Ok, never mind, looks like Americans will be shopping on Black Friday after all. 

These surveys are about as confusing as the election polls were. I say again, we won’t know until it’s over, but another report called, “How America Shops Black Friday,” released recently by WSL/Strategic Retail, a firm which studies and reports on shopper behavior and trends, says that Americans will be hitting the stores on Black Friday after all, even if they’re not sure what deals they’re going to get. The report revealed that one-third of American adults plan to shop Black Friday this season.

“The great news for retailers is that they can still count on Black Friday to bring in high-volumes of enthusiastic shopper traffic,” said Candace Corlett, CEO, WSL/Strategic Retail. “However, the way they are shopping has changed. The notoriety for best bargains is slowly diminishing: a remarkable 88% of Black Friday shoppers are now aware that they can check promotion prices online beforehand to see if it’s worth making the trip.”

The study points out that 78% of shoppers thing that Black Friday crowds have become too crazy and they may get better deals online and on Cyber Monday, but still, shoppers’ answers to other questions suggest they aren’t completely deterred. The study notes:

– 1/3 of all shoppers still consider Black Friday to be the best single day for holiday sales (although not quite as good as they used to be)
– 80% of Black Friday shoppers say it is a good time to buy things for themselves
– 80% say shopping on Black Friday means they are able to get their holiday shopping done early
– 60% say they shop Black Friday because it is a tradition for them

The study also revealed that Black Friday shoppers are demographically distinct, noting that half of shoppers are younger than 35 and the other half are parents that live with children.

Anxious to see how it all really goes down? You only have about 36 more hours to wait and see…