Sam Murray
AP Economics
Mrs. Straub
26 November 2014
Cyber Monday
Every Thanksgiving, it seems that much of the conversation shifts from football, food and giving thanks toward the insane deals that occur on Black Friday. More and more stores are even beginning to open late on Thursday as opposed to the traditional opening at the crack of dawn on Friday. Though these stores are trying to increase their in person sales, some economic groups believe that they would be better served to focus attention toward the cyber sector and the growing revenue that is garnered on ‘Cyber Monday’ and even online sales that happen on Black Friday itself. According to a 2011 study done by The Fraud Report, a private company headquartered in Florida, “more consumers have sought online deals and avoided the Black Friday crowds as online sales on Black Friday have steadily increased from 2008 to 2011, and with an especially large increase [in 2011],” as seen below.
In addition, by moving much of the shopping process to the computer, companies can cut costs by reducing the amount of labor hired to physically man the stores. By shifting these costs from the variable cost of labor, towards the fixed cost of shipping, the saved dollars can make shipping free to consumers and, according to Kimberly Amadeo an expert on the United States’ economy, “36% of shoppers surveyed said they'd increase their online shopping only if shipping were free.” In its origins, Cyber Monday occurred on the Monday following Thanksgiving because consumers required the speed and bandwidth of computers at work to complete their shopping desires, but now as mobile devices and home computers are becoming faster, Cyber Monday is expanding beyond just Monday, and the amount being spent is beginning to grow at an exponential rate.
The shift towards utilization of the internet is in no small part due to the fact that the internet is available every minute of every day to the majority of consumers. Whereas for the in person Black Friday deals, people have gone to the lengths of camping out in front of a store for over a week. A substantial amount of consumers switched to cyber shopping also because of the ease of comparing prices between competitive producers for their desired purchases.
Along with the increased revenue garnered from online shopping, companies and corporations have begun to advertise more and earlier than ever before. This year, over half of all companies offering Thanksgiving weekend sales have begun advertising their sales before Halloween, but the increased non-price competition is well worth it to many consumers to share in the projected revenue totals of the holiday season. Current projections are estimating the 2014 Holiday Sales to bring in almost $617 Billion dollars, which is a 4.1 % increase over 2013 with online sales experiencing an increase of between 8% and 11%. Ultimately, as they always do, stores will see an incredible rise in demand for products in the holiday season, and consumers find themselves willing to shell out much of their hard earned cash for the deals that companies are promoting.
Works Cited
Amadeo, Kimberly. "Why You Don't Want to Miss Cyber Monday." About. 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
Grannis, Kathy, and Treacy Reynolds. "Optimism Shines as National Retail Federation Forecasts Holiday Sales to Increase 4.1%." NRF. 7 Oct. 2014. Web. 26 Nov. 2014. <https://nrf.com/media/press-releases/optimism-shines-national-retail-federation-forecasts-holiday-sales-increase-41>.
Montague, David. "The Fraud Practice; News & Events - 2011 Has Strong Start to the Holiday Season with Record ECommerce Volumes on Black Friday and Cyber Monday." The Fraud Practice; News & Events - 2011 Has Strong Start to the Holiday Season with Record ECommerce Volumes on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. 27 Dec. 2011. Web. 26 Nov. 2014.
Cyber Monday sales will most likely continue to grow in the future. Companies benefit from Cyber Monday in two major ways. For one they do not have to pay as many employees if sales are mainly done on the internet. Also companies are able to make profits from late night shoppers who shop during hours that the physical stores are not open. The only disadvantage of this is that workers may be laid off if the majority of sales are done online which could hurt the overall economy. Other than that sales like Black Friday Sales, Cyber Monday Sales and other holiday sales are mainly a positive for the economy.
ReplyDeleteThe growth of internet shopping has been increasing each year and will continue to in the future. Many people refuse to go Black Friday shopping, but if deals were offered online, there would be a great increase in the amount of people who would engage in shopping. Not only this, but the increase in online shopping on the other 364 days of the year would increase as well and revenue would increase dramatically. Couple this with a decrease in total cost and there is no real reason to not extend these offers to the online world as there would be an increase in customer satisfaction and company profits.
