1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,160 Speaker 1: Get in touch with technology with tech Stuff from how 2 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:14,360 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. 3 00:00:14,400 --> 00:00:17,800 Speaker 1: I'm your host, Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer and 4 00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:21,439 Speaker 1: I love all things tech, and today I thought i'd 5 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: change things up a bit and talk about the history 6 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 1: and evolution of cyber Monday. So where did this come from? 7 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:32,960 Speaker 1: And are the deals on cyber Monday really great? And 8 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: I guess the answer to that second question is essentially, uh, 9 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: it depends. But first let's talk about some history. So 10 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: before there was cyber Monday, there was Black Friday, both 11 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:47,000 Speaker 1: in the sense that Black Friday as a thing is 12 00:00:47,080 --> 00:00:50,640 Speaker 1: older than cyber Monday, and also cyber Monday is the 13 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:54,280 Speaker 1: Monday that follows Black Friday, so technically it's true in 14 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:57,400 Speaker 1: two different senses. All right, So what is Black Friday? 15 00:00:57,640 --> 00:01:00,720 Speaker 1: One of the United States, Black Friday is the friday 16 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:04,240 Speaker 1: following Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving in the United States falls on the 17 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:08,240 Speaker 1: fourth Thursday of November, at least it has ever since 18 00:01:08,319 --> 00:01:12,479 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty nine, when Franklin Delano Roosevelt moved the holiday 19 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: up a week from the final Thursday of November. Now, 20 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 1: since November two thousand eighteen, started on a Thursday. November 21 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:23,399 Speaker 1: one was a Thursday. That means that two thousand eighteen 22 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:26,959 Speaker 1: will see Thanksgiving fall as early as it can, which 23 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:30,960 Speaker 1: means November. The latest it can fall in the month 24 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:36,080 Speaker 1: is November. Anyway, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving 25 00:01:36,120 --> 00:01:40,840 Speaker 1: in the United States. Now, there is an apocryphal story 26 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:44,959 Speaker 1: that says the origins of Black Friday are deeply racist 27 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:48,800 Speaker 1: and tied to the United States history with slavery. According 28 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:52,320 Speaker 1: to that story, slave traders would sell slaves at a 29 00:01:52,400 --> 00:01:56,680 Speaker 1: discount on the day after Thanksgiving to help plantation owners 30 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: who are going to want to purchase more slaves to 31 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:03,800 Speaker 1: do work leading up to the winter. That's a horrible, 32 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:09,160 Speaker 1: horrible thing. But the story isn't true at all. And honestly, 33 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:12,080 Speaker 1: I find it hard to believe that slave traders would 34 00:02:12,080 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: respond to an increase in demand by lowering their prices. 35 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:19,840 Speaker 1: They already seem like terrible, terrible human beings. I don't 36 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:23,840 Speaker 1: think of them as being particularly altruistic. However, we can 37 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,320 Speaker 1: put that whole explanation aside. Anyway, If anyone tells you 38 00:02:27,360 --> 00:02:31,080 Speaker 1: Black Friday is based in slavery, that is not true. 39 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:33,960 Speaker 1: The term Black Friday in relation to the day after 40 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:38,640 Speaker 1: Thanksgiving did not appear in print until the nineteen fifties. 41 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:42,320 Speaker 1: As far as we can determine. There was, however, an 42 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:45,919 Speaker 1: earlier version of Black Friday, though that was not the 43 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:49,880 Speaker 1: day after Thanksgiving. That Black Friday wasn't associated with a 44 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:52,960 Speaker 1: holiday at all, but rather with a stock market crash 45 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:57,720 Speaker 1: that happened on Friday, September twenty four, eighteen sixty nine. 46 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:00,760 Speaker 1: The cause of that crash was that there were two 47 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 1: speculators named Jay Gould and James Fisk, and together they 48 00:03:06,680 --> 00:03:10,360 Speaker 1: were able to drive up gold prices way way up 49 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:13,240 Speaker 1: while they were trying to corner the market on gold 50 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:17,119 Speaker 1: on the New York Gold Exchange. They had even planted 51 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:21,679 Speaker 1: a story to convince US President Ulysses S. Grant to 52 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:25,880 Speaker 1: stop gold sales. They had this report that it was 53 00:03:25,919 --> 00:03:30,120 Speaker 1: going to hurt farmers out west. Meanwhile, they bought up 54 00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:33,440 Speaker 1: as much gold as they could, and that raised gold 55 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 1: prices as a result. So they thought they were gonna 56 00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: be rich. They're gonna buy up the gold and then 57 00:03:37,600 --> 00:03:41,320 Speaker 1: they could sell it off at these elevated prices. However, 58 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:44,080 Speaker 1: President Grant found out about it, and he ordered the 59 00:03:44,120 --> 00:03:47,400 Speaker 1: release of millions of dollars of gold to be made 60 00:03:47,440 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: available on the market, and that caused prices to crash. 