• by Sarah Mahoney , December 1, 2017

In an effort to woo holiday shoppers in the final weeks leading up to Christmas, Best Buy is introducing a new tactic: A guaranteed lowest price on electronics. 

Calling the program the 20 Days Of Doorbusters, the Minneapolis-based retailer says when it offers each of these select deals, on such branded products as Apple, Sony, Dyson and Samsung, it’s guaranteed to be the lowest price at Best Buy all season. On its first day, for example, it’s offering an LG 60-inch Smart 4K TV for $600. And while each day’s offer is a surprise, it’s giving little hints on its site, as well. 

Best Buy’s announcement comes as retailers continue to tinker with their holiday playbooks, heading into the heart of the holiday season. Macy’s just announced that due to higher-than-expected traffic, it would focus on service, adding an additional 7,000 sales associates. And JC Penney and Kohl’s are using homepages to scream about promotions, with many items as much as 60% off.

With some of the biggest days behind them, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday, stores are buckling up for the Big Three still ahead, as predicted by Shopper Trak: Saturday, Dec. 23, the last Saturday before Christmas usually called Super Saturday; Saturday, Dec. 16, and Tuesday, Dec. 26.

TV is playing a bigger role this year than last, even if Black Friday got less attention. Kantar Media says that from Oct. 30 through Nov. 26, major retailers spent $667.1 million on national TV spots, a big jump from last year’s $604.5 million. But spending on ads specifically mentioning Black Friday fell to $90.4 million, compared with $113.3 million in 2016. 

The biggest spenders so far, Kantar says, are Walmart at $84.2 million, up 16% from last year; Target at $67.2 million, up 7%; Kohl’s at $33.2 million, up 10%; JC Penney $32.6 million, up 19%, and Kay Jewelers, $32.5 million, up 1%.