The biggest shopping day in the United States is just one week away and you can be sure that all the different retailers will have more than a few deals to entice shoppers into their stores. If you happen to be one of these kinds of businesses, whether online or offline, what can you do to draw those customers in your direction rather than toward your nearest competitor?

It is for this very reason that so many retailers keep their Black Friday deals so secretive leading up to the important shopping day. They don’t want their competitors to unleash a marginally better deal on exactly the same product, effectively snatching the rug out from under them for just a few dollars. The money will be spent; the question is where it will be spent.

Given that we are in the middle of the digital age, hiding the deals in an upcoming flyer or mail-out can be a concern, as the printers need lead time in order to get the printers sent out in time. That’s why unleashing the deals in a digital form may be a more effective strategy, particularly if you have a strong mailing list already at your disposal.

Provide some teasers through traditional media and let people know about some of your deals, to be sure, but you may not want to reveal your ultimate “door crasher” until a few hours before the actual deal can take place. Update your website in this shorter time frame and you can prevent your competition from adapting their deals to compete with yours. This is certainly a delicate balancing act, but it can be one to work in your favor.