Marketing Moms

How We Navigate Holiday Sales | MM#129

• Jessie Valle & Angela Reeder • Episode 129

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In this episode, Angela and Jessie talk about managing holiday shopping, particularly around Black Friday and Cyber Monday. They recommend using email filters, creating a special folder for Black Friday deals, and having separate email accounts to keep promotions organized. They also suggest using a Christmas gift list app to track gifts, budgets, and avoid gift repetition. Discussing shopping strategies, they prefer online deals to avoid crowds, with Jessie opting for Black Friday over Cyber Monday for convenience. They mention the importance of supporting local businesses on Small Business Saturday despite their preference for online shopping to avoid in-store chaos.


RESOURCES:
- Christmas Gift Tracking App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/christmas-gift-list-tracker/id1444504033


**ANNOUNCEMENT** After nearly 3 years, the Marketing Moms podcast is sunsetting. Thank you so much for the unwavering support, well-wishes, and memories. This has been the experience of a lifetime <3
It's coffee time!
Jessie & Angela



00:00.00
Angela
Hey everyone we are so excited to have you today we are going to be talking about how we holiday shop because those days are coming.

00:42.30
jessievalle
Hello Hello hello.

00:43.59
Angela
Hello. So if you're listening to this the day that it comes out tomorrow is Thanksgiving for those of us in the United States that celebrate which means the day after tomorrow is black friday for everyone everywhere. Apparently I have learned over the last few years.

00:57.91
jessievalle
Um, well okay, Black Friday and yet the shopping starts early I actually um so Angela and I are recording this two weeks ahead of time. Yeah yes, and.

01:02.38
Angela
Ah, and yet yet does.

01:11.53
Angela
Yeah.

01:14.18
jessievalle
I swear I just saw a note like yesterday that said the Walmart black Friday shopping starts today for their plus members now. Actually I think that's kind of smart on Walmart's part because that's kind of something similar to what Amazon does.

01:20.61
Angela
Oh my gosh.

01:32.99
jessievalle
Which is allowing prime members early access to deals and there are certain lightning deals. You know on Amazon that they go fast. They have a limited quantity and if the prime members use it all up.

01:37.17
Angela
That's true.

01:42.88
Angela
Um, in here.

01:49.46
Angela
Yeah, never gets it.

01:49.66
jessievalle
The general public never gets those deals. It depends on what it is but sometimes I see things go super fast. Ah Angela and I just thought if we could share some of our tips and tricks for holiday shopping in general not just this upcoming. black friday cyber monday although it's when I typically try to do the bulk of my shopping to be honest, but just didn't in general.

02:14.46
Angela
Yeah, yes I have I have thoughts every year on Black Friday I have thoughts so one of the things that I have to share because I get excited about it and people always think.

02:26.87
jessievalle
Um.

02:34.30
Angela
It's a good idea whenever I share it is you know I'm sure you have already for the last week or so been getting emails about black Friday sales Jesse just mentioned one. Ah so what I do um, especially like right before thanksgiving.

02:46.56
jessievalle
Um, who.

02:53.49
Angela
Is I will set a filter in my email so anything that says black friday or sale or discount all gets dumped into 1 black friday folder completely skipping my inbox so that I can go through and. At my own pace check out the sales without it flooding my inbox and me having 57 emails at a time trying to sort through which ones are actual emails and which ones are just sales emails and every year it works and every year I am entirely amused by how many.

03:24.20
jessievalle
Yeah.

03:31.73
Angela
Sales emails in the few days over Black Friday and thanksgiving.

03:38.74
jessievalle
Yeah, you know I actually have an entirely separate email inbox just for those types of promotions So like depending who I'm talking to depends on the email address I give right.

03:49.75
Angela
Oh.

03:56.87
jessievalle
So if I'm at a store or sign it. Yeah signing up for any sort of shopping experience I use a certain email address and then if it's something actually personal or a person or something I use a different one and then if it's business I use a different 1 Actually if it's business I have like.

04:09.47
Angela
Um, yeah.

04:16.62
Angela
Right.

04:16.67
jessievalle
4 or 5 different email addresses whiches go with it. Um, but that has helped me so that I know if I want to do anything promotional shopping this and that I just go to that one email inbox and and it's all there anyway.

04:31.14
Angela
Yeah, yeah, it's it has been a game changer for me and I still get to see the emails like I'm not completely ignoring Them. So I Still I'm not missing out on deals. I Just don't have to wade through all of the sales emails to get to the actual business emails or personal emails which is really nice.

