Stat -28.3%
According to an article in the New York Times, Americans are sitting on a mountain of cash; $2.3 trillion more in savings in the last 19 months than would have been expected in the pre-pandemic world.
But then the numbers came out on how Thanksgiving weekend shopping went and they were less than stellar. The number that stood out to me (and yes, we are still in a pandemic, but sometimes it is hard to tell), Black Friday traffic was down 28.3% compared to 2019. Retailers obviously haven’t released dollar-figure sales yet, and that is truely what matters.
But we all know we are living in a different world, but what does this all mean? Are we in this hold cash stage for the foreseable future or are we spending it right now and we just haven’t seen it hit the books?
My guess is that we are going to keep sitting on the cash.
But the Black Friday numbers also point out that our shopping habits have changed. And that is something we can adjust to right now.
Tweetle-Dee
(tweet of the week)
I love this tweet from Amanda:
In my career, I have always been amazed at the frequency of people worried about what others were doing or that others were winning more than they were (even if they were still winning).
Life and business is rarely zero-sum. We don’t need to treat it as such.
Similarly, you may have a customer who isn’t your number one fan, but if they are in the top half percentile, count that as a great customer.
That’s the win: great customers.
Marketing Tip of the Week
A lot of times marketing and agency teams can get stuck creating ideas that are in the safe space; the space already explored, tested, and known.
When you stay in that place, you get what you expect to get. Sometimes there are a few surprises, but not often.
The only way to reach the unknown, the unexpected, is to get out of the safe zone and explore the unsafe space. The gray. The challenging.
That is when you can reach new audiences, grow sales, earn press, and truly expand your brand.
See this come to life on TikTok.
Something to Consider
I had coffee with a former business partner last week (hey, Adam!) and we caught up on life, my recent travels, and our families, and then got to the topic of the day: NFTs.
We are still new to the game and working our way through understanding what and how it all works. And that got to the root of the NFT challenge of 2021. Aside from the struggle to often still find value in the majority of these projects, it is difficult to understand what tools to use and how it is all connected. Suffice it to say we are both working our way towards a deeper understanding.
But that aside, it is clear that the crypto world and the NFTs that come along with it are currently operating in the Wild West. There is not a predominant path towards ownership and management of these assets. And until that happens it will be more difficult to extract true value from these assets. Once we begin to have a real and understandable ecosystem, can we all join in and participate.
But the takeaway here is clear (at least for me): Go and explore. Find a NFT that looks interesting and set up your wallet and buy it. See how it works. If the TikTok from this week says anything, it is that when you leave your comfort zone of the “known”, you can find the special place of the unknown and all the magic therein.