ReplyDeleteI think benefit of cyber Monday shopping is that an shopper can avoid the violent crowds of Black Friday and still get all the items they want. In addition, companies should allocate a greater amount of resources to online shopping because the graph indicates that it will soon be more profitable than brick and mortar shopping. Also, if more people shop on Cyber Monday, they will be more likely to try online shopping more often
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday has become more and more popular throughout the years because of the huge advancement in technology.As you mentioned before, everyone has internet available at the tips of their fingers. Since internet is so popular, more producers should focus their supply on the online shopping, rather than the physical shopping. It also easier to shop online rather than wait in a very long line, for one good deal. The graph provides good details of this point. Also, demand for online deals will increase in the future and it is possible the demand will decrease for the products offered while physically shopping on black Friday. This could be very positive for many businesses or could be detrimental to their total revenue.
ReplyDeleteOnline shopping has increased within the past couple of years. It's always interesting to see how easy shopping has gotten. I think that in the future online shopping will take over certain stores in malls which will cause them to close. Is that a good thing? I'm honestly not sure. I feel like cyber Monday's deals are a lot better than the regular black Friday deals mainly because they know that they will make more money off of online shopping.
ReplyDeleteI can totally see how Cyber Monday is becoming more and more popular. I personally choose only to participate in the online sales rather than the in store sales because there are no crowds and I can shop from the comfort of my home. I think that making cyber Monday multiple days long and shortening black Friday to strictly Friday (no stores participating in the thanksgiving evening opening) is a great idea.
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday was very interesting to learn about because with all the talk about Black Friday I had barley ever heard of Cyber Monday. You hear more and more about it as time goes on. More and more people every year are becoming interested with shopping on their mobile devices in the comfort of their own home rather than baring the cold and waiting in line to get great deals on items when the reality of it is, it that there are better deals online than in the store.
ReplyDeletePersonally I like Cyber Monday better than Black Friday because I like to respect the holidays and spend my time with my family. It is true that Cyber Monday is becoming more popular because of the increase in technology, but that also goes hand-in-hand with the increase in America's overall laziness and lack of drive to get up and physically go buy the things that they want. With the heavy amount of shopping that gets done on Black Friday, shopping on Cyber Monday is sometimes stressful as stock of items runs out, but either way people find what they want to buy somehow, which increases the economy and also helps businesses strive.
ReplyDeleteSam, first off, this was an excellently written piece, and the graphics were excellent. As a consumer, I see Cyber Monday as a fantastic opportunity to purchase goods. It is an excellent demonstration of the Law of Demand, when prices are low on Cyber Monday, more consumers are willing to buy. It is interesting to see that to a large number of Americans, shipping is a major factor in Cyber Monday shopping. Is there a difference in consumer expectations on Cyber Monday versus Black Friday? On Black Friday people are willing to camp out and wake up at the crack of dawn but on Cyber Monday if there isn't free shipping suddenly the deals aren't worth it. It's an interesting comparison.
ReplyDeleteAdvancements in technology are changing what consumers want and this is no different. Many people do not go shopping on Black Friday because they do not want to deal with the huge crowds of people shoving through each other to get what they want, and often times they are trying to get some type of technology for cheap. Because so many people have advanced technology now and internet access is almost granted anywhere, Cyber Monday is becoming a huge thing, and expanding as Black Friday also is. It makes sense that this is expanding and increasing revenue because online shopping is so much easier and it is also a lost easier to stay up late on the computer to shop than it is to be walking around through everyone. Overall this is probably going to continue to grow and be very positive for the economy this time of year.
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday seems to be much more popular as the years progress, opposed to the traditional Black Friday shopping deals. When looking at the bigger picture, I did not really understand the point of having "Cyber Monday", however from your response it makes complete sense that companies can lower the amount of labor cost amongst employees due to the extensive shopping online instead of in the store. Because technology has been increasingly advancing, online shopping is becoming much more popular in which producers should focus more on Cyber Monday and not as much on Black Friday. The second graph heavily depicts the increase purchases in Cyber Monday which producers should take into consideration as companies slowly will be able to decrease the cost of employment and increasingly focusing only on online sales.
ReplyDeleteWith technology advancing Cyber Monday has become more popular throughout the years. Since, some people don't go black Friday shopping because they don't want to wake up early, producers should start to focus shopping online. Plus, those who can't go black Friday shopping because of their younger children would be able to shop online. With technology advancing, Cyber Monday will likely become more popular.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good piece. Do you think the effect of online sales affects the unemployment rate because since more people are leaning towards online shopping that stores are getting less action and since the online stores do not have to pay a lot of people that the regular stores are feeling the effects? Maybe that is why there is more weight in advertizing on Black Friday than Cyber Monday.