04:52.42
jessievalle
Um, yeah, no, that's smart I Love setting filters and I found recently I was getting some from someone in a business they were sending.

05:09.65
jessievalle
Promotional emails and the personal emails like from their admin from the same email address and so when it would come into me I just assumed they were all promotional even though there were a few in there that were actually important.

05:25.57
Angela
Yeah, yeah.

05:27.39
jessievalle
Personal emails with personal like like something I needed to read I missed all of them. So what I ended up doing was filtering by the assistant's name and so anything that came in with her name would get starred.

05:33.66
Angela
Um, yeah.

05:38.43
Angela
And her.

05:45.55
jessievalle
And marked so that I wouldn't miss it and any of the promotional stuff wouldn't say her name so it was totally fine. So I live and die by email filters for sure I just like that in Gmail specifically.

05:45.91
Angela
Um, yeah, yes.

05:55.42
Angela
Email filters are amazing. They're definitely the way to go.

06:04.79
jessievalle
There's a way to click all mail so that you can see everything at once if you want without going into specific folders I have to do that Sometimes when I'm looking for a certain email and I can't find it like I don't know what folder I put it in say.

06:07.43
Angela
Um, yeah, yeah I do like that too. Yes, exactly I'm like where did it go.

06:21.60
jessievalle
It can. It can be bad thing too if I filter into folders too much.

06:24.59
Angela
Yeah, so do you have like a specific strategy for shopping for holidays or.

06:35.32
jessievalle
Yeah I Actually I'm a list person so I actually I've tried a few different apps. Let me see if I can find ah the one I've been using the last couple years. It's called gift list.

06:53.36
jessievalle
Christmas gift list. Although yeah, oh my gosh it says forty eight days till Christmas I didn't get home I am my my it's even less when you're listening to this? Um, but what it was. What's really nice is.

06:58.50
Angela
I Know right.

07:11.54
jessievalle
So I can let's see how how I can explain this. Ah yes, yes, it is it is yes I I feel like you and I found it a couple years ago we decided to give it a try. Um so what's really cool about this one gifts list is is.

07:11.56
Angela
Is it this one. Oh You can't see my screen. Okay I would say that's the one I've used the last couple years. Yes.

07:31.48
jessievalle
I Can the updates that I've been made I can not only just list all the people but I can put them in Categories. So for me I have um my husband's family grouped. So It's like a filter I can click and just see all my husband's family or click and I can just see all of my family and then I have. Quote unquote extra So Those are all the friends and of the family or the teachers for my kids and then I have one called Us. So I Click and it's me my kids My husband and it's really nice. You can put not just what you bought them.

07:51.36
Angela
Yeah.

08:10.81
jessievalle
But you can also put ideas so throughout the year when I hear like a niece or nephew say something I'm like ooh that's a good idea for Christmas I will come into the app and I'll put it down as an idea so that come time for their birthday or Christmas I have.

08:12.94
Angela
Is.

08:22.55
Angela
Yeah.

08:29.24
jessievalle
At least an idea of what they're interested in that particular year because we all know kids change pretty quickly what their interests are especially when they're younger. So the other cool thing is you can do.

08:36.90
Angela
Um, oh yeah.

08:44.61
jessievalle
All the way down to if the status is an idea if it's purchased if it's arrived and if it's wrapped. But so what's real. Yeah I actually like that because I I do use those as I order things and I don't necessarily put.

08:48.12
Angela
Yeah, yes, that is my personal favorite. Oh.

09:03.44
jessievalle
Purchased and arrived I just say purchased but once it is wrapped I make a note because then because sometimes you know how it goes Christmas presents end up all over the house and it's like gosh did I actually find that unwrap it. This will let me know and it tracks it all on my phone.

09:04.00
Angela
Yeah.

09:12.15
Angela
Yes.

09:20.27
Angela
Yeah I use the arrived because I do a lot of online shopping for Christmas so just because I bought something doesn't mean that I actually have it with me yet. Um, and especially you know how shipping can get around.

09:25.30
jessievalle
Who.

09:36.61
Angela
Thanksgiving Christmas between Thanksgiving and Christmas so I try to you know make a point to do that. Oh yes I was just going to say. Did you do you can archive lists.

09:39.79
jessievalle
Um, the yeah, the other really cool thing I like is you can archive the lists. so I yeah so I can go back so two years ago I can see. That I bought my 1 nephew a solar power bank cool I should not buy him that this year. Oh okay I bought this person I don't know some popcorn cool. Maybe not buy them popcorn again.

