While the concept of Black Friday is purported to have emerged from the United States of America, it has become quite popular in urban Ghana.
This is as a result of the enormous business and product deals offered by merchants and service providers, which usually leads to increased purchases towards the Christmas holidays. In consideration of the many electronic transactions by patrons of Black Friday, First National Bank is expecting a 100% increase in purchases on Friday, November 27, 2020.
Hannah Annobil-Acquah, First National Bank’s Head of Retail Banking says: “We expect the value of Black Friday transactions to rise significantly this year. When comparing typical Friday spend to Black Friday, we usually see a 100% increase in spend by customers.”
Hannah is however, urging proper financial planning towards Black Friday and the Christmas festivities. “We encourage consumers to be mindful that Black Friday is effectively the start of a very long festive season, therefore it’s important to plan for it properly and budget for purchases,” she says. “Those participating should also consider making purchases for Back to School necessities to ease possible financial pressure at the beginning of next year.”
Increasingly, consumers are choosing convenient ways to shop on Black Friday. According to the statement from First National Bank Ghana, there was an increase in online and in-app transactions on Black Friday by 26% while card present transactions saw a 14% increase in 2019.
“We estimate card present transactions to make up the majority of consumer spend this year, but also expect consistent growth in online purchases. Currently, online merchants continue to be in the top 10 of retailers where First National Bank customers prefer to spend on Black Friday.”
Mrs Annobil-Acquah further stated that the Black Friday euphoria is a perfect opportunity for customers who do not have their gold or platinum cards to get one from the bank. “We encourage customers to minimise reliance on cash, especially for larger purchases. More importantly, by enabling consumers to tap to pay, retailers can process transactions faster, reduce queue times and the risk of basket abandonment.”
“It is a good time to be a First National Bank customer and even a better time to get and use your gold or platinum card. You get a three-tier benefit if you are purchasing anything towards Christmas and the new year during this Black Friday period.
First National Bank pays you for every swipe for payment, you get deals from our merchants and then earn interest on your gold or platinum cheque account. You certainly are on the great helpful side with First National Bank gold or platinum account,” she ended.