ReplyDeleteIt seems only natural that Cyber Monday is slowly making a rise. As more and more is being put on the internet, we find ourselves there more all the time. Cyber Monday is a prime example of this change. As more have smartphones and computers more want these deals over lines. As time goes by, Cyber Monday will become ever more important while Black Friday may just whisk away from existence.
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting that more people are choosing cyber Monday over black Friday and that the electronic sale have steadily increased and are almost as high and the black Friday sales even though there are restriction online as well as in person.
ReplyDeleteIt was intersting to learn just how cyber monday has progressed and how technology has aided that process. I too participated more so in cyber monday as compared to black friday because it is overall much more logical and if free shipping is offered it is also a no brainer in comparison to standing in lines in the cold. It amazing to think how much popyularity it gains every year as we grow up. who knows, maybe eventually we will just do our holiday shopping online in its entirety?
ReplyDeleteHaving always been on vacation during Black Friday (and Cyber Monday), I've never truly experienced the maddened rush of shoppers hunting for deals, however the lengthening of the deals via the internet has given me the same chance at getting deals as everyone else, no matter where I am. As the years progress, I believe that people will keep shifting to making their purchases online as opposed to in stores due to its additional ease of use as well as wide accessibility.
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday, in my opinion, is better than Black Friday. Black Friday can turn into complete mayhem, as it's the one day a year where demand skyrockets as well as supply due to the sales. Though most needs are met, attempting to get what you want can be a serious hassle. Cyber Monday is better because it not only shows how well the technology in America has advanced, but also because there's no long waiting times for anything, except for shipping time. Also, there's more available supply because everything would be in warehouses.
ReplyDeleteThis sudden increase in demand would also be hard to deal with when looking at the producer side of the market because they would need to find new, creative ways to meet the temporarily high demand. I know some retail stores hired another shift of workers specifically for the day and the Christmas season, while other suppliers might compensate by ordering extra things so they wouldn't run out as fast, or maybe they just let people running around their store buy out most of their stock. It would be interesting to see how each store reacts differently to the sudden shift in demand and supply.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that online shopping has become increasingly more popular and that they will continue to rise in the future. This is due to the accessibility and ease that technology brings, as consumers now do not have to leave their houses, drive to the store, and weave through the crazy crowds. Also, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are great examples of the law of demand, where the lower the price, the more that product is demanded by consumers.
ReplyDeleteSince technology is advancing, it is a positive correlation with Cyber Monday as well. Black Friday will always be a holiday tradition, and to some people, a good excuse to camp out for three weeks. Although Cyber Monday will grow, I do not think this will decrease the revenue that Black Friday brings. This is good for the economy, and for consumers. At the same time, it takes away from the true purpose of the holiday. In my opinion, Cyber Monday is a good way to avoid forgetting what really matters on Thanksgiving- food and family.
ReplyDeleteYou make a fantastic point in saying that Cyber Monday is increasing its sales in all sectors because of advancing technology. I agree with this but I also think that part of the draw of Cyber Monday stems for the availability of consumers to surf the net throughout the entire day - during work, school, and anything else that they might have to do. In addition, these customers don't have to endure grueling lines and the possibility of what they're after being out of stock in the busy department stores. Regardless, Cyber Monday and Black Friday definitely serve as great spikes in the economy - that is for those that are willing and able to spend money on Christmas gifts.
ReplyDeleteLooking at the increase in the number of cyber monday sales compared to the increase in sales that black friday is bringing in, you can clearly see that online shopping is becoming more and more popular. With online shopping being easier than getting out of your house at 1 in the morning to go shopping people are realizing that you can get the same deals online.
ReplyDeleteI would agree with the claim that online deals would be a smarter way to do Black Friday sales. This would provide many benefits for the workers, which include getting more sleep and avoiding the chaos the sales ensue. In addition, the employers would also receive the benefits of no longer needing to employ more staff on this night and saving a couple dollars by not needing to open th store late. It’s a win win for the employees and the employers.
ReplyDeleteI think people who go black friday shopping are crazy. they line up at the doors for hours to get a good deal on a tv, which is nuts. I had to go shopping this past thanksgiving to bring joey to best buy so that he could get an xbox one and that place was full of shoppers. i do not like taking part in that, where i would much rather be inside buying stuff on the computer.