10:01.28
Angela
Um, yeah.

10:13.77
Angela
Um, yeah.

10:16.81
jessievalle
So that's really cool is to go back and I can also see my um ideas too. They're still here in the archives. So I can go back and just view it and say ooh this one was very interested in paint by sticker.

10:22.99
Angela
Um, yeah.

10:32.16
Angela
Yeah.

10:34.80
jessievalle
So maybe since it's only been a year. She might be still interested in it I know she's crafty. Maybe I could do that again. So I don't know I like the ideas and I've just talked a lot about this particular app.

10:41.51
Angela
Um, yeah.

10:44.79
Angela
Yeah I like that you can set I know I like that you can set a budget for each person too.

10:53.80
jessievalle
Yes, you can set budgets and then you can actually track how much you're spending I don't personally use that feature. Um, but I know that it's there and it could be super helpful.

10:57.30
Angela
Are.

11:04.65
Angela
Um, yeah, yeah I Really like that is my favorite app at christmastime.

11:07.73
jessievalle
Let me see if I can.

11:14.91
jessievalle
I was just trying to look because I know there's a lot. Okay, so it's called Christmas Christmas gift list tracker by Christmas list organizer. It's kind of got. It's kind of reddish and it's got a present on it.

11:32.13
Angela
Present on it.

11:34.42
jessievalle
I I wonder if I can I'm going to try to send the oh here copy Link I Wonder if I can we can link it in the show notes I Wonder if that would work. Um, but it's super simple and it's free.

11:42.66
Angela
Oh yeah.

11:49.40
Angela
Yeah, yes, so.

11:52.22
jessievalle
And that's what I love about it. So yeah, it's definitely a budget tracker too when it comes to Christmas where any gifts like like I said it is christmas gift but I like to track birthday presents too because I have a lot of nieces and nephews and I just.

12:05.35
Angela
Yeah.

12:10.87
jessievalle
It gets to a point where I'm like wait did I buy that or did I just think about buying that for them.

12:13.78
Angela
Yeah I do that sometimes with my kids because our kids birthdays are all right in a row which you would think would make it easier to remember what you bought each kid but inevitably we will get to like the last kid and be like what did we buy.

12:20.64
jessievalle
Is it.

12:29.19
jessievalle
A.

12:31.55
Angela
The other two. How much did we spend on that.

12:37.68
jessievalle
Another thing that's not necessarily about the app but this is just forest shopping for my kids in general as I follow the the rule of the 4 Um, this is like my favorite little jingle you buy them. Something to yeah, something to know something they want something they need something to wear something to read and so I try to definitely I mean.

13:02.46
Angela
Yeah.

13:09.00
jessievalle
I'm a mom I spoil my kids. There's you know you get them a couple things they want but I try to hit those 4 categories. So I know that they always get something they want but they also get something they need. That's when they usually open up like socks and they're like cool things. Mom.

13:15.00
Angela
Yeah.

13:24.94
Angela
If.

13:27.52
jessievalle
But then there's something to wear. So yes, you know maybe a pj set or you know kids grow all the time. So it's really nice hey here's just a cool new top with the character. You really like on it right now and then something to read so just fostering that.

13:29.89
Angela
Right.

13:38.64
Angela
Um, yeah, yeah.

13:46.27
jessievalle
Lifelong learning. So it doesn't really matter whether it's a fiction or a nonfiction book I just always try to get my kids at least one book so those are kind of the the 4 categories I make sure to hit up for my kids each year

13:53.80
Angela
Um, yeah.

14:02.00
Angela
Yeah I 1 thing that I've done ah in past years which is kind of helpful I guess this close to black Friday but more if you shop after Black Friday is whenever I get the toy catalogs. For Christmas because you know Amazon sends one out I think Walmart sends 1 our local store sends one I just have my kids go through and like circle an initial what they want and then I hang on to them.

14:20.11
jessievalle
I have.

14:33.12
Angela
Ah, use that for Christmas shopping but I hang on to them for like birthday shopping too. Yeah.

14:35.39
jessievalle
Oh that is smart My we we do that too I kind of just handed it to the kids and let them look through it. But also my my sister-in-law asked. My one daughter can you make.

14:53.64
Angela
Um.

14:54.56
jessievalle
Me a list of the things you want and so she just like made a huge list and I took us a picture of it. So I mean 3 yeah.

