'Cyber Monday' online shopping spree expected to break records
UK shoppers cash in on web bargains
28 November, 2011 by IT Reviews Staff
The UK saw a surge in online shopping last week, following in the tradition of the US 'Black Friday' shopping spree, a Thanksgiving tradition that has now extended to this side of the Atlantic. Today, 'Cyber Monday' - also known as 'Mega Monday' - is expected to become the busiest online shopping day ever.
The week from today until 5th December will witness some of the biggest price-cutting ever seen on the web. Retailers will be trying to increase their market share by luring customers with discounts to mark the run-up to Christmas festivities.
The US witnessed one of the most successful Black Fridays ever this year, leading Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG), the trade body for online retailers in the UK, to estimate that this week British shoppers will spend more than £3.5 billion - a year-on-year increase of 14 per cent, reports the Telegraph.
According to high-street retailer Argos, on Cyber Monday last year, a total of 1.7 million visits were registered at its website, and around 20,000 orders were placed in a single day.
This time, the big sellers are expected to be video games, gadgets such as iPads, iPhones and digital cameras. Experts believe retailers will be under tremendous pressure to stay competitive on pricing, with everyone trying to get a share of the 'Cyber Monday' pie.
Skuuudle, which tracks online pricing strategies, believes that "Retailers will struggle to keep in touch with their competitors, with thousands of prices on products likely to fluctuate on 'Cyber Monday' - and perhaps even more so in the weeks to come. This period is make-or-break for many companies."
