We all wrapped up scarfing down our turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, and more this past Thursday for the holidays. Without even time to digest, we braced ourselves for the the busy shopping weekend ahead. Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it was anticipated that this season would be one for the books, and now as we look back at the long, active weekend after the dust has settled, we can look at what these major shopping days had in store. Let’s check out the turnout for the 2017 Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping weekend and see what set this year apart from previous holiday seasons.
Black Friday 2017 Results
Black Friday, every year, sees high influxes of people out in stores and malls aiming to get their holiday shopping taken care of at a bargain, as all stores are knocking down their prices. Every year since 2009 has shown steady growth in the amount spent from the prior year. Following this trend, Black Friday 2017 showed yet another increase. The National Retail Federation outlined this year’s shopping statistics, ultimately showing that there was a 4 percent increase in dollars spent on Black Friday from the previous year, equating to $682 billion spent this year. That breaks down to an estimated $967.13 spent per person roughly. This year it was expected that online shopping would absolutely obliterate brick-and-mortar sales, but with this data it is is safe to say that brick-and-mortar stores still have influence in the Black Friday shopping experience.
Black Friday and Brick-and-Mortar Shopping
While brick-and-mortar stores received more money through sales, there was one distinction that took place amidst all the shopping. This year, foot traffic in stores had experienced a decrease from previous years. Does this mean that online selling is the new go-to for Black Friday buys? Not quite, as the decrease in physical shopping within brick-and-mortar stores was only a mere fraction of a percent according to ShopperTrak. Seeing this decrease does not mean that physical shopping is currently out the door, not by a long shot. However, the fact that numbers are decreasing, especially considering the popularity of this shopping holiday, may indicate the first of many downhill figures for physical shopping in the holiday season.
Not only were numbers showing a decrease within the physical selling arena, but Black Friday was also showing a corresponding rise in online sales. Digital selling powerhouse, Amazon, reported more than 200,000 toys had been sold online within just the first five hours of Black Friday (CNN Money). While many people still take advantage of brick-and-mortar shopping on Black Friday, many other people are seeing the convenience associated with online shopping, weighing that against the expectations of physical shopping on the extremely busy shopping day, and opting to go digital. Findings from CNN went on to say that many businesses, this year, opted to close for Thanksgiving (CNN Money), which contrasts greatly with what we have seen on Thanksgiving Days in the past, with businesses opening their doors for Black Friday savings prior to it actually being BlackFriday. It is as if the online selling popularity has been noted amongst sellers.
Cyber Monday
Similar to every year, business owners waited in anticipation to see the outcome of the selling season. However, this year, there was a lot more attention on the expected results for online selling. This year, it was projected that online sales would trump brick-and-mortar sales for the first time. While brick-and-mortar businesses may have their Black Friday sales on Friday, the rest of the weekend can prove baron for physical retailers. The shopping weekend for online retailers, however, started as early as Thanksgiving Day and continued all the way through to Cyber Monday. With this extended time of sales and the capacity to complete transactions from anywhere at anytime, it was projected that this would make for an extremely prosperous shopping weekend for the online seller.
So, before looking at the overall success of the shopping weekend for online retailers, let’s first look at the Cyber Monday online sales figures, especially since they are absolutely worth noting. This year was the most successful Cyber Monday to date, with over $6.5 billion in sales, for the first time ever (CNBC). Take a step back really quick and assess what that means. What this means is that Cyber Monday 2017 was the most profitable selling day in the history of the internet. This year bore a truly groundbreaking day for ecommerce and commerce in general!
Full Shopping Weekend Results
Although the results from Cyber Monday were immense, it was not the only part of the holiday shopping weekend with big dollars spent. Thanksgiving Day itself, although occurring prior to the the traditional start of the shopping weekend, showed sales reaching $2.87 billion in online sales (TechCrunch). Black Friday itself reported over $5 billion in online sales (TechCrunch). Add these two successful online selling days to the record breaking Cyber Monday turnout, and you’ll find one heck of a holiday shopping weekend!
Conclusion
In conclusion, while every year we expect to see big time sales in stores across the country, this year posed a different focal point. With the ever increasing popularity of the internet and the means it provides for buying and selling, this year, all eyes were on the online sales. Even though brick-and-mortar sales still swept online sales, digital retailers still returned with some astonishing figures in their sales. To learn more about selling online, preparing yourself to take advantage of future Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday selling opportunities, and developing your online presence, contact Rave Retailer today!