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The New Cyber Monday

Internet November 28, 2012 Annie

As stores opened their doors earlier this year for Black Friday sales, online retailers did the same. They began offering bargains on Black Friday... The New Cyber Monday

As stores opened their doors earlier this year for Black Friday sales, online retailers did the same. They began offering bargains on Black Friday and even before instead of waiting for the traditional Cyber Monday event. Does this mean we no longer need a Cyber Monday or is it transitioning into more of a Cyber Week?

More Online Shoppers

Online shopping in general is up so that means more people are looking at online retailers for their bargains first instead of after they go to the store. This gives online retailers a competitive edge on Black Friday, especially for those who would rather avoid the crowds and still get the fabulous discounts. You also have the consumers who have to work on that day that can sneak away for a few minutes to purchase online but can’t take the day off to visit a store. Early online sales allows them to participate in Black Friday even when they can’t do it in person.

The New Cyber Monday

Simultaneous Shopping

In the past, shoppers went to the store on Black Friday and shopped online on Cyber Monday. Today they can do both at the same time thanks to mobile devices. This has blurred the line between the two days for most retailers as they seek to gain more of the consumers’ attention through in-store and online deals.

According to a study by IBM, online sales on Thanksgiving Day were up by 17.4%. Black Friday saw an increase of 20.7%. Mobile devices were mostly responsible for the increase, almost doubling their sales from 2011. It went from 9.8% to 16.3% of all sales online this year.

While Cyber Monday saw growth last year from the previous year, experts think it will continue to flatten while overall online sales for the entire holiday season will continue to go up. This means that retailers will have to promote through the entire season if they want to capture the sales numbers they have budgeted.

The New Cyber Monday

Cyber Monday may not be going away anytime soon, but it is going to have to transition to keep up with the physical stores and offer more deals sooner in the season. Sites like Amazon that begin their Black Friday deals well before the day will become more common.

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