Black Friday Online Spending Jumped 24 Pct From 2017

Black Friday sales soared this weekend, with more Americans choosing to skip the crowds and do the majority of their holiday shopping online. Reuters reported that online sales rose more than 23 percent, hitting over $6 billion on Black Friday, according to data from Adobe Analytics. On Thanksgiving, sales grew an estimated 28 percent to reach $3.7 billion.

The news was less positive for brick-and-mortar stores, with preliminary data from analytics firm RetailNext showing that traffic and sales fell for the fourth consecutive year. Brick-and-mortar sales declined 4 percent to 7 percent over the two days, while traffic fell 5 percent to 9 percent.

Not only did eCommerce get a boost, but data showed that consumers are getting more comfortable making purchases — even large ones — on their mobile devices, with Thanksgiving becoming the first day this year to see $1 billion in sales on smartphones. In fact, reports noted that 33.5 percent of all online sales are now coming from smartphones. With another 10 percent of sales being made on tablets, mobile is coming close to accounting for nearly half of all transactions.

“Retailers understand that shopping and buying on smartphones is now the norm for consumers and, as a result, are delivering better experiences and optimization on mobile devices,” said Taylor Schreiner, director of Adobe Digital Insights, according to CNBC.

The data showed that, as in previous years, iPhone users are spending more than Android users, with iPhone customers 12 percent more likely to purchase after reaching a website. They also bought 14 percent more than Android users.

While Amazon remains dominant online, its competitors all saw significant gains over Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Online sales were up 48 percent at Target, 34 percent at Macy’s and 23 percent at Walmart.

There is more to come: Cyber Monday is expected to be the largest online shopping day in U.S. history, with an estimated $7.8 billion in sales.