14:58.19
Angela
Yeah, it's nice. My kids are so bad at lists. So. It's easier. That's another thing it's easy. Then two when family says like what do they want for Christmas I can just start flipping through and be like well this thing and this other thing and I can tell them where it is too be like well Amazon has this thing and Walmart has this other thing.

15:16.66
jessievalle
Um, yeah.

15:25.56
jessievalle
Um, yeah, the only downside to that is sometimes they want like every single thing and they think they're going to get every single thing.

15:32.16
Angela
Oh yeah, yeah, my youngest for two or three years in a row circled every single thing in the last year I had to be like I need you to circle just the things that you really.

15:39.58
jessievalle
And.

15:48.54
Angela
Really want because if I don't know what you really really want. You're not going to get it. So she's finally kind of gotten the hang of that. But.

15:51.32
jessievalle
Um, yeah.

15:57.24
jessievalle
Yeah I will say that I do the bulk of my shopping black Friday cyber Monday I I like to think.

16:10.53
Angela
I Do not.

16:15.15
jessievalle
That the best deals are going to be Black Friday so I typically I'm not one of those people that's like oh let's wait till cyber monday to see if there's a better deal because honestly when you calculate it at the end of the day. The better deal might be a dollar.

16:25.70
Angela
Um, right.

16:30.67
Angela
Um, yeah.

16:33.17
jessievalle
So to me it was more important to just knock it off my list and be done even if I paid a dollar more.

16:38.70
Angela
Yeah, one of the things that I've done the past several years is if there are things that I want to keep an eye out for on Black Friday like if I want new pots and pans for the kitchen or things like that.

16:50.17
jessievalle
Um, shooting.

16:51.66
Angela
I'll make a list and then I will go online and see what the prices are like now before black friday that way I know what kind of deal I'm getting on Black Friday because a lot of times. It's not really like you said it's like a dollar less.

16:56.28
jessievalle
And so Nots really smart.

17:07.33
jessievalle
A.

17:10.94
Angela
Or you know and especially for the in-store stuff I don't really do a lot of instore black Friday shopping but I've done that for some of the in-store stuff like it's not worth going and fighting those crowds for $2 off a thing just because it says it's a black friday deal.

17:24.73
jessievalle
Um, yeah, the I I'm the type of person that will hit up a store if I decide to even go. I'll hit up a store several hours after to see what's left because sometimes Walmart especially will even Mark it down even more like people fought to get it at a certain price and yet it's even less now a few hours later like I've snagged those rubber made.

17:42.28
Angela
Um, yeah.

17:45.59
Angela
Yeah, yeah to get a deal. Yeah. Yes.

17:58.21
jessievalle
Containers like the food leftover containers for super cheap because they didn't realize they were going to have a whole mountain of them left and they needed to get rid of them so that was nice 1 year but yeah 1 year it's ridiculous. What I've seen.

18:04.26
Angela
Um, yeah.

18:16.51
jessievalle
Where people will literally I was standing in front of some bedsheets 1 year and they said go people grabbed them and then was like I have a king who wants to swap I need a full and like they were swapping I'm like you've got to be kidding me. This is ridiculous and then I just.

18:27.64
Angela
Um, yeah, right.

18:36.48
jessievalle
Realized that the last couple years they've been having the same deals online as in the store before it was even better deals in the store So you'd want to go now I think the stores are just like I don't care where you buy it I Just want you to buy it from me some me. Ah.

18:43.90
Angela
Um, yeah, yeah.

18:50.82
Angela
Um, yeah, as long as you buy it? Yeah yes.

18:56.42
jessievalle
Um, so it's yeah I like to I like to ah have have my list and kind of just think about certain people as I'm flipping through I will flip through Black Friday deals I don't always search.

19:08.00
Angela
Ah.

19:12.15
Angela
Yeah I will.

19:16.16
jessievalle
Like I'll be like oh it's Amazon's Black Friday cool I go on Amazon and I just look at all the deals and hopefully something sparks. Oh that would be really good for that person I like to have a general idea but I'm just not that good.

19:24.16
Angela
Um, yeah.

19:29.44
Angela
Um, yeah yeah it's hard but yeah I think there's a lot of different ways to approach that and I definitely will like. Scroll around the black friday deals for Amazon and and other stores online because like you said they're getting to where they're just as good online as they are in the store and you still have to a lot of specially Amazon because they have their lightning deals that a lot of times are.

