Winter Holidays

Portland, Ore. -- Research conducted by InComm found that 67% of consumers surveyed have previously bought a gift card from an online website or mobile website/app, while 33% have not.

Respondents answered questions about their purchasing habits and their intentions for purchasing gift cards from websites and mobile devices – as well as digital cards specifically – this holiday season and beyond.

Highlights of the survey include:

New York  -- MasterCard Spending Pulse reported that U.S. electronics retailers hit the jackpot with their early Thanksgiving openings, recording triple- digit growth on Thanksgiving Day this year compared to 2012.

According to the November report, which tracks retail sales across all forms of payment (including credit cards, cash and check), sales for the Electronics category shot up on Thanksgiving; however, sales in that sector declined slightly on Black Friday.

Given the overwhelming emphasis on e-commerce, mobile apps and digital initiatives this holiday season, Target offered a trip down memory lane on its website, where it showcased some interesting marketing efforts.

MasterCard Spending Pulse reported that U.S. electronics retailers hit the jackpot with their early Thanksgiving openings, recording triple-digit growth on Thanksgiving Day this year compared to 2012.

According to the November report, which tracks retail sales across all forms of payment, including credit cards, cash and check, sales for the electronics category shot up on Thanksgiving; however, sales in that sector declined slightly on Black Friday.

Given the origins of Cyber Monday, it should have become irrelevant in the grand scheme of online holiday sales. That’s far from the case though as evidenced by the latest insights from digital measurement firm comScore.

The leading digital measurement firm released data late Tuesday showing Cyber Monday sales increased 18% to more than $1.7 billion to establish a new record for the heaviest online shopping day in history. It was also the second day this season in which online sales surpassed $1 billion which was the case on Black Friday.

New York -- eMarketer projects that retail e-commerce holiday sales in the U.S. will rise about 15% again this year, matching last year's gains. In total, U.S. retail e-commerce sales for the holiday season — defined as November and December — are expected to reach $61.8 billion, up from $53.7 billion last year, according to the report.
 
As well, eMarketer estimates US retail e-commerce sales will grow 16.4% to $262.3 billion this year, with 23.5% ($61.8 billion) of this taking place in November and December.

Black Friday came early for Rakuten.com Shopping. The online marketplace saw a huge jump in visits to the site, consumer sales and conversion on and leading up to the biggest shopping day of the year.

Rakuten.com Shopping reported a rise in consumer sales and traffic beginning the Monday before the big sale days, with a spike on Thanksgiving Day and a crescendo at 10 a.m. PST on Black Friday.

Unprecedented shopper traffic was seen at Target on Black Friday, according to president, CEO and chairman, Gregg Steinhafel, who also said the retailer provided exceptional service without offering much insight into sales.