The countdown has started: 1 month left for carrying out the Black Friday 2024. The most anticipated retail event will be on November 29th, a Friday. The great discount promotion will have its 14th edition in Brazil, following a North American tradition of holding the event right after Thanksgiving (called, in the United States, Thanksgiving “Thanksgiving Day”).
The date was created to celebrate the reopening of commerce in the United States after the country’s main holiday. Thanksgiving Day, celebrated on the last Thursday of November, is for North Americans just like Christmas is for Brazilians.
But, like here, no one celebrates the “Thanksgiving”national commerce adopted Black Friday in 2010 as a way to boost retail sales a month before Christmas.
In recent years, businesses have decided to bring forward Black Friday with some promotions and special conditions available to consumers throughout November.
READ MORE: Where did the term Black Friday come from?
When did the term Black Friday appear?
There are no records that confirm where the name “Black Friday” came from, but some versions gained strength. One of them, never proven, dates back to slavery in the USA in the 18th century.
Black people who arrived from Africa and were sold as merchandise were weakened and sick due to the unworthy working and food conditions. For this reason, they were supposedly sold at below-market prices at fairs that took place on Fridays.
Another explanation is that American traders needed to empty their stocks before Christmas and started to carry out large price sales after the holiday. But the uproar caused by the discounts led to an increase in violence and traffic jams on the streets. As a result, Philadelphia patrol officers would have nicknamed the date “Black Friday”, already with a pejorative meaning for the term.
There is another known version, but with a positive connotation. In the US, the word “black” It is also used when a company closes its accounts “in the black”, that is, it makes a profit. The promotional date would then be a way for traders to be able to end the month of November positively, as the Thanksgiving holiday was considered weak in sales.
Most common Black Friday scams
The promotional date is a lure for a series of scams, which reinforces the need for consumers to be careful when making a purchase.
Check out, below, the main scams recorded on “Black Friday”, according to retailers, Serasa, Procon (State Department of Consumer Protection and Defense) and other institutions that monitor the promotions.
- Price increase or false discount
The most common scam, fake discounting, occurs when retailers increase the prices of items before Black Friday and then reduce them, making it appear that they are offering a discount, when in fact they are selling them at the product’s original price or even more. expensive. - Bait and switch
In bait and switch, the retailer advertises a product at a low price, but then tells the buyer that it is out of stock, trying to sell him another similar, more expensive product. - Shipping more expensive than the product
To “surf the wave” of the date, some merchants may offer large discounts on their products, but try to compensate with an exorbitant price for shipping, generating a shipping fee even higher than the value of the item to be purchased. - Price change during purchase
It is common for companies to work with discounts due to “shortage of time”, with a limited period of use, with the famous “countdown” clocks. During Black Friday, it’s no different.
The rush to get the product can end up distracting the buyer, causing them to forget to apply the discount coupon or fail to see important information and requirements about the purchase.
Furthermore, in some cases, the promotion may end before purchase, and the price will return to its original value.
READ MORE: 5 ways to fall for a cloned card scam
Other care
Sites fakes
Regarding scams carried out by criminals and not by the stores themselves, criminals can create fake websites that appear to be legitimate online retailers, offering products at incredibly low prices to attract consumers. Once the buyer enters their credit card information, criminals use it to make fraudulent purchases.
Identity theft
Scammers often steal personal information, such as credit card and social security numbers, and use it to open new accounts in the victim’s name to make fraudulent purchases. Once this data is obtained, the consumer can be harmed in several ways.
Fake Coupons
Scammers may use fake discount coupon emails, links or messages, which can be used as a scam strategy. phishing (cyber attack that uses fraudulent emails, text messages, phone calls or websites) to deceive and gain access to consumer information.
