Advertising Ideas: If You Only Knew How Black Friday Originated!!!

I do not know for sure if  Black Friday had its roots in the slave trade.  I checked the dates of some of the  historical advertising posters for the buying and selling of slaves and they corresponded to the Friday after Thanksgiving. In the 1870’s they would advertise the sale of slaves, which brought consumers to the slave auction.  They made  large profits but may have sacrificed their spiritual well-being. Today consumers are targeted for consumer goods on Black Friday and as a result of  the TV Ads, the radio ads, the newspaper ads and the social media ads we see that this may be working. During slave trading auctions fights would break out and people would be killed. During Black Friday now fights break out and people are killed. In both cases you are left pondering for what? In both slave trading and today’s Black Friday  you are feeding the coffers of the so-called privileged few who have found a way to manipulate you and convince you to stay in a position of lack.  Ask yourself am I any better off with the new shiny object than I was before I had it.

  Snopes.com states that the term Black Friday does not have anything to do with the slave trade. I wasn’t there so I can only go from the evidence that Slave sales were advertised and many of the dates correspond to the day after Thanksgiving. My point here is that advertising can often be used to manipulate people and keep them in the lack mindset. Regardless of the origins of Black Friday is has created madness that has seen more people hurt than helped. Maybe we should abolish Black Friday as encourage retailers to close on Thursday and then run business as usual and thus not encourage the lawlessness of the few who ruin it for everyone.

 You mean to tell me you couldn’t wait for that sexy bra at Victoria’s Secret, or the big screen TV at Walmart, or the New Nike Sneakers at Footlocker.  My recommendation is to get your priorities straight  and ask yourself how will your life be enhanced by the new bra, the new car, the new TV, or the  new sneakers.

 Instead of buying into the hype of Black Friday find something productive to do such as donating time or money to a charity.  You can start by visiting http://main.acsevents.org/goto/jdogg2 and making a donation. Greed is one of the deadly sins and greedy people will be punished. The only way to stop the madness is not to buy into the hype.  As a business you want to create a positive image so people will buy products from you all year round. Having people trampled at your store doesn’t do that.

  Remember it is not the materialistic that matters but the spiritualistic.  Imagine if you just kept consistent in all you did as a business owner all year round and did not try to manipulate the public the results you might have. Imagine of you as a consumer did not buy into the hype and manipulation the prices you would receive.  My message is to stop looking at what you don’t have and be more appreciative of what you do have. When you market and use public relations properly you won’t need the hype of Black Friday or other sales to drive business as people will come to you because they know you, like you, and trust you.  It is time to go back  to the idea that everyday is a day to be civil to one another and to be of service and value daily. Black Friday may boost your profits but it may not boost your soul. Black Friday may move merchandise but it may jeopardize you image and good will. So think about how you conduct your business.

My message to you is to stop the madness!!!