Consumers will spend a record $630.5 billion during the 2015 shopping season, the National Retail Federation predicts.
Nearly half of these people will either browse or buy online, spending $105 billion and using multiple devices in the process, including desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones, according to Criteo, a performance marketing technology company, which released original data on Black Friday, Cyber Monday and “Bounceback Tuesday” shopping trends to help marketers navigate the consumers’ evolving path to purchase.
Findings are based on an analysis of nearly 200 retailers and 63.7 million online transactions during the 2014 holiday season, and provide actionable insight for retail brands to effectively plan for this year’s shopping rush.
Because four in 10 eCommerce sales in the U.S. include a cross-device journey, every device and platform counts for retailers as they strategically invest significant resources to engage and convert consumers through promotion and advertising.
Criteo’s deep-dive into consumer browsing and buying activity uncovers two trends:
First, Black Friday is increasingly turning into an online sales event as consumers are more frequently using mobile devices to make purchases, and online shopping is extending further into the work week.
Second, For companies focused on attracting and retaining consumers during this time period, online advertising campaigns should be fully optimized across all devices.
Black Friday is Becoming Cyber Monday
While Black Friday has historically been an in-store, discount-driven event, Criteo data based on last season’s transactions reveals that for many retailers online sales on Black Friday were nearly equal to those of Cyber Monday. Driving the growth of eCommerce during Black Friday is the adoption and use of mobile devices to browse and buy online.
- Mass merchants experienced online sales 275% higher on Black Friday than during non-holiday periods—nearly equivalent to Cyber Monday sales.
- Sales volumes on smartphones and tablets on Black Friday were 18% higher than on Cyber Monday.
- On Black Friday, 32% of eCommerce transactions occurred on a mobile device (tablet or smartphone), compared to 24% on Cyber Monday.
“Bounceback Tuesday” Sees Strong Online Sales
Online shopping peaks are spreading further into the week, with sales remaining steady on the Tuesday after Black Friday and Cyber Monday—defined by Criteo as “Bounceback Tuesday.”
- In 2014, sales across all key retail categories were 159% above the average on Bounceback Tuesday.
- Specific retail sectors, such as sporting goods, experienced 224% above average online sales on Bounceback Tuesday, which were higher than Black Friday, despite the rise of online sales on that date.
- The toys and gadgets (+223%) and computers and technology (+190%) retail sectors also saw a sales lift on Bounceback Tuesday.
“The path to purchase for today’s consumer has evolved and, as a result, people are doing a tremendous amount of online shopping across all devices on Black Friday. Sales on mobile especially have hit record numbers, according to 2014 data. Retail companies have a huge opportunity to engage consumers through personalized and relevant online advertising during the entire spending period, including Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Bounceback Tuesday,” said James Smith, EVP, Americas at Criteo.