The holiday season is often associated with silver and gold, but marketers are seeing green this season, partially thanks to Green Monday sales. The latest comScore report reveals that Americans spent $954 million online on Monday, December 13, and the firm anticipates there will be even more shopping on the web this season.
ComScore defines Green Monday as a Monday in December that falls at least 10 days before Christmas, and this year's sales did not disappoint. The day marked the second-heaviest online shopping day on record, closely following Cyber Monday's record-breaking $1.028-billion-dollar online spend.
Green Monday sales for 2010 represent a 12 percent increase over 2009, indicating this is an all-around top year for online shopping. To date, comScore says holiday shoppers have spent more than $23 billion online – a 12 percent increase over the corresponding period last year – and the best may be yet to come.
"Green Monday kicks off what we expect will be the heaviest online shopping week of the season right up through 'Free Shipping Day' on Friday, December 17," said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni.
Indeed, a survey conducted by the research firm reveals that two-thirds of consumers are not done with their holiday shopping. While 32 percent of these last-minute shoppers say they simply haven't had time to make purchases, 11 percent indicate they are anticipating better deals toward the end of the season.
With this in mind, marketers may want to offer coupons and promotions to consumers to catch end-of-the-season cash. Marketers should consider sending deals via mobile devices to last-minute shoppers. As Brafton reported, mobile shopping saw gains on Cyber Monday, and other reports indicate that mobile commerce is on the rise.
