by Doug Desjardins
After a disappointing holiday season in 2008, online and traditional retailers are expected to flood the Internet with bargains and links to social media sites on Cyber Monday to put online sales back on track.
According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), 83.7 percent of retailers offered specific Cyber Monday promotions in 2008 and 50 percent said it was the busiest sales day of the year. This year, 55 percent of consumers plan to shop online Cyber Monday compared to 49% in 2008 and 26 percent plan to buy more gifts online compared to 21 percent in 2008, according to research firm The E-Tailing Group. Add to that an NRF survey that showed 88 percent of online retailers increased promotions and value messaging on Cyber Monday in 2008 - a percentage that's likely to increase this year - and you have what's shaping up to be a breakout Cyber Monday that could eclipse the record $841 million in sales generated online last year. 
One thing that's sure to be more prominent is free shipping, something that toy industry analyst Chris Byrne said consumers now expect as "almost a given" in the e-tail world even though it often cuts into margins. Department store chains like Macy's and Nordstrom's offered free shipping on orders of $99 or more last year and that price could come down as competition heats up. According to the NRF, 80 percent of retailers will offer free shipping during the holidays and 57.4 percent will offer it without a minimum purchase requirement.
Macy's in particular is expected to offer more promotions on Cyber Monday after seeing its online sales increase 15% in September despite a 2.8% drop in revenue. And most stores are expected to offer in-store pick-ups for online orders to provide quicker access to purchases with no shipping costs, a tactic Nordstrom's used last year with great success.
Another growing trend on Cyber Monday will be linking ads to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. An NRF report said that 47.1 percent of online retailers will increase their use of social media this year and that more than half have added or enhanced their Facebook and Twitter pages.
As usual, electronics figure to be a focal point of Cyber Monday discounts. A leaked Black Friday circular from Office Max promoting a 5-hour special from 7 a.m. to noon includes an Acer Aspire with a 10-inch screen and 160GB hard drive for $149, a Memorex 7-inch portable DVD player for $30 and a Toshiba laptop with Windows 7 installed for $400 (laptops with Windows 7 pre-installed are expected to be a common site on Cyber Monday). Blu-Ray DVD players could also be a popular sales item, since they are lightweight and could make free shipping feasible.
The coupons and promotions should be enough to put online sales back on track again after falling 5 percent in 2008 to $132 billion, marking the first drop in annual online sales since tracking began in 2000, according to research firm K2commerce.
Resources
The Web as a Cross Channel Hub: Buy Online and Pick Up in Stores
E-Commerce Sales History 2000-2008
Online Retailers to Emphasize Free Shipping, Social Media this Holiday
COUPON TIME
We've got the scoop on tons of Cyber Monday promotions, and even a Twitter page to keep you up on the very latest deals.
