Cyber Monday Sales Climb 19% for Biggest E-Commerce Day of 2010
The e-commerce streak that began on Turkey Day continued on Cyber Monday with online sales rising 19% compared to the same day in 2009, according to Coremetrics, a web analytics technology provider that is part of IBM. The average order size climbed 8.3% to $194.89, compared to 2009's average of $190.80.
Online sales are projected to account for 7% of all U.S. retail sales this year, up from 6% last year, according to published reports quoting Forrester Research data.
What's unclear is how much these impressive online sales are costing retailers in discounts, special promotions and services. Amazon.com's Cyber Monday deals included 47-inch Vizio flat-screen TVs for $599, nearly $400 less than the regular retail price. Other promotions focused on the Kindle e-reader device, which Amazon may be selling essentially at cost, using it as a loss leader to drive traffic to its 750,000 e-book library.
In addition, many brick-and-mortar and online-only retailers are offering free shipping for the holiday season, discarding their usual minimum purchases and other requirements. As the holidays draw closer, these shipping costs could rise, eating further into retailers' margins.
For related content see: Online Commerce Generates Black Friday's Sales Sizzle
Online sales are projected to account for 7% of all U.S. retail sales this year, up from 6% last year, according to published reports quoting Forrester Research data.
What's unclear is how much these impressive online sales are costing retailers in discounts, special promotions and services. Amazon.com's Cyber Monday deals included 47-inch Vizio flat-screen TVs for $599, nearly $400 less than the regular retail price. Other promotions focused on the Kindle e-reader device, which Amazon may be selling essentially at cost, using it as a loss leader to drive traffic to its 750,000 e-book library.
In addition, many brick-and-mortar and online-only retailers are offering free shipping for the holiday season, discarding their usual minimum purchases and other requirements. As the holidays draw closer, these shipping costs could rise, eating further into retailers' margins.
For related content see: Online Commerce Generates Black Friday's Sales Sizzle