'Net Features : black friday

Weekly Deals from Payvment Simplify Social Promotions

Michael Garrity — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 19:00:00 GMT

Facebook’s most popular e-commerce platform, Payvment, announced a new “Weekly Deals” feature that gives sellers the ability to offer up to three deals a week on Facebook and Lish.com, the new social shopping site from Payvment, just in time for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Payvment recently surveyed many of its sellers and found that most of them had a strong interest in deal-like promotional strategies, and 48 percent of the respondents said that they planned to run a promotion during the holidays. Some of the early testing of the Weekly Deals functionality showed that “time-bounded offers” drive more conversions; in fact, Payvment found that participating merchants using Weekly Deals last holiday season saw twice as many product views and sales than in weeks prior.

Thanks to Payvment and Weekly Deals, smaller online merchants now have more tools to help them participate and compete in the holiday promotion season, as sellers can now use Facebook to promote their products for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and beyond. Plus, shoppers will be able to use the social network or scour Lish to find deals of 20 percent or higher.

Payvment seems so enamored with Weekly Deals that the company has actually reoriented its seller dashboard around the new functionality in order to simplify the deals management process. Merchants can use the dashboard to launch as many as three deals each week by selecting the products they want to promote, choosing the discount amount(s) and designating the quantity of products that are eligible for the deal. They can then take advantage of Payvment’s analytics tools to monitor each deal’s effectiveness.

All of the deals are automatically and seamlessly posted into the Weekly Deal feed on Lish at Lish.com/deals. The promotions also appear on the merchant’s Facebook news feed.

Sellers looking to offer Black Friday promotions (which run from November 23 – November 27) can go to my.pavyment.com to set up a store and feature their products.

Video Playing a Featured Role in Holiday Sales

Linc Wonham — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 23:00:00 GMT

Online video solutions provider Invodo has released some new data about the use of video on retail sites during the first holiday shopping spree of the season. Invodo customers such as Verizon, Office Depot, Crocs, L’Occitane and others showed a significant rise in the number of consumer views during the Thanksgiving weekend, and some of the key points of data are below:

• Overall, there was a 337-percent increase in Black Friday video views over last year

• On Cyber Monday, there was an 897-percent increase in video views over last year

• Video views on Cyber Monday in 2011 were 2.5 times the number of video views on Black Friday 2011. It is the preferred online shopping day, and video seems to be a preferred form of gathering product information for online shoppers

• On Black Friday, Facebook accounted for 50 percent of the sharing of videos among users, with email at 36 percent and Twitter at 14 percent

• On Cyber Monday, Facebook and Email were even at 43 percent each. Twitter was at 14 percent

• For both Black Friday and Cyber Monday, shoppers’ overall rating of the videos they viewed was 4.2 out of 5 stars

A common thread among consumers’ comments on the videos they viewed was that the ability to see a product demonstrated was enhanced through video, enabling comparisons to people in size, in terms of seeing how the material in apparel moves, and seeing the features demonstrated. This led to clear enthusiasm in the comments, which explains why video can be a strong driver of conversion for ecommerce retailers.

Black Friday Spending Does Not Disappoint

Linc Wonham — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:36:00 GMT

Online research firm comScore has reported that U.S. retail ecommerce spending for the first 25 days of the November – December 2011 holiday season has reached $12.7 billion so far, marking a 15-percent increase versus the corresponding days last year.

Black Friday saw $816 million in online sales, making it the heaviest online spending day to date in 2011 and representing a 26-percent increase versus Black Friday 2010. Thanksgiving Day, while traditionally a lighter day for online holiday spending, achieved a strong 18-percent increase to $479 million.

“Despite some analysts’ predictions that the flurry of brick-and-mortar retailers opening their doors early for Black Friday would pull dollars from online retail, we still saw a banner day for ecommerce with more than $800 million in spending,” says comScore chairman, Gian Fulgoni. “With brick-and-mortar retail also reporting strong gains on Black Friday, it’s clear that the heavy promotional activity had a positive impact on both channels. We now turn our attention to Cyber Monday, a day that Shop.org says will see 8-in-10 retailers running special online promotions. Last year, Cyber Monday was the heaviest day of online spending ever, with sales exceeding $1 billion, and we fully expect to see another record set this year.”

Fifty million Americans visited online retail sites on Black Friday, representing an increase of 35 percent versus year ago. Each of the top five retail sites achieved double-digit gains in visitors vs. last year, led by Amazon. Walmart ranked second, followed by Best Buy, Target and Apple.

Social Geo-location Strategies for Black Friday

Allison Howen — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 19:00:00 GMT

Big names in the retail industry are jumping on the geolocation bandwagon, especially for the busiest shopping weekend of the year.

