Deals to Drive Shoppers Thanksgiving Weekend

NEW JERSEY 101.5

Thanksgiving falls pretty late this year and eager shoppers are mapping out their plans for the weekend. 

Up to 140 million people plan to shop over the holiday weekend, which is a slight decrease from the 147 million who planned to do so last year according to a preliminary Thanksgiving weekend shopping survey by the National Retail Federation.

Of those who plan to shop that weekend, nearly one quarter, or 23.5 percent, plan to do so on Thanksgiving Day.  That's 33 million shoppers.

"Though many people have already started to check off items from their holiday shopping lists, we fully expect to see many more come out on Thanksgiving Day and throughout the weekend to take in the festive sights and sounds and to take advantage of unbeatable deals," said Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation.  "As the officials kick off to the holiday season, retailers are prepared to pull out all the stops for their online and in-store shoppers, including offering sweepstakes with cash prizes, free gifts with purchase and even exclusive opportunities to score top gift items before everyone else."

According to the survey, Black Friday will be the biggest day of the weekend during which 97 million shoppers plan to shop.  On Saturday, 43.8 percent or 61 million will be out at the stores and 24.2 percent or 34 million will shop on Sunday.  Of those who plan to shop on Thanksgiving Day, seven in 10 say they shopped online and in stores on Thanksgiving 2012.

Shoppers can also expect many online, mobile and in-store promotions from retailers this Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday weekend.  Shop.org's eHoliday survey found that half of retailers surveyed are planning to start their Thanksgiving weekend promotions at least five days before the big weekend, while 53.5 percent say they will offer online promotions specifically for Thanksgiving Day.

Over the course of Black Friday weekend, retailers will have a variety of offers available, including special email campaigns and one-day sales.  Consumers also will benefit from free gift with purchase promotions, free standard shipping and discounted shipping as well.