19:51.55
jessievalle
Um, her.

20:00.30
Angela
Only for a certain amount of time or they only have a certain amount that they're selling at that price so you do still have to be a little kind of on it and competitive. But it's so much better than having to fight through crowds at the store.

20:01.49
jessievalle
The.

20:12.75
jessievalle
I know just normal shopping I went to a Walmart I mean it's no secret here on this podcast that I have been doing a grocery pickup since the pandemic and I will never look back so I actually went to Walmart.

20:20.25
Angela
Um, ah.

20:25.93
Angela
Yeah.

20:31.49
jessievalle
To pick up a few things and I literally got anxiety like I almost had a panic attack in the middle of Walmart just on a normal weekday evening I'm like I just can't do crowds anymore. So it it was a lot.

20:34.26
Angela
Um, yeah.

20:43.98
Angela
Yeah, yeah, it's a lot.

20:50.21
jessievalle
So I I was just like nope this just affirmed to me I do online shopping unless it's like 1 specific thing I need I will go to the store. But if it's like hey let's just go and get a whole bunch of things. No I I can't do it anymore.

20:55.62
Angela
Um, yes, yeah, we actually have yes.

21:07.14
Angela
We actually have a running joke in our house that inevitably there's going to be something that we run out of on Black Friday that will lead to me having to go into a store on Black Friday like not for any of the deals not for anything like that.

21:18.33
jessievalle
Um, like lead milk.

21:23.49
Angela
We've run out of milk and I have to go get milk and I have to go into the store and I have to fight all the crowds for a gallon of um, inevitably no matter how much I plan or how hard I try.

21:35.92
jessievalle
Um, um, yeah, so last question here Angela do you plan on going to any Black Friday

21:40.96
Angela
Okay.

21:47.18
jessievalle
Stores or anything this year

21:47.76
Angela
Not any of the physical stores I tend to avoid I actually haven't been physical black Friday shopping in like 11 years almost um and it was it was the only time I went I went on a Thursday night I went like Black Friday

21:58.10
jessievalle
Wow.

22:05.77
jessievalle
Is it.

22:06.94
Angela
Thanksgiving night to be there and that was the same year. My sister in law has a heart condition that was the same year. We kind of found out she had that and I was having complications I was big pregnant with my middle and I was having kind of complications and so the family was like taking bets on which one. So get to pass out and have the ambulance call we both made it. It was great but I was like I'm not doing this anymore ever again I can't we went to like four stores I'm not a big shopper Anyway I just I went because.

22:36.47
jessievalle
Then.

22:41.32
Angela
I was invited and you know I was trying to be social but I was like I can't do this anymore I'm never doing this again.

22:45.78
jessievalle
Um, yeah I agree I don't think I'm going to any stores this year however I will carve out time to sit there and scroll through the online deals.

22:53.63
Angela
Oh yes, definitely doing the online shopping I will be on my computer not working but most of the day Friday and then probably on yes and then probably on Monday as well now our our town.

23:02.14
jessievalle
Um, no shopping. Yeah.

23:12.40
Angela
Has a lot of small local businesses. So I may go out on Saturday to support for small business Saturday because a lot of our ah stores will have like little not huge discounts but like little discounts on stuff for small business saturday and I like to support our like local own stores. but but yeah

23:18.72
jessievalle
Um, it is a.

23:27.40
jessievalle
Um, yeah.

23:31.78
Angela
It's ah it's really crazy. It gets really crazy every year I'm just fascinated by watching people fight for you know 10% which you know if you're talking about like a twelve hundred dollars Tv is

23:39.29
jessievalle
Um, yeah.

23:46.81
jessievalle
Um, yeah.

23:51.82
Angela
Ah, really good deal. But if you're talking about like a $4 pen it's not as exciting.

23:56.69
jessievalle
Fair enough and I like doing the small business shopping for like the adult gifts. Um, when it comes to kids. It's usually easier to do the big box stores online but for adults I like doing those little.

24:00.28
Angela
Yes, yeah, a lot on it. Yeah.

24:12.30
jessievalle
Small business niche type things. So all right? Well how do you black Friday shop in holiday shop. Let us know, um we are always down for a new good secret tip.

24:14.93
Angela
Um, yeah.

24:25.90
Angela
Yes.

24:28.71
jessievalle
So let us know on Instagram we are at Marketing Mom's podcast and we will see you next week happy shopping

24:35.50
Angela
Happy shopping.