As was the case in previous years, to no one’s surprise, Cyber Monday will be the biggest online shopping day of the year. According to predictions by Adobe Digital Insights, online shoppers will spend around $6.6 billion, which is significant 16.5 percent more than the previous year. It’s estimated that it will overtake Black Friday, which is expected to earn around $5 billion this year in online sales.
Statistics show that around 75% of shoppers go online and start looking for best deals on Monday morning, as soon as they wake up.
Around 25% of them shop during the lunch hours and 34% of shoppers do it on Monday evening.
In comparison, only 19% of them do their shopping during the rest of Cyber Monday week, which has interesting deals throughout.
Some 33% of shoppers start looking for Cyber Monday deals on Sunday evening. The accessibility of mobile devices and internet speed contributed to this, as shoppers don’t have to rely on their work computers and do most of the shopping from their home.
Online retailers also noticed this trend and are starting to offer their Cyber Monday deals earlier than ever. Giants like Amazon, Walmart or Target are offering interesting deals as early as Thanksgiving Day.
In the past years Cyber Monday became more popular than Black Friday and has more than tripled in sales compared to 2009.
In 2009. Cyber Monday online sales generated $887 million, in the following year they crossed the $1 billion mark and has progressively grown since, to a staggering $6.6 billion in 2016.
What is the secret of Cyber Monday?
When asked, 40% of shoppers list the 24-hour convenience as one of their highest priorities, around the same number said they want to avoid Black Friday crowds and about 30% said it easier to compare prices online.
Another important factor are the aggressive sales the retailers are offering. Almost all of them have an online presence. Overwhelming 90% of them offered Cyber Monday deals while half of them offered coupons or percent off deals. 30% offered limited time only promotions and only 15% offered a free gift with purchase.
Retailers are also offering free shipping which is a significant factor among shoppers.
Growth of social media has also played a part, one third of shoppers say they check the retailer’s Facebook page for information on additional deals. Customer reviews also play a role.
Many online retailers adjusted to the use of mobile and tablet devices and made sure their websites are properly optimized and convenient to use.