Black Friday: Analyzing the Broken Promise of Shopping Frenzy

Original article: Black Friday: Autopsia de una promesa rota

By Felipe Miranda, Country Manager of LGF Chile

Every year, thousands of consumers face the same Kafkaesque experience: grand advertising promises that culminate in late deliveries, incorrect products, and overwhelmed customer service. This is no coincidence. It is the predictable result of a system that prioritizes sales over fulfillment.

This reality reveals something unsettling: the event is not a problem of unexpected demand but a brutal reflection of how many companies build their businesses on systematic improvisation.

“We’ve been preparing since January,” I hear year after year, yet that “preparation” pertains exclusively to marketing and negotiations with suppliers, as if logistics were just a technical detail that resolves itself.

The fundamental disconnect between those who promise and those who must deliver has measurable consequences. The numbers confirm it ruthlessly: during 2024, SERNAC recorded 263 complaints in just 4 days, with 26.2% related to insufficient stock, 22% due to pricing errors, and 10.2% linked to delivery problems. More than a quarter of these complaints stem from companies promising stock they did not have.

The equation is simple: Grand promises + Fragile infrastructure = Frustrated customers. The issue is not technical; it is cultural. Companies have normalized the belief that promising is free and fulfilling is optional, disregarding that logistics cannot be improvised when everything collapses.

In light of this scenario, consumers have developed a “defensive logistical skepticism.” We make purchases assuming that promises will not be met. We order products weeks in advance because we know that “48-hour delivery” is, at best, an aspiration. Our distrust is based on clear evidence: when over 26% of complaints arise from promised stock that does not exist, we face a systemic disconnect between supply and real availability.

Paradoxically, behind the US$550 million generated by this event lies an opportunity for those who understand the new reality of consumers. While some brands continue to promise the impossible and create frustration, others have realized that true differentiation lies in consistently delivering what they offer. In a market saturated with spectacular offers, more experienced consumers seek reliability over discounts.

The shift in consumer behavior redefines the rules of the game. We prefer the company that guarantees delivery within three days over one that promises 24 hours but fails. Black Friday has thus become a mirror reflecting not only how prepared companies are but also how much we, as consumers, have learned to navigate between empty promises and real commitments.

In a market where we favor certainty over discounts, the question is not how much you spent this Black Friday. The question is whether companies will learn that reliability is the only discount that truly matters.

By Felipe Miranda, Country Manager of LGF Chile.-