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Web Retailers Expect Brisk 'Cyber Monday'

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the so-hard-to-work-up-the-energy dept.

The New York Times has a piece this morning looking at an anticipated brisk day of sales for 'Cyber Monday'. The Monday after Black Friday gained the moniker last year, based on increased online sales from 2004 and 2005. Advertisers, now once again fans of the web, have a lot to smile about as well. Specifically targeted ads have already been purchased for today, in hopes of increasing sales. This year, online retailers are expecting a jump in the range of 20% (as they did last year). From the article: "Patti Freeman Evans, an analyst with JupiterResearch, a technology consulting firm, said online sales this year would reach the $100 billion threshold for the first time. Online sales, she added, would probably constitute 6 percent of total holiday merchandise sales. Some of that online growth comes from new shoppers. According to a recent Jupiter survey, 114 million online users planned to buy something online this holiday season, a 6 percent jump from last year. The National Retail Federation said 47 percent of consumers would make at least one holiday purchase online this year, up from 36 percent three years ago."

2 of 75 comments (clear)

  1. More free time = more sales by linuxci · · Score: 4, Interesting
    It's to be expected, durning the holidays people have more time on their hands. Online sales trends in the UK always look positive around Christmas (we don't celebrate thanksgiving so using xmas as the example), it's a combination of people looking for bargains on eBay when people auction off their unwanted presents, people looking at selling their unwanted presents and spending the money they make on it in advance, people spending the money they were given as gifts and those that want to run out and get the first after Christmas bargains.

    A lot of the reason for the online growth is that people tend to be an impatient lot and as just about everywhere is shut Christmas day and many also on the 26th, people can't wait for the stores to open, also add to the people who got their first computer as a gift (hopefully a mac unless they're comfortable with Linux) may be keen to make their first online purchase.

  2. Re:Who the hell... by 0xFFFFFF · · Score: 2, Interesting

    the reasons for Black Friday bricks-and-mortar sales just don't apply to the online world.I don't know about that. Traditional retailers aren't doing it right, that's for sure. They could probably learn something from Woot, which has the equivalent of a line of people waiting up until 1:00EST every night to be the first to see what they're selling for the day. Though, many of them are just there waiting for the next bandolier of carrots...

    If Walmart or Target had such sales on their online sites, and advertised them as starting at midnight, I could see them getting the same kind of following.