ReplyDeleteCompared to Black Friday, Cyber Monday is great. It allows and even promotes people to stay home on Friday let alone Thursday. It is also a great money saver for all parties. The consumers save money on shipping and the corporations save money on not putting as many people on staff for one day a year.
ReplyDeleteCyber Shopping is a great way for shoppers to avoid huge crowds and hours lost in line. It's also easier for buyers to find what they want right away rather than looking in a store for hours until they find something that they really like. It's beneficial for companies, since they don't have to waste as much in labor. For Black Friday, Cyber Monday is really helpful for people who don't have the patience to go around store to store late at night.
ReplyDeleteIt’s been interesting to see this progression and shift from in-person Black Friday to online Cyber Monday shopping. I now wonder how the trend will continue. One potential trend, is that this constant ascending traffic of Cyber Monday will continue, effectively making Black Friday (and perhaps a majority of in-person shopping) go by the wayside. On the other hand, as Black Friday traffic diminishes, perhaps the idea could once again become an appealing event leading to a return to the method of online shopping. Whether the trend of Black Friday versus Cyber Monday moves linearly or cyclically will be an item of interest in years to come.
ReplyDeleteAs technology continues to get more advanced, it allows people to shop online. This can really help people because when they want a good deal, they don't have to camp out on black Friday and have the possibility of getting hurt or not getting a deal at all. You did a good job showing how people don't have to leave the comfort of their own homes just to get something that they want.
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ReplyDeleteBlack Friday and Cyber Monday have always been controversial topics among shoppers, whether it be from the danger it produces, or the scams that go along with it. I personally do not go shopping on Black Friday, because I don’t really feel like I need to get up early to go fight the crowds. I do, however do a bit of Cyber Monday shopping. The deals are awesome, and it helps save a lot of money. It also seems as though Cyber Monday sales will go up in future.
ReplyDeleteSam… WOW! I love it and that’s all I can say. I’ve been touching your behind since 5th grade, and I know for a fact that you would rather sit on your butt and shop online instead of waking up at 3 in the morning to sit out in front of walmart and hope you don’t die when they open the doors. We have a lot in common Sam, and I would love to join you next year for Cyber Monday so we can drink chocolate milk and watch old football film. The fact that stores are opening up at 6 PM on Thursday is just kind of stupid. I mean it’s the day to give thanks, not to go out and spend all your money on cheap crap that’s going to be on sale in the few days. If so many stores are changing to Thursday, then they should call it Black Thursday/Friday. Cyber Monday is so easy and you don’t have to get out of your bed to be able to buy a flat screen TV you don’t need. I did learn some stuff that I never knew before so thank you very much Samuel Murray. Have a great day and I’ll see you in the halls!
ReplyDeleteLove, Conner
Great job Sam! I found it very interesting that people would prefer buy stuff online than just going to the actual store and getting the product right away. I would prefer to have my product right away instead of waiting for the shipping. However, it does save shoppers a lot of money, the money that they save on the gas they might either save it, spend it somewhere else which would increase GDP, or would spend it right on the internet. This is a very controversial topic, but without the holiday shopping and removing the black Friday and cyber Monday shopping we would be putting the economy in crisis of not enough money flowing through.
ReplyDeleteIt's truly amazing to see a shift of such magnitude in consumer habits happen right before our eyes during our short lives. Just a few years ago cyber Monday was in its infancy and Black Friday reigned king in post thanksgiving sales. I firmly believe that with our current path Black Friday may one day be eliminated and all shopping will take place during cyber Monday. I am wonder what you think of such a lofty proposition? Overall great article!
ReplyDeleteIts amazing to see how much money online retailers can make on just one day. It cool to see on where marketing is going in the future and this looks like Cyber Monday is going to be bigger than Black Friday in the future. This also brings up a good point on that when store provided free shipping more and more people are going to want to buy their products. This allows the stores to gain a bigger revenue. To contrast the idea on cyber money I bought some things online helping out the economy during cyber Monday. But I only bought the things online because it had free shipping. If the product that I would have bought have charged me for shipping I would have went to the stores.
ReplyDeleteSam, you bring up an interesting topic about the major growth in online sales. As the years go on a think it would be beneficial for stores to put more of an emphasis on cyber Monday sales instead of the previously more popular Black Friday sales. I've realized the benefits of Cyber Monday for consumers before, but never really thought about the impact it has on producers as well. In both cases, I believe the marginal benefits definitely outweigh the marginal costs of Cyber Monday. I myself would much rather do my gift shopping in the comfort of my own home than deal with sale-crazed shoppers in the middle of the night!
