Studies show a favorable scenario for retailers and demanding Brazilians on Black Friday

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tomorrow, or rather, today! For those anxious, the Black Friday It starts as soon as the clock strikes midnight. And as always, retail and e-commerce are warm with attractive offers for consumers. The movement in Brazil starts earlier every year, with campaigns that last the entire month and seek to capture the attention of an increasingly demanding public, proving that the date is no longer a tradition imported from the Land of Uncle Sam to actually be part of of the Brazilian reality. It’s no surprise that 64% of Brazilian adults plan to buy at this year’s edition.

Data from a survey of the YouGov, a multinational specialized in online market research. Carried out between the 17th and 23rd of October with a nationally representative sample of 1003 adults over 18 years old, the study also highlights that 15.5% of Brazilians will participate in Black Friday for the first time, and that only 5.2% of respondents had never heard of the campaign.

Studies show a favorable scenario for retailers and demanding Brazilians on Black Friday

The research also reveals the challenges that brands will have to face during this period, according to the negative experiences in previous editions reported by the interviewees. To begin with, 26.2% of Brazilians who have participated in previous editions of Black Friday visited crowded and uncomfortable physical stores, and this is the problem that most bothers consumers in the country. Another quarter of the public said they had tried to buy a product that was no longer in stock, or that was in stock, but not with the desired characteristics.

Just over a fifth of Brazilians say that stores (both online and physical) were so crowded that they were unable to complete their purchase, and 13.4% complained of having found hidden conditions in the discounts they wanted to use to buy. Notably, almost three in every 10 consumers surveyed say they have not encountered any of the problems presented by YouGov, suggesting that the purchasing experience has been positive for a large proportion of Brazilians.

The consumers who most report having faced problems during Black Friday are those who believe that there are genuine discounts in this campaign, although they are not the best of the year: 9.1% of these consumers say that they have already had problems paying, being charged double or because the price did not correspond to what was advertised, compared to 6.6% of the average; and 28.7% of these consumers also had the product they wanted unavailable, an inconvenience that was statistically more frequent than that of the average buyer (24.6%).

Age also appears to be related to certain problems throughout Black Friday, says David Eastman, general and commercial director at YouGov in Latin America.

For example, young people aged 18 to 24 often complain that they have been charged more than once or the wrong amount. On the other hand, adults between 45 and 54 years old are statistically more likely to complain about crowded physical stores or hidden conditions in discounts and promotions. Consumers over 55 appear to have had the best experiences with the campaign, with almost half reporting having had no problems with any of the issues analyzed in the research, he says.

Purchase intention? We have!

Who never Found a product in the window or online store that throws the first stone (mine will be kept safe). Brazilians have purchasing intentions, but the YouGov survey shows that spending will remain at the same levels: 42.8% of consumers who made purchases on Black Friday in previous years and who will make purchases now intend to spend approximately the same as before.

In terms of trust, the retail campaign still maintains a relatively good reputation among Brazilians. Only a fifth of those interviewed say that the event does not offer real discounts to consumers. But, at the same time, only 37.4% believe that the campaign represents the best bargaining time of the year. The study also highlights that shoppers over 55 are the most skeptical about the authenticity of Black Friday.

The favorite products

Notebooks, smartphones, frost free refrigerators, various toys and Distance Learning courses (yes!) are some of the most searched for items in the main internet search engines in the weeks leading up to Black Friday. This is what the survey carried out by Simplex, a company specialized in increasing traffic, conversion and online sales, points out.

A startup Franco-Brazilian also compiled data to understand the behavior of Brazilians during the event and help brands take advantage of good conversion opportunities. According to the study, the household appliances and electronics sectors traditionally continue to concentrate the largest volume of searches related to data, along with fashion and toys. But education and health also stand out, with items desired by consumers who hope to take advantage of good discounts.

In recent weeks, electronic devices such as notebooks and smartphones have grown 175% and 54% in searches, respectively. In the household appliances section, frost free refrigerators (+413%), mixers (+337%), fans (+268%), air conditioners (+143%) and air fryers (+126%) had a significant increase in the period analyzed. In the fashion segment, women’s perfume tops the list, with growth of 595%. At the top of searches for toys are board games (+1,101%) and Legos (+691%).

According to the CEO of Simplex, Joo Lee, a trend that has been consolidating since 2020 is Black Friday invading new segments, such as education and health. In terms of education, consumer interest in Distance Learning has increased, which tends to be more affordable than face-to-face teaching, with EAD Law (+1,621%) and EAD Psychology (+1,215%) courses leading the research.

This dissemination of the date in other sectors is something that has been gaining strength and that we have not seen before the pandemic. Companies that anticipate Black Friday with new areas of interest gain an advantage, he analyzes.

In terms of health, the executive observes the adoption of Black Friday campaigns by the country’s large pharmacies. The Simplex survey shows a greater concentration of searches for regularly used medicines and personal care products.

Green flag for retailers

Shopkeepers can celebrate! Even with more demanding Brazilians and the sometimes unfavorable economy, the prospects for this edition of Black Friday are on the rise. According to a third study, carried out by the MField agency, which consulted 2,300 consumers about their purchase expectations for the event, intention grew 32.2% compared to last year. In 2022, 43.4% purchased during the date. This year, 75.6% intend to make purchases.