Continue reading What retailers can benefit from Cyber Monday?

What retailers can benefit from Cyber Monday? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Buy.com has best sales ever on Cyber Monday originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you thought Black Friday was just for brick-and-mortar retail, think again. The official start of the online shopping rush is the Monday after the Thanksgiving holiday (Cyber Monday is its name), but don't think that companies like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) are going to wait that long. They're in the game now. And they want your attention. More importantly, they want you to use the virtual shopping carts at their respective sites early and often. It's really crucial this year, because the economy stinks, and growth in spending isn't going to be great.

According to CNBC, Amazon's strategy is to use very low prices as a way of stopping competitors like eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) dead in their electronic tracks. This Christmas season, retailers, whether online or not, may find themselves in a no-win situation. They have to lower prices to encourage people to shop. But quality growth in top-line sales is questionable. When managements see the bad news flow about the global recession, they become scared and want to become even more aggressive in terms of pricing. The strategy may work and it may not. It's a vicious circle. Don't get me wrong, the retail industry faces this problem every year at this time, but you have to agree that the current economic cycle is particularly noxious. It's times like these, however, when retailers should want to offer more than just a value proposition. They should want to offer a differentiated shopping experience, a better selection of items. They should strive to offer up a brand image that makes you want to hit their inventories first. They need to step away from trying to undercut all their competitors and instead figure out how to stock the right merchandise in the right amounts. And when it comes to a business like Amazon, I think there's great opportunity to go beyond low-pricing strategies. Quite frankly, I don't care whether Amazon has the lowest prices or not. I find it easier to do some of my holiday shopping on the site. It saves me time during this busy season, I trust the security of the platform, and I know that the supply chain is efficient and reliable. And I definitely think of Amazon first when looking to do online shopping because of its valuable brand equity.

Continue reading Will Amazon win with its pricing strategy?

Will Amazon win with its pricing strategy? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 Nov 2008 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On so-called "Cyber Monday," another record was broached, as U.S. online shoppers clicked-up $733 million in sales. Some of the top performers included Wal-Mart (NASDAQ: WMT), Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), Target (NYSE: TGT), and Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN).

These are the big players. But I'm sure there could have been even more sales, had smaller online venues been able to keep up in terms of technology and customer service. In other words, e-commerce sites can still be complex -- enough to foil would-be buyers, and resulting in abandoned virtual shopping carts.

How can you improve your online store?

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: Cranking out more cash from e-commerce

Entrepreneur's Journal: Cranking out more cash from e-commerce originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Dec 2007 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Hitwise recorded a 26% increase to the Hitwise 100 Retail Index this year (the top 100 retail websites) compared to November 27, 2006 levels. The largest growth areas this year on Cyber Monday were the electronics and video games categories.

Continue reading Cyber Monday traffic up 26% over 2006

Cyber Monday traffic up 26% over 2006 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 29 Nov 2007 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is recently up $1.67 to $34.19.

American Technology Research says: "We recommend that investors consider EBAY as a defensive play-the shares as attractively valued according to just about every traditional metric, EBAY offers insulation from a U.S. consumer spending slow-down via its substantial international exposure."

EBAY December option implied volatility is at 33, January is at 38 and April is at 40. EBAY average option implied volatility over the last 26-weeks is 37 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing near term risk.

Daily Options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Option update 11-28-08: eBay volatility lower, suggesting less risk originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Did possible record sales come after heavy price chopping, or was the Cyber Monday sales push more customer-driven? Heavy discounting already is being looked at as the cause, and although legit, it could cause a large dip in profits to those retailers overexercising the strategy.

Continue reading Holiday internet sales may hit record

Holiday internet sales may hit record originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Nov 2007 11:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Retail discounts to erode profits this week? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 Nov 2007 14:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Yahoo! suffered glitches on Cyber Monday originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 Nov 2007 11:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Holiday sales start strong, early figures say originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Nov 2007 14:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cyber Monday -- today's marketing gimmick to get people to buy holiday gifts online in the wake of last week's Black Friday -- is expected to generate $4.8 billion worth of e-commerce. According to the New York Times, Doug Hart, a BDO Seidman analyst expects today's Cyber Monday sales to account for 12% of the $39 billion in online revenue this holiday season -- almost as much as the 15% share of holiday sales recorded by bricks and mortar retailers this Black Friday.

