Consumers Spent Over $733 Million Online on Cyber Monday

Cyber Monday is living up to, and exceeded, its expectations said retail analyst's comScore, Inc. They provided detailed consumer spending information in a recent press release. Cyber Monday brought in a whopping $733 million in sales from consumers this year.

Consumers didn't stop shopping after Cyber Monday, either. Analysts have said that consumers spent over $700 million on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday following Cyber Monday. All totaled? Over $4 billion was spent online in just one week.

Who have been the big winners? Analysts said that the top shopping destinations for Cyber Monday 2007 included Apple, Circuit City, Toys "R" Us, and Target to name just a few of the top 20 retailers.

Hot gift items included toys, computer hardware, sports and fitness, and gaming consoles and accessories.

Overall consumer eCommerce (online) spending through the month of November has also increased 18 percent when compared to the same time frame last year. All totaled, consumers have spent over $13.4 billion online.

Interestingly, while many consumers have high-speed Internet access at home, they still continue to shop online while at work.

According to comScore Chairman, Gian Fulgoni, "shopping from work remains a key component of online holiday retail spending. This suggests that the privacy afforded by shopping at work, without family members looking over one's shoulder, is one of the important factors in determining where consumers choose to shop online."

While Cyber Monday took in that hefty $733 million, on "Black Friday" many consumers opted to spend their time shopping online, instead of fighting the crowds at retail stores and malls. Consumers spent over $530 million online on "Black Friday" alone. This was an increase of 22 percent more than 2006, said the analysts.

Over $270 million in eCommerce sales online occurred on Thanksgiving Day itself this year, it was 29 percent more than what consumers spent online on Thanksgiving Day itself last year. Obviously a great many people opted to shop after eating turkey or whatever else was served for Thanksgiving dinner.

Black Friday is the name traditionally given to the first Friday after Thanksgiving, when shoppers hit the malls and stores en mass, looking for great deals. Cyber Monday occurs on the first Monday after Thanksgiving, when people return to work and shop online from their job, instead of home.

In either case, it is clear that consumers are becoming more and more comfortable shopping online. ECommerce is expected to continue its strong growth for years to come.

Source:
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