CONSOR feels bad for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving tends to get lost between the fantasy of Halloween and the abundance of Christmas. Who could blame retailers – there is only so much time companies can devote to advertising campaigns. But some brands can capitalize on the lack of attention given to Thanksgiving.
Let’s look at those who can benefit the most – the food brands. Grocery stores and speciality food markets obviously win big here, but so do many food-related venues. Look at the Food Network’s line-up for the week: Thanksgiving Live, Alton’s Countdown to T0Day, A Triple D Thanksgiving, Thankful in Thirty, Not Your Mama’s Thanksgiving, A Very Neely’s Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Favorites, Thanksgiving Potluck, plus many more episodes just called “Thanksgiving.” That’s a whole lot of content focused on a meal to be devoured in less time than the episode itself.
Then, of course, the grocery stores sell turkeys at next to nothing in order for the shopper to come in and purchase a minimum amount to get the deal. And since Thanksgiving meals tend to include a large shopping list of items not normally kept in the pantry (who really eats canned cranberry sauce on a regular basis or those crispy fried onion things), those shopping carts full of food tend to add up quickly – because you must have enough for leftovers.
And for that extra Thanksgiving touch, serve the Starbucks Thanksgiving Blend with some Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake and See’s Thanksgiving Chocolate Creams, on the side, for dessert.
If we had it our way, Thanksgiving would be a weeklong celebration centered on food.
The problem with Thanksgiving these days is that too much time is spent that day deciding on shopping tactics for Black Friday, which has actually weaseled its way into Thanksgiving Day itself, taking away the holiday’s purpose. More and more stores are opting to open on Thanksgiving Night. We can understand why grocery stores should be open, you can never have enough butter, but Wal-Mart, Kmart, Sears, the Gap (and affiliates), Michael’s, and Toys ‘R Us will all be open at some time during Thanksgiving Day. Many stores have already been slowly creeping up their opening hours from 6:00am, to 4:00am, and eventually to a Thanksgiving midnight opening (Target, Best Buy, Macy’s and Kohl’s).
Retailers have been defencing the Thanksgiving hours, saying that the customers would prefer shopping in the evening, rather than waking up in the wee hours of the morning. Maybe all this Black Friday stuff should stop altogether, since most holiday shopping still occurs on December 24. Companies (retail, wholesale, and services) should consider branding themselves more with the whole purpose behind Thanksgiving in the first place.
Find ways to thank your customers on a personal level, and to give back to those customers and the community.
Food drives are always a good idea – those that donate get special discount coupons. Turkey Trots can be a way to kill two birds (not turkeys though) with one stone – exercise and give back. Registration fees can be donated to a local charity and participants can receive various discounts to stores – which is not to be used on Thanksgiving or even Black Friday.
Take advantage of those who neglect Thanksgiving and make the holiday an integral part of your brand.
Look, there are only a handful of holidays we can use as an excuse to get families and friends together. Keep the Thanksgiving brand strong. Besides, it’s really about the Macy’s parade and football anyway.