports sustainability-focused brands, we understand the importance of responsible consumption, and the need for brands to stay authentic in their mission. But as behavioural science experts, we know that anti-black friday campaigns just don’t work.
Which is why in 2022 we ran a purpose-led Black Friday alternative – #ShopEthicalInstead. Bringing cutting edge political campaigning methodology to the e-commerce, which had never been done before. With 100 brands taking part, we were able to establish a viable and appealing alternative that achieved mass market cut-through, reaching 4.7 million people and increasing sales over the Black Friday weekend by 18%.
We were proud to support ethical business owners to stay true to their values without missing out on the commercial benefits of Golden Quarter – an essential time for ensuring the survival of these better businesses.
Ellen Ormesher, Senior Reporter at The Drum (the leading publication for marketing and media thought leadership) recently explored whether anti-consumerist brand campaigns could bring an end to Black Friday, and featured insights from our Senior Managing Partner Sian Conway-Wood.
Sian shared that “green friday” alternatives can be a good opportunity to build loyalty with eco-minded consumers, but that brand should be wary of pushing a counter-narrative too far:
“The brands I’m seeing achieve good results are tailoring their messages to the cost of living – promoting the cost-saving benefits of reusable products, or ‘no spend’ options like the sharing economy, showing how their products and promotions meet customers’ primary concerns” she shared.
