Press:
Washington, November 21, 2011 – As online shopping continues to reach unprecedented levels, retailers plan to emphasize value and savings to their shoppers all holiday season long. According to Shop.org’s eHoliday Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, half (51.0%) of online retailers surveyed will offer promotions specifically on Thanksgiving Day and eight in 10 (78.4%) will have special promotions on Cyber Monday. Additionally, 92.2 percent of online merchants will offer special promotions at some point during the Thanksgiving weekend.
“As a direct result of increased demand, online retailers will offer hard-to-pass-up deals to shoppers all season long – before, on and after Cyber Monday,” said Shop.org Executive Director Vicki Cantrell. “In addition to many free shipping promotions, there will be plenty of extra ways to save on Cyber Monday, including percentages off entire sites and online-only sales.”
As one of the biggest online shopping days of the year, retailers’ promotions on Cyber Monday will run the gamut. Most are planning to offer coupons/percent off deals (45.0%) and more than one-third (37.5%) will have limited-time promotions. Additionally, three in 10 (30.0%) will offer free standard shipping with conditions and 15.0 percent will feature a free gift with their purchase.
“Consumers have come to expect the absolute best online holiday deals on Cyber Monday,” said BIGresearch Consumer Insights Director Pam Goodfellow. “Holiday shoppers love the idea of preparing for special online sales events as many begin scanning catalogs and retailers’ websites days in advance, marking gift items for their family, friends, and even themselves.”
Cyber Monday, a term coined by Shop.org in 2005, began after retailers noticed a trend of people shopping online on the Monday after Thanksgiving. Today, Cyber Monday is viewed as the online equivalent to Black Friday: the ceremonial kickoff to the online holiday shopping season when shoppers flood websites expecting robust promotions and many retailers highlight some of their most compelling online holiday offers.
Over Half of People with Internet at Work Will Shop at the Office
Holiday shoppers who find time is not on their side often shop online over their lunch hours at work or at the end of the business day. According to the survey, 58.4 percent of workers with Internet access, or 75.9 million people, will shop for holiday gifts from the office this year.
CyberMonday.com to Feature Deal of the Hour on Black Friday, Cyber Monday
Saving the best deals exclusively for Cyber Monday, online retailers will utilize CyberMonday.com starting at midnight on November 28 to promote special Deals of the Hour, which highlight a different retail promotion every 60 minutes. Offers will include free shipping specials, dollars off, percentages off, and free gifts with purchase. More than 800 companies have come together again this year to feature their Cyber Monday deals in one place.
Eager online shoppers will have the opportunity to get the best of both worlds this year as CyberMonday.com will also feature a Deal of the Hour from popular retailers on Black Friday as well. Retailers participating in the Black Friday Deal of the Hour have already been announced. Cyber Monday Deals of the Hour will be released on Sunday, Nov. 28, when Shop.org releases information about the number of consumers who say they plan to shop online on Cyber Monday.
CyberMonday.com, powered by Cartera Commerce, was created by retailers as a one-stop shop for consumers looking for the best Cyber Monday promotions.
About the Surveys
The NRF 2011 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to the winter holidays. The survey polled 8,502 consumers and was conducted for NRF by BIGresearch from November 1-8, 2011. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.0 percent.
The eHoliday Study, now in its tenth year, provides an authoritative snapshot of the holiday activities of both large and small online retailers, many of which have been in business for at least ten years, and also includes the sentiments of online holiday shoppers. The Study, conducted by BIGresearch for Shop.org, surveyed 1,685 online holiday shoppers from September 19 – October 7, 2011 and 51 online retailers from September 22 – October 14, 2011.
BIGresearch® consumer intelligence provides analysis of behavior in areas of products and services, retail, financial services, automotive and media. The Consumer Intentions and Actions® Survey (CIA®) of 8,000+ respondents is conducted monthly and the Simultaneous Media Usage® Survey (SIMM®) of 15,000+ respondents is conducted semi-annually.
Shop.org, a division of the National Retail Federation, is the world’s leading membership community for digital retail. Founded in 1996, Shop.org’s 600 members include the 10 largest retailers in the U.S. and more than 60 percent of the Internet Retailer Top 100 E-Retailers. It’s where the best retail minds come together to gain the insight, knowledge and intelligence to make smarter, more informed decisions in the evolving world of the Internet and multichannel retailing. Shop.org programs and activities include benchmarking research, events and networking communities.
