Cyber Monday 2015 Deals Entice Shoppers to Buy Online
Cyber Monday is now more than just a day. Here's what to expect.
— -- Cyber Monday is no longer relegated to one day -- for many retailers, the online shopping holiday stretches through the entire week.
More than 121 million shoppers -- that's about half of the people who are expected to buy this holiday season -- plan to shop online on Cyber Monday this year, according to a survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics on behalf of the National Retail Federation, a trade group representing retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries.
That number is down from the 126.9 million who said last year they planned to take advantage of Cyber Monday deals.
Some retailers rolled out their Cyber Monday deals over the weekend. Amazon was one of the first retailers to kick off the shopping season with its Black Friday deals store, which opened in early November. The trick is that while Amazon has teased a variety of deals, it's up to shoppers to stick around to find out when they will appear. Amazon's Cyber Monday deals began on Saturday.
Walmart kicked off the Cyber Monday excitement Sunday night with thousands of deals.
"It can be exhausting for working parents and millennials to stay up past midnight to shop online, only to wake up early the next day to get ready for work," Fernando Madeira, president and CEO of Walmart.com, said in a statement. "By starting 'Cyber Monday' hours earlier on Sunday evening and quadrupling the number of Cyber Monday specials, we're making it easier for customers to get ahead of the busiest online shopping day of the year and save on the best gifts."
Many retailers are also stretching the savings into something they're calling Cyber Week, offering deals lasting all week. Retailers are also more conscious of how people are shopping online this year.
With 29.6 million shoppers planning to use their smartphones to buy this Cyber Monday, the National Retail Federation reported many stores have made sure they've optimized their mobile websites to ensure those customers have a seamless shopping experience.