For example, Sports Authority is offering $25 cash cards for customers that check-in with Foursquare and spend $100 or more, JC Penney will donate $25 (up to $100,000) to the Salvation Army for every Foursquare check-in, while American Eagle is unlocking a 15 percent off coupon to every customer that checks-in on Foursquare. However, these promotions don’t have to be limited to big name corporations, small businesses can jump on the geolocation bandwagon too.

Here are three tips for merchants that want to create social geolocation promotions for the busiest shopping weekend of the year:

Foursquare Specials - Foursquare provides merchants with the ability to create many different types of offers that are available for customers upon check-in – which can be very valuable during the busiest shopping weekend of the year. For instance, merchants can create a discount with purchase offer, like $10 off of a $50 purchase, or free gift with purchase specials. So if your business isn’t already on Foursquare, use this as an incentive to create a merchant page today.

Facebook Contests - It is time to think outside of the box. Organize a contest that gives away a free gift through a random drawing of the customers that check-into your store on Facebook Places over the weekend. Also, to ensure your winning customer comes back and shops more, make the free gift a $50 gift card to your store.

Reward the Early Birds - Although your store may not be opening at midnight like many other retailers on Black Friday, merchants can still reward the early birds. Promote a free gift or special discount for the first twenty customers that check-in either on Facebook or Foursquare on Friday morning.

For more holiday-related social media tips, check out these tips from Website Magazine.

Feast on These Holiday Keyword Strategies

Allison Howen — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 21:30:00 GMT

The National Retail Federation predicts that a 10-percent increase from last year will result in 152 million people shopping this Black Friday weekend. Furthermore, 21 percent of consumers are planning on staying home to surf for deals on Cyber Monday, according to the Retail Industry Leader Association.

"The growth of online sales has made Cyber Monday and other online holiday shopping trends equally as important to retailers as Black Friday,” says Retail Industry Leaders Association president Sandy Kennedy. “Unlike a decade ago, a successful holiday season now means success in the store and online."

So, as you prepare to enjoy your Thanksgiving dinner, it is vitally important to take some time and review some of the most profitable keywords of the season. When used frequently throughout the week of Black Friday, merchants can maximize their online and in-store traffic for their busiest shopping weekend of the year.

Keeping up with Keywords

Since 2004, Black Friday and Cyber Monday searches have grown dramatically, especially in the weeks and days leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday.

Currently, some of the top searches relating to the keywords “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” unsurprisingly include Black Friday ads, Black Friday 2011, Black Friday sales, Black Friday deals, Cyber Monday deals, cyber deals, Black Monday and Cyber Monday sales.

However, it is important not to limit your keywords to variations of the terms Black Friday and Cyber Monday. For instance, many retailers draw customers in over this busy shopping weekend by promoting free gifts – so why not think outside the box and incorporate other terms into your keyword strategy, such as Freebie Friday, Holiday Sale, after-Thanksgiving deals, free gift or Christmas specials.

Additionally, merchants should also mention key terms from specific products and services that they are selling and promoting during the holiday season, such as Black Friday Electronics, Cyber Monday Appliances, Thanksgiving shoe deals, Christmas toy sale, etc.

Where to use Keywords

The most obvious use for keywords are in pay-per-click advertisements, but merchants should also be using these words in their social-media posts.

Not only will the use of keywords in social-media posts reach your fans and followers, but it may also help a merchant appear higher in search results because of the influence that real time has on SEO. This week is especially critical for brands to mention Black Friday, Cyber Monday and other keywords in Twitter posts because these keywords have been and will continue to trend.

For example, Best Buy has promoted (paid for) the keywords “Black Friday” to trend. Therefore, any merchant or consumer that uses the terms Black Friday in a post will have an opportunity for more Tweeters to view that post because it is trending.

However, marketers that are focusing on using keywords for advertisements may want to consider locally targeting their ads. Therefore, it is important to know which states search the most for Black Friday and Cyber Monday-related terms. Currently, the state with the most Black Friday searches is Kentucky, followed by Ohio, Missouri, South Dakota and Minnesota. The states with the most Cyber Monday-related searches are Kentucky, South Dakota, Missouri, New Jersey and Ohio.

Staying on Trend

Being aware of how consumers are searching is a key aspect of staying on trend and keeping up with keywords. Merchants, especially this week, should be using these holiday keywords in everything from ads to social-media posts in order to maximize their exposure within search results. However, it is important to remember that everyone searches differently, so using popular keywords along with some of the less popular yet more targeted keywords should prove to be a winning combination.

Beating Big Retailers at their Own Game

Mike Phillips — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:30:00 GMT

Beginning Black Friday, November 27, brick-and-mortar retailers will see a deluge of consumers, ready and willing to buy merchandise. Beginning Cyber Monday, November 30, online retailers will enjoy a similar spike in visits and purchases. Most of those consumers will make purchases through large online retailers, like Amazon.com, Overstock.com or BestBuy.com. But, smaller online retailers and affiliates don't need to get left behind. Let's look at a page optimization tip to help turn browsers into buyers this year.

