Rakuten Marketing Reports 36 Percent Online Retail Revenue Growth on Cyber Monday; Cyber Week Expands to Include 'Thanksgiving Eve' in 2016

SAN MATEO, Calif., Nov. 29, 2016

According to Rakuten Marketing data, Cyber Monday was the highest online revenue-earning day for retailers during Cyber Week, outperforming Black Friday by 45 percent. Mobile accounted for 41 percent of retail site traffic, with peak mobile activity on Thanksgiving Day. Cyber Week is also expanding, according to Rakuten Marketing data, which shows substantial year-over-year revenue growth of 37 percent on 'Thanksgiving Eve.'

The results from Cyber Week show the complexity of the consumer journey and need for cross-device measurement and attribution as shoppers increasingly mix offline with online across mobile and desktop devices. Gaining insight into evolving consumer behavior allows advertisers to better anticipate and address changes, such as the delayed peak in Black Friday online sales from 12:00 a.m. in 2015 to 2:00 p.m. in 2016.

Other Rakuten Marketing retail data highlights include:

• Mobile sales accounted for 14 percent of retail purchases during Cyber Week, and consumers spent 31 percent more per mobile purchase than in 2015.
• Cyber Monday average order values were slightly higher than in 2015, and 11 percent higher than a typical week in 2016.
• Click-through rates peaked between 12-2 a.m. ET on Thanksgiving Day, as big-box retailers and department stores released Thanksgiving Day sales.

"Consumers are starting their holiday shopping earlier every year, creating a larger window for retailers to connect shoppers with the products and deals they want," said Tony Zito, CEO, Rakuten Marketing. "With the expansion of Cyber Week and the increase in mobile shopping, we're seeing that consumers are exploring their options and are ready to act on a deal as soon as it's available. We expect we'll continue to see a direct impact from this increasing trend of deal-readiness in 2017."

All Cyber Week insights were pulled from same-store clients running display campaigns spanning 33 verticals.

To see Rakuten Marketing's Black Friday Insights, visit: RakutenMarketing.com.