For retailers, Black Friday not the biggest deal

There's still a lot of buzz about Black Friday sales. But the event is becoming less important to retailers as they try to stretch out shoppers' enthusiasm and sales.

Merchants have been creating more events that rival or maybe even top Black Friday. That helps retailers better manage inventory, staffing and other challenges.

Retailers are looking at the holiday season as more of a marathon than a one-day sprint, said Amy Koo, an analyst with the business consulting firm Kantar Retail.

"Retailers want to capture sales throughout the season," she said. "A lot of them are placing more promotions ahead of time or staggering them out throughout the season, encouraging shoppers to come back again and again."

The National Retail Federation expects holiday sales in November and December to increase 3.7 percent to $630.5 billion. Over the past decade, the average rise has been 2.5 percent.

"Black Friday used to be the all-important kick-off day. Now, you got all these retailers running online and in-store specials two and three weeks prior to Black Friday," said Brian Yarbrough, a retail analyst with the investment firm Edward Jones.

"Black Friday," he added, "is probably going to become less and less important."