W.O.H.

Hey Napoleon! Watch me do some sweet jumps off the loading dock with my Sledgehammer.

So never mind that the execs milked this puppy dry there were some great things about this retailer.  At one time I myself came very close to working there. (However, their mandatory Sunday working was something that killed it for me).  I thought of some great things Circuit City did that made me a happy customer up to the end.

1.) The 24 Minute Guarantee

Back in 2005 Circuit City began to guarantee that anything ordered online could be picked up 24 minutes later in their store.  If it was not ready you received a $24 gift card.   There were some minor stipulations (no on Black Friday or the day after Christmas.) Now they didn’t always meet the time frame but they were always forthcoming with the gift cards when they didn’t.   Truth is there really is not much to buy with $24 credit at CC (maybe a DVD or CD?) but it drove traffic into the store and made customers happy.  Imagine picking up the shoes you want from Nordies.  No waiting for the shoe guy to search for your size, walk in pick it up and walk out and maybe get some socks while you are there.

2.) Knowledgeable Staff

The last thing I bought there was a digital camera from Canon.  I consider myself an early adopter and  pretty high tech for most peeps and so I know my gadgets.  I come prepared when shopping knowing what I am looking for.  However, in this this case I needed a new camera (my nephew was being born the same day) and I had not done my research on the best prices/features yada…yada.   The associate rocked my world and I walked out with a camera that I love and took some great first photos (and video!) of my little JJ.

3.) Floor Coverage

I go to Best Buy, Target, Walmart the big players as much as anyone else.  The thing I hate most is hearing “Oh.. I don’t work in the blankity blank dept…” I still feel that it is everyone’s job to help the customer and make a sale.  I have dragged people from the TV area to help me buy computer parts at CC without so much of a peep.  I tried to go get a Blu-Ray Disc at Best Buy around Christmas of a Yule Log and it was like I had asked the associate if I could punch his mother in the face.    No one wanted to help.  Maybe it was because CC had no customers or maybe they were just helpful.

In end 3 things they got right could not makeup for the hundreds of poor descions this company made.  But I was a repeat customer and these days that is not such a sure thing.

It seemed like the hype this year  had no limits. As “Black Friday” became the new moniker for an economy on the slide.

In my opinion, Black Friday (BF) this year was more about fear and anxiety, rather than great deals and Holiday fun. This year, how did we build up this day to be so important to retailers and American families alike?

First off, no one saw the downturn coming.  Usually retailers make purchasing decisions for BF some 6-9 months ago.  A time when, we were just beginning to understand the impact of the  “credit crisis” and waiting for the “housing bubble” to burst.  Everything was on the up and up… and then the bottom fell out.   Retailers scrambled, terrified of what this holiday season will bring.  For certain it would bring lower margins and some may see their cash flow evaporate entirely.

Retailers have more inventory than they can sell and so here lies the root of the aggressive marketing push.  BF is the first crack at the holiday consumer and retailers that can sell their products (even at steep discounts) improve their cash position and ability to react to the market.  After Christmas, there is substantially less traffic coming through your doors and anything you didn’t sell lingers and is markdown or cannibalizes what has already been planned to sell for the Spring season.

Secondly, websites for deals sprouted up in full force this year.  (Sites like blackfriday.info or bfads.net) Both sites claiming to have the latest “leaked” Black Friday deals – correct or not.   BlackFriday.info appears to be the most ambitious, mentioning retailers it planned to post deals for. Clearly, companies were not reaching out to these sites, but should they? Black Friday is important to retailers for one reason; the traffic.

With that said, would it be beneficial to a retailer to “leak” credible details to these companies and carve out some of that traffic for themselves? What would be the harm?  “Protecting your Brand Image” was one reason I heard, but the site will ultimately have your deals on it anyway.  Worse, it could have incorrect or rumored deals that just cause frustration for your customer.

Finally, the last ingredient is the consumer.  People are scared about losing their, jobs, family and even homes this year.  The bad news continues to pile up.   One thing that makes nearly every American smile, is shopping, even if they can’t afford it.  Families continue to cut short the original Thankgiving holiday for the new Black Friday holiday. The idea is that if they buy now, they can get things they never could afford otherwise.  To do this one must wait in humiliating lines (or sleep in them if the case may be) and still run the risk of leaving empty handed.  If it was the only gift you buy your family sure maybe its worth the hit to the ego. The second dignity depriving aspect is that prices are usually even better after Christmas than Black Friday and this year will prove that to be truth more than ever.

If you ask me, make it a gift card this year.