ReplyDeleteIt’s very interesting to see how much technology and the use of computers has had on Black Friday Shopping, especially because of how popular and crazy this day truly is. But it really does make sense, due to the fact that using the internet and technology, has become so natural and easy for people all around the world. You made a good point that I never really thought about, and that was the advantages of consumers shopping online, because then you don’t have to pay for the workers to be physically at the stores, thus saving the variable cost of labor. I was a part of this group of shoppers that did most of their shopping online, so I can see why the statistics have altered, and why this day has moved more towards technology to get the job done. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI think that the shift from Black Friday to Cyber Monday is inevitable, and also a good change. Many stores are opening on Thanksgiving, and each year they open earlier. At this rate Black Friday will be beginning on Tuesday in the future. I think that Cyber Monday is an improvement from Black Friday. It is much easier to shop online and have the items shipped to your house, than it is to wait in line outside of a store on Thanksgiving. I think that the increase of Cyber Monday participation will allow stores to cut back on Black Friday madness. If Cyber Monday becomes more important, then stores won't feel the need to open on Thanksgiving, and people can spend the holiday with their family.
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday sounds a lot better to me than standing out in the cold waiting for the doors to open and crowds to rush in the doors to fight for the sales. It also helps get more sales for the companies for all those who don't enjoy the crowds. Technology is continuing to improve and it is helping out all sizes of companies grow which would also help the economy grow. Overall technology and Cyber Monday are great for the economy.
ReplyDeleteWith the constant changes with technology in todays world, it seems as though cyber Monday will soon completely make Black Friday and event of the past. It was fascinating to me that 36% of Americans said that if all shipping was free on line, they would increase their spending budgets, You brought up a lot of good points regarding the pluses of online shopping and the labor that is being saved. I also never thought of before that maybe due to all the accidents, fights, and sometimes even deaths that happen on Black Friday, maybe cyber monday is a safer solution! Great Job!
ReplyDeleteI really liked your topic and I agree completely with your thoughts on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Black Friday is beginning to open earlier each year which is giving less time for people to spend Thanksgiving with their family because they care so much about the deals they are given. I think Cyber Monday could be very beneficial if more people focused on doing all of their shopping that Monday instead of Black Friday because it would give them more time to be with their families and give thanks instead of worrying about getting in line for shopping Thursday night. I also definitely believe that the marginal benefits outweigh the marginal cost of Cyber Monday and I think shopping would be much more enjoyable and easier when getting the opportunity to do it online sitting in my own home rather than dealing with all the chaos on Black Friday which is really starting to be on Thanksgiving night.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jackie that the shift from Black Friday to Cyber Monday is inevitable. However, a complete change over won’t happen until big name companies can completely secure their customer’s credit card information. But in my opinion, this change needs to happen. Every year stores open up earlier on Thanksgiving, and I think people are getting tired of it. No one wants to work on a holiday that is supposed to be spent with your family. And no one wants to get injured on Black Friday, so instead people are staying home where they’re safe and doing their shopping online. Now if only we could get rid of all the hackers!
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ReplyDeleteI think you made some excellent points while you went through this analysis of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. But I think you forgot to mention the social implications of these stores opening so early. People want to enjoy Thanksgiving with their families and stores opening up early makes the workers lose time that they would otherwise spend with the ones they love.
I don't think there will be a shift from black Friday to cyber Monday soon, but more of an extension of cyber Monday. This year there was basically a cyber week. Each day I got more emails about cyber Monday being extended one more day. Black Friday will always be a thing, as the costs of hiring a few workers an potentially negate the costs of shipping (however many companies now offer free shipping). Cyber Monday will become the thing, but Black Friday won't go away. There are still places that only do deals at stores or very specific deals for in store only.
ReplyDeleteIt’s weird to think of how cyber monday truly started, but it makes sense when you really think about it. I believe cyber monday allows more opportunities for those who couldn’t get what they wanted on black friday, to get another deal. Also from what I have noticed, those who are into black friday also enjoy cyber monday. All they care about is getting the best deal, although it does make sense that many shy away from it because of shipping costs. It seems logical that cyber monday sales would go up if store offered free shipping. Overall great relevant topic that was interesting to read about.
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