I Was Thinking About…The Evolution of Cyber Monday
By Andy Lee
Like clockwork, as the last slices of pumpkin pie are gobbled up and the final football games wrap, thoughts shift to the next major event on the consumer calendar – Cyber Monday. This year marks the 16th Cyber Monday, tapping into the post-Thanksgiving shopping rush when retailers dangle online deals and herds of shoppers armed with laptops and smartphones scramble to snag savings before supplies vanish.
But I found myself wondering – when and how exactly did Cyber Monday emerge? As with Black Friday encroaching onto Thanksgiving itself, it feels like the online shopping frenzy has been around forever. Yet the now ubiquitous Cyber Monday is essentially a manufactured tradition, conjured up just over a decade ago.
The term “Cyber Monday” was first coined in 2005 by the National Retail Federation (NRF). They were looking for a catchy marketing hook to boost sales during what had traditionally been a lull before the big December holiday shopping crunch. Early online shopping platforms had launched years before, but the rates of American households with internet access were much lower.
By 2005 however, over 85% of Americans were online, even though somewhat sluggish dial-up connections were still common. Sensing opportunity, the NRF launched a campaign encouraging people returning to offices after Thanksgiving weekend to shop from their high-speed work networks that Monday. And just like that, a brand new custom was born – Cyber Monday.
That first year saw modest but promising results – online sales rose 26% compared to 2004’s post-Thanksgiving Monday. Waking up from their turkey comas, more people opted to browse deals virtually rather than trek to malls. Business wire company Shop.org officially registered the CyberMonday.com domain by 2006, further cementing the event.
Still, online shopping’s overall share of holiday spending continued lagging. By 2008, only 10% of purchases were made on the web. But fast improving technology and Amazon’s swelling dominance were about to truly propel Cyber Monday into the retail stratosphere.
The introduction of smartphones with mobile shopping capabilities around 2010 suddenly untethered consumers from stationary computers. By 2011 and 2012, mobile sales during the Cyber Week stretch eclipsed $1 billion for the first time. Solid internet speeds over 4G networks meant no more aggravating lags or spinning load wheels. As online listings became more visual via Instagram and Pinterest, Cyber Monday felt more tangible and tempting than ever.
From 2013 onward, the graphs for Cyber Monday eclipsed virtually every other year. Each holiday season ratcheted up new records as retailers refined sales tactics and more customers realized the convenience benefits. By 2021, Cyber Monday spending topped a jaw-dropping $10.7 billion dollars, accounting for nearly 20% of November/December online revenue.
Clearly the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020, forcing more online dependence, proved another catalyst rocketing Cyber Monday firmly into the zeitgeist. With over 204 million shoppers swarming sites last year, Americans spent around 50 times more on Cyber Monday in 2022 than during the promotion’s rookie debut 17 years ago.
So why was I thinking about Cyber Monday and what the future holds? Mostly because of how rapidly consumer behavior evolves nowadays thanks to technology. Entirely new customs like Cyber Monday can emerge almost overnight and become ingrained fixtures. It reminds us traditions aren’t necessarily sacred or long-lasting – they can be rewritten on the fly based on public reception and corporate incentives.
Just look at how Black Friday morphed so dramatically once leaving the confines of brick and mortar stores. As much as we feel ingrained personal habits and cultural institutions are permanent, digital forces and widespread appetites can reshape norms faster than ever before.
Stay savvy, keep evolving!
I was thinking about... 