Holiday E-Commerce: Black Friday Now As Important As Cyber Monday, Thanks To Mobile [Study]

Black Friday has begun looking more like “Cyber” Friday for many online retailers, according to new analysis from Criteo.

As mobile research and purchasing increased, retailers saw online sales on Black Friday nearly equal those of Cyber Monday last year.

“The path to purchase for today’s consumer has evolved and, as a result, people are doing a tremendous amount of online shopping across all devices on Black Friday,” said James Smith, EVP, Americas at Criteo. “Sales on mobile especially have hit record numbers, according to 2014 data.”

Mobile Sales Volume Higher On Black Friday Than On Cyber Monday

In fact, sales volumes from smartphones and tablets were 18 percent higher on Black Friday than on Cyber Monday among mass merchants in 2014. On Black Friday, 32 percent of ecommerce sales were made on a mobile device, compared to 24 percent on Cyber Monday.

Overall, online sales from mass retailers on Black Friday 2014 were 275 percent higher than non-holiday periods, nearly in line with Cyber Monday sales.

“Bounceback Tuesday”

The Tuesday after Cyber Monday is also becoming an important day for online retailers, according to the Criteo insights.

Criteo has dubbed this day “Bounceback Tuesday” for the lasting sales impact the day had on online transactions last year. Sales across all major retail categories were 159 percent higher than the average day on Bounceback Tuesday in 2014. Sporting Goods actually saw higher online sales that Tuesday than on Black Friday.

Criteo analyzed data from nearly 200 retailers and more than 63 million online transactions made during the 2014 holiday season.