Large retailers (like the three mentioned above) have thousands of products to sell and countless pages that a user can browse to find what they want. Your site (and products) might be slightly more limited in scope. But the big retailers also share a common strategy that any Web property can employ - product and user recommendations.

Take advantage of the fact that, at this time, users are shopping. They are likely not quite sure what they want to buy yet. Help them get there. Overstock.com's home page prominently features navigation and browsing based on "Buyers' Picks," "5 Star Reviews," "Top Sellers" and "Clearance Items." BestBuy.com's page is featuring "Door Busters," "Featured Offers" and "Outlet Center," where users can find new arrivals, reduced cost items and deals of the week. Amazon.com's page (while dedicated to the Kindle) also features personalized recommendations, "Most Wished For" items, and "Bestselling" items.

It's your job to steer consumers in the right direction - and you can do it on one page. Look into your data and optimize your landing page based on your products. Instead of a giant "featured item," consider breaking your page into easy-to-view sections like "best sellers," "highest rated," "clearance," or "online bargains." Find out what your consumers are recommending to each other - both on your site and industry-wide - and get those items front and center. You might be featuring fewer items per category, and some consumers might see fewer items overall. But, you are also increasing the chance that particular items are purchased - and that's the bottom line. By giving browsers a look into immediate benefits (popular and highly-rated items, best bargains, etc.) and providing a way to shop with minimal effort you can accomplish the most important task to online retail success - shortening the distance to a sale. A strategy like this reduces clicks - therefore reducing the chance the consumer gets lost on your site or becomes distracted. This becomes particularly important when designing your PPC creative for searching shoppers. Give the shopper a reason to click, then an immediate reason to purchase without any further searching or dawdling.

For example, let's say the following is a PPC ad (click the link):
"Give the best keyboard for your busy Web professional this holiday!"

What do you notice after clicking? Limited but good choices, with clear explanations and benefits - making a quick decision easy. The consumer is immediately presented with clear choices, and not too many of them that could potentially become distracting or overwhelming. What that means to you is a better chance at an immediate sale.

Stay up to date on the latest Internet trends:
Request a professional subscription to Website Magazine,
the most popular print publication on Web success.

Cyber Monday Killed Black Friday

Pete Prestipino — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:44:00 GMT

Comscore is reporting that while e-commerce spending for the first 30 days of November saw a 2 percent decline versus the corresponding days last year, CyberMonday saw $846 million in online spending, up a whopping 15 percent. The mcomScore holiday retail survey, conducted from November 28 - December 1, revealed several interesting insights into consumers' views of the 2008 holiday shopping season, including:

-- More than half (51 percent) of consumers indicated that the level of promotions and discounts is higher this year than last year, while only 12 percent said that there appeared to be fewer, suggesting that retailers are having to be more aggressive in discounting to spur consumer spending.

"Mark Twain might have said: 'Rumors of the death of online holiday shopping have been greatly exaggerated,'" said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. "Consumers are clearly responding positively to retailers' aggressive online discounts. With Cyber Monday promotions beginning in earnest over the Thanksgiving weekend, consumers have finally begun to open their wallets, setting off a streak of four consecutive days of extremely strong growth, and culminating in a Cyber Monday that racked up an impressive $846 million in online spending, up 15 percent over last year and ranking it as the second heaviest online spending day on record. This is an extremely encouraging development for retailers and we can but hope that their aggressive discounting has still left room for profits."

Interactive E-Commerce on Social Networks

Pete Prestipino — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 22:00:00 GMT

Results from a survey conducted by Harris Interactive and commissioned by e-commerce solution provider Volusion found that consumers are looking to social networks for advice and recommendations on online purchases. How timely considering that Black Friday is just days away!

Among online shoppers, key findings include:

27% said viewing comments on various items for sale would encourage them to shop on social networks
30% said special sales and exclusive products would encourage them to shop on social networks
48% said easy-to-use features as a very important feature for initially attracting them to an online shopping website
92% said brand is at least somewhat important to initially attracting them to an online shopping web site
32% would shop online more if sites were easier to use
24% would shop online more if checkout procedures were easier
50% of correspondents said special online offers would encourage them to shop online more frequently

“Since the birth of e-commerce ten years ago, consumers have come to expect an advanced level of online shopping experience,” said Kevin Sproles, CEO and founder of Volusion. “Beyond easy navigation and check out, consumers want online shopping to be integrated with the way they communicate with their peers, making their preferences and interests known on social networks (such as MySpace and Facebook) and enabling retailers to develop a more intimate relationship with them.”

You may remember that earlier this year Volusion announced its Social Store Builder, allowing online store owners to directly tap the power of social networks. The Volusion solution allows featured products from a merchant stores to be rotated on a social networking page.