Cyber Monday often features online discounts. For example, in 2006 Ice.com, an online jeweler, offered a 20% discount on 15 items on Cyber Monday. RalphLauren.com, a unit of Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) recently had a pre-Thanksgiving 40% off sale which ended November 19th. I received a $200 gift card for my birthday and when I tried to use it after learning from the gift giver of the sale that morning, RalphLauren.com could not verify its value. When I called its customer service line, RalphLauren.com told me that the gift card was worthless.

I notified the gift giver who called RalphLauren.com whose customer service person, Marlon, called me and told me he would take care of the problem that day and get back to me so I could use the card to take advantage of the 40% off sale. Marlon did not call me back, so late that afternoon I called in to customer service -- mentioning Marlon's name (she did not know who Marlon was) -- and was told that I should ask the gift giver to return to wherever he got the card and try again.

Continue reading $4.8 billion Cyber Monday and how RalphLauren.com cost me a birthday present

$4.8 billion Cyber Monday and how RalphLauren.com cost me a birthday present originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Nov 2007 12:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cyber Monday: Online holiday sales kick off originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Nov 2007 11:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This study suggests that people spend based on how much they think they have -- what I would call their "cognitive wealth reserves." In one experiment, 55 shoppers at a supermarket in Cambridge, MA were asked a series of nosy questions about their wallets: Did they have any library cards? Did they carry pictures or cash? How many other wallets did they own?

An equal number were asked similar questions about their financial portfolios instead.

Continue reading Thinking about your wealth makes you spend 36% more

Thinking about your wealth makes you spend 36% more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Nov 2007 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Online shopping deals on the rise originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Nov 2007 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cyber Monday was kind to online retailers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 29 Nov 2006 14:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

People couldn't grab flat-panel TVs or computers fast enough over the weekend, giving retailers a promising view for this holiday season. But not all stores found success. In fact Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT), even though it discounted aggressively throughout November, reported its weakest monthly sales in more than 10 years, according to today's Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

The Journal also reported that ShopperTrak RCT Corp estimated Black Friday sales increased 6% over last year. ShopperTrak gathers its data from 45,000 electronic counting devices in malls and strip shopping centers.

Shopping started even earlier this year as some stores began Black Friday earlier on Friday morning or even on Thursday. Also good news for retailers is that the average purchase was up nearly 9% over last year. The Journal got that estimate from an analyst for VISA who tracks purchases made on credit cards. But Black Friday is not about buying for Christmas anymore. It's more about finding the best buys for personnel use. Especially popular are big-ticket items offered at deep discounts.

The National Retail Federation said 140 million people went shopping on Friday and spent an average of $360.15 - up nearly 19% from last year's $302.81. About 50% of these shoppers went to discounters. Online retails also saw a big jump on Black Friday. Sales were up 41% from $305 million last year to $434 million this year, according to a Web-tracking firm comScore Networks.

Cyber Monday should be even more promising for online retailers. ComScore predicts a 24% jump from $484 million last year to $599 million today. Are you planning to go out there and start clicking?

Flat-panel TVs and Computers top Black Friday sellers, what will Cyber Monday foretell? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Nov 2006 09:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Had enough of the malls already? Today is the recently anointed retail landmark known as Cyber Monday. It is the first Monday after Thanksgiving and the day that shoppers, in theory already weary of the extreme shopping experience offered on Black Friday, are ready to shop from the comfort of their office chairs.

The day got its name from trade group Shop.Org just last year and doesn't represent the biggest online shopping day -- just one of the biggest, according to an article in the The New York Times (registration required). The headline predicts, "E-Looking But Little E-Buying," and the article pokes fun at the alleged phenomenon, quoting a retail analyst saying the day is "more hype than reality."

Perhaps this year that record will change as more stores offer special online deals. Barnes & Noble, The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD), and Petco.com are mentioned in The Times as having special offers today. GottaDeal.com has a special CyberMonday forum listing online offers from Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS), Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) and Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY).

Continue reading Goodbye Black Friday, hello Cyber Monday

Goodbye Black Friday, hello Cyber Monday originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Nov 2006 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.