 Thanksgiving Turkey Time 2013 Traditionally, Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year, as the day after Thanksgiving unofficially kicks off the holiday gift-buying season. In recent years, Cyber Monday joined the sales push, with many retailers offering online sales on the Monday after Thanksgiving. We saw on the news this weekend, some bricks & mortar stores that opened early had crowds that were out of control. Whether these scenes scare some customers away is up for debate, but in any event, the early data suggests that online sales are becoming increasingly important, fueled in large measure by the growing presence of mobile devices. Led by smartphones and tablets, here are some trends reported by IBM for Black Friday and Cyber Monday over the 2013 Thanksgiving weekend:
Undoubtedly, the ease of use and mobility of smartphones and tablets is here to stay. People love being connected not only to friends sand family, but to information as well. Tablets are much smaller and lighter than laptops, reducing the schlep factor. The growing importance of mobile devices most likely led to the recent decision to ease restrictions on using them on airplane flights. With the ability to download apps of your own choosing, I think we can say that tablets and smartphones have truly become the personal computers of 2013 and the foreseeable future.
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 Following up the Black Friday note below, the results of Cyber Monday are in and retailers would appear to be quite pleased with the results. According to real-time data collected for the Cyber Monday Report 2012: IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark, online sales skyrocketed 30.3% over the same day in 2011. Some 18% of consumers used a mobile device to view a retailer's website, and mobile sales represented about 13% of all sales. While these numbers in and of themselves might not seem high, both figures are up very significantly over 2011. At 11:25 a.m. (ET) on Cyber Monday, sales reached their peak for the day, but there were strong sales as well after commuting hours. According to IBM, consumers used a "multiscreen" shopping technique, simultaneously finding the best bargains in store, online, and/or on a mobile device. As with Black Friday, iOS devices (iPhone and iPad) led the way for mobile shoppers.
The message here would appear to be that any consumer-facing company - whether in retail, financial services, manufacturing, or some other area - should focus on giving the customers what they want in the format they prefer. Paying attention to consumer preferences appears to pay off with increased sales. With many more consumers looking to purchase smartphones and tablets for the foreseeable future, it is important for businesses to take note of this trend. |
Blog Author - Ken FelsherWith over 25 years of writing, editing, and research experience. I enjoy sharing with my readers my love of working with content on a variety of subjects. 
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January 2016
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