What Will Cyber Monday Be Like In 2020?

Over the course of the last year, many brands and retailers have embraced ecommerce strategies to meet consumer demand, a fact that is likely to help Cyber Monday sales. Cyber Monday was created in 2005 as an online alternative to the brick-and-mortar Black Friday sales, but in recent years the online retail holiday has become more popular than Black Friday’s boots-on-the-ground shopping event. In 2019, Cyber Monday rang up $9.2 billion in sales, up 16.9% from 2018, while in-person sales on Black Friday dropped 6% in 2019.

Brands and retailers that have stayed agile and adapted their ecommerce strategies to meet consumer demand should benefit from Cyber Monday sales. Many retailers are likely to get started early this year with Cyber Monday inspired sales and promotions that kick off days before November 30.

Online Sales Events Have Been Big Business For Brands And Retailers This Holiday Season

So far this year, single or two-day sales events have been incredibly successful, building off of the ecommerce dominance of 2020 and perhaps benefitting from consumers eager to begin the holiday celebrating early after a tough year. 

• Amazon Prime Day, which was October 13-14, sold $10.4 billion of merchandise, up 45.2% from $7.16 billion in 2019.
• Singles Day, a major retail holiday in China, saw “ecommerce giants Alibaba and JD.com [rack] up around $115 billion in sales across their platforms during the Singles Day shopping event, both setting new records,” according to CNBC.
• WayDay, a two-day sales event from home furnishings retailer Wayfair, drove the two largest sales days in Wayfair history, posting 66.5% year-over-year revenue growth — reaching $3.84 billion in Q3.

Black Friday And Cyber Monday Will Be Combined Into One Big Shopping Holiday In 2020

The reality is that, because of the pandemic and the move to online shopping for so many consumers, Black Friday and Cyber Monday will likely offer similar deals that stretch across the weekend, possibly starting the week before Thanksgiving. While the blending of the two retail holidays may be more apparent this year, consumers have increasingly been buying online on Black Friday, with online sales hitting $7.4 billion on Black Friday in 2019.

However, there are some differences in products and services offered on Black Friday compared to Cyber Monday. These differences are likely due to the original intent of the holidays, when consumers would go to big box stores on Black Friday for great deals on appliances and electronics and reserve Cyber Monday for tech gadgets and online-only items. “Generally speaking, consumers shopping for big-ticket items, such as laptops, TVs and kitchen appliances can expect more opportunities on Black Friday. But [those] shoppers looking for last year’s models, smart home gadgets, digital subscriptions and gift cards will likely find more luck during Cyber Monday,” predicts reporter Tercius Bufete for Business Insider. Bufete also notes that doorbuster-type sales, or limited time offers like lightning deals, may be one-day only Cyber Monday specials. 

Cyber Monday May Be Shoppers’ Best Chance To Get Good Deals And Avoid Delays

An unfortunate reality of online ordering in 2020 has been shipping delays and supply issues. TechRadar reporter Matt Swider predicts that Cyber Monday, particularly because it falls only 25 days before Christmas, may be one of the best chances shoppers have to get great deals guaranteed to come on time. Many brands are likely to mitigate the risk of shipping delays by heavily promoting curbside pick-up and other in-store fulfillment options, a hugely successful gambit during 2020 that consumers took to quickly. 

Black Friday, Cyber Monday and all the holiday deal days leading up to December 25th are likely to equal a massive ecommerce haul, with Adobe Analytics predicting that online sales in November and December of 2020 will reach $189 billion in 2020, a 33% increase over 2019. Brands and retailers that are prepared and able to meet consumer needs and wants will find success online this holiday season.

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