In the USA, Small Business Saturday (SBS) is the day after Black Friday. Just as Black Friday is the day that all the big stores have sales to draw out the crowds, on SBS local businesses have sales to draw out the smaller crowds.
SBS started in 2010, and in 2011 the United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution of support for the day. This means essentially nothing, but it's nice. Local chambers of commerce, newspapers, and etc. tend to support and promote SBS sales, and some big companies get involved as well; one year American Express promoted participating small businesses with free personalized web ads. These ads may have also mentioned American Express, but hey, they were the ones footing the bill.
Small businesses often have small events in addition to sales, usually charity fundraisers (especially Toys For Tots and the like), giveaways, or even a small party for customers. It is not uncommon for these businesses to take part in Black Friday but have something a little more personalized for their regular customers on SBS.
While local communities may help advertise SBS sales, in my experience the best way to know which of your local businesses are having sale that meets your interests is to follow the businesses on Facebook.