Black Friday Sales Top $1 Billion Online, to Surpass Cyber Monday 2012?
Online sales for Black Friday have increased by 26 percent this season according to reports, pushing sales past the billion-dollar mark.
The total sales made on Black Friday reached $1.04 billion according to comScore data, which reflects a 26 percent increase from the amount of sales that were processed on the same day last year. The most visited online retailer was Amazon, although the company's strategy was to offer Black Friday sales for an entire week. The company also posted the highest year-over-year visitor growth rate.
Wal-Mart ranked second, as the most visited site, followed by Best Buy, Target, and Apple.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"Online has been around 9 percent of total holiday sales, but it could breach 10 percent for the first time this season," Scot Wingo, the chief executive of ChannelAdvisor, which helps merchants sell more on websites, including Amazon.com and eBay.com, said to Reuters.
ComScore predicted that sales would rise another 17 percent through the holiday season to reach a final total of $43.4 billion. However the high numbers also reflect the deflating power of Cyber Monday. With the same Black Friday deals being offered in store and online, it appears that Black Friday may slowly be taken over by the online market and shoppers who are eager to avoid large crowds.
This year however, crowds still amassed in stores like Target. The company opened at 9 p.m. this year on Thanksgiving Day, offering shoppers an early start to receive door-buster deals. Door-busters at Target included deals like an XBOX 360 with a Kinect for only $199.
But Amazon will still push through with Cyber Monday Week, offering new deals every hour that are restricted by a time limit. Past deals included discounts on the items such as home goods, electronics, and jewelry.
