----------------------------------------------------------------- SearchReturn Discussion List "Understanding Internet Search Technology" ----------------------------------------------------------------- Moderator: Published by: Disa Johnson SearchReturn http://www.searchreturn.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- December 12, 2006 SearchReturn Issue #109 ----------------------------------------------------------------- SEND POSTS: ----------------------------------------------------------------- Refer a friend: http://www.searchreturn.com/subscribe.shtml ----------------------------------------------------------------- .....IN THIS DIGEST..... // -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- // "Holiday Shopping Numbers" ~ SearchReturn ----------------------------------------------------------------- // -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- // ----------------------------------------------------------------- ==> Holiday Shopping Numbers http://www.searchreturn.com/digest/refs109.shtml Essentials: According to MasterCard, online Holiday shopping is gaining in popularity with consumer spending up 14% on Cyber Monday this year over last year. News was that Cyber Monday was the biggest shopping day in online history. The biggest day for online Holiday shoppers last year was December 12. Although today is the 12th, there is speculation that the actual day for the biggest online shopping day could come closer to Christmas Day. Toys and video games are in the lead, and Shipping offers can increase consumer confidence that items will arrive with enough time to wrap them and place them under the tree. Growth is not going to slow down after the Holidays much either. Convenience is key. Consider that 41% of Internet users say they are going to increase their e-commerce spending in 2007. Among 575 consumers surveyed by Questus, 77% of those who shop online said they did so to save time, while 67% did so to shop at any time of day. More and more, online consumer behavior is also mimicking offline shopping. The story above shows how users are looking for online bargain opportunities with retailers reacting by publishing promotions on limited quantities of items, and even handing out waiting line-style number tickets to shoppers. For Cyber Monday (and Tuesday) the numbers are excellent. Akamai reported as of midday Tuesday 1.8 million North Americans per minute visited online shopping sites, and Monday peaked with more than 2.1 million per minute around 2:00 p.m. ET. That is about 18% higher than Cyber Monday last year setting the new record. Online retail sales on Cyber Monday was about $600 million and sales on Black Friday was about $434 million. That's a 42% increase from last year on Black Friday. And now that December 12th is here, we'll be anxious to learn what the biggest online shopping day of the year really is going to be. If an upcoming day increases past Cyber Monday numbers, it will set the new record for the largest online shopping day in history. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Stay Tuned. Got feedback?: http://www.searchreturn.com/feedback.shtml Archives: http://www.searchreturn.com/digest-archive.shtml Alternate formats: http://www.searchreturn.com/info-formats.shtml Manage Subscriptions: http://www.searchreturn.com/help/manage-subs.shtml Problems unsubscribing? Contact the postmaster: mailto:postmaster@searchreturn.com Information on how to sponsor this publication: http://www.searchreturn.com/help/advertise.shtml Published by SearchReturn http://www.searchreturn.com Website Membership: http://www.searchreturn.com/register.shtml The contents of the digest do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SearchReturn or Disa Johnson. SearchReturn and Disa Johnson make no warranties, either expressed or implied, about the truth or accuracy of the contents of the SearchReturn Digest. Copyright 2006 Disa Johnson. All Rights Reserved. -----------------------------------------------------------------