61 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:55,560 Speaker 1: Suddenly there was way more supply, and this crash ended 62 00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:59,240 Speaker 1: up affecting the stock market as well. However, this was 63 00:03:59,280 --> 00:04:02,960 Speaker 1: a moment of acute pain. It was a sharp depth 64 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: in the stock market, thus the name Black Friday, but 65 00:04:07,280 --> 00:04:09,840 Speaker 1: in the long termment that the nation was actually able 66 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:13,720 Speaker 1: to avoid a more persistent depression, so it ended up 67 00:04:13,720 --> 00:04:17,080 Speaker 1: turning out better than it otherwise would have. The earliest 68 00:04:17,120 --> 00:04:20,320 Speaker 1: known reference to the day after thanks Giving being Black 69 00:04:20,360 --> 00:04:25,160 Speaker 1: Friday dates to nineteen fifty one from a periodical titled 70 00:04:25,560 --> 00:04:30,600 Speaker 1: Factory Management and Maintenance. But it was a real page turner. 71 00:04:31,240 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: But in that article, the author was describing this tendency 72 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:39,360 Speaker 1: for workers to call in sick the day after Thanksgiving, 73 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:41,960 Speaker 1: and really they were just trying to make a long 74 00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:45,360 Speaker 1: weekend out of the holiday because at that time it 75 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:49,080 Speaker 1: was not commonplace for most businesses to close down on 76 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:53,920 Speaker 1: both Thursday, the day of Thanksgiving, and Friday. So this 77 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:58,600 Speaker 1: piece was sort of sardonically comparing the malaise being felt 78 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:01,880 Speaker 1: by workers across the nation and to the bubonic plague 79 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:05,880 Speaker 1: also known as the Black Death. Everyone would just mysteriously 80 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:09,719 Speaker 1: be sick that Friday and not show up to work. 81 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:13,240 Speaker 1: It would take another decade before we would see the 82 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:18,360 Speaker 1: name Black Friday associated with shopping for the day after Thanksgiving. 83 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:22,799 Speaker 1: This would come out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The local police 84 00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:26,560 Speaker 1: force there would refer to that Friday and that Saturday 85 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:30,440 Speaker 1: following Thanksgiving US both Black Friday and Black Saturday. This 86 00:05:30,520 --> 00:05:33,960 Speaker 1: was because those two days had become the busiest shopping 87 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,880 Speaker 1: days of the year. Thanksgiving leads into the holiday season, 88 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:41,920 Speaker 1: and in post World War two America, the holiday season 89 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:46,280 Speaker 1: was beginning to be associated and has been since with 90 00:05:46,480 --> 00:05:50,520 Speaker 1: lots of material gifts. Consumerism was on the rise. A 91 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:54,000 Speaker 1: lot of people had a lot more discretionary income and 92 00:05:54,080 --> 00:05:56,960 Speaker 1: a desire to spend it. So the police referred to 93 00:05:57,040 --> 00:06:01,000 Speaker 1: Friday and Saturday as Black Friday and blacks Saturday because 94 00:06:01,360 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 1: of the headaches that came along with all that busy shopping, 95 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:09,080 Speaker 1: mostly in the form of stuff like traffic problems and shoplifting. 96 00:06:09,400 --> 00:06:13,000 Speaker 1: Plus the fact that this rise in activity meant it 97 00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:16,159 Speaker 1: was virtually impossible to get the day off if you 98 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:19,000 Speaker 1: were a Philadelphia cop, and you would probably have to 99 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:22,760 Speaker 1: put in an extra long shift to boot. So they 100 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:26,120 Speaker 1: didn't really like it now. In the nineteen eighties, a 101 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:30,000 Speaker 1: new version of the history of Black Friday popped up, 102 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:34,279 Speaker 1: and this version claimed that the name Black Friday stemmed 103 00:06:34,320 --> 00:06:37,359 Speaker 1: from the fact that it was on that day that 104 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:41,680 Speaker 1: many merchants would finally see their annual figures show a profit. 105 00:06:42,120 --> 00:06:45,920 Speaker 1: The idea was that the enormous amount of business on 106 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:49,520 Speaker 1: that Friday would take businesses from operating at a loss 107 00:06:49,920 --> 00:06:53,279 Speaker 1: or operating in the red in other words, and push 108 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:57,479 Speaker 1: them towards profitability or operating in the black. Thus, black 109 00:06:57,520 --> 00:07:00,960 Speaker 1: Friday now that refers to the practice of noting losses 110 00:07:01,120 --> 00:07:04,839 Speaker 1: or negative numbers in a ledger using red ink and 111 00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: positive numbers using black ink. And while that's a cute story, 112 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:13,760 Speaker 1: it's not, you know, real. In fact, a lot of 113 00:07:13,800 --> 00:07:17,840 Speaker 1: stores see more sales on the Saturday before Christmas because 114 00:07:17,960 --> 00:07:24,560 Speaker 1: lots of Americans are procrastinators. But this fictional history of 115 00:07:24,640 --> 00:07:28,240 Speaker 1: the origin of Black Friday took hold in the American psyche, 116 00:07:28,520 --> 00:07:31,760 Speaker 1: and to go along with it, stores began holding big 117 00:07:31,840 --> 00:07:35,760 Speaker 1: sales to bring more and more shoppers into their stores. 118 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:39,440 Speaker 1: And this strategy worked, and every year we would see 119 00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:42,800 Speaker 1: more efforts to make it even bigger, with stuff like 120 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:47,600 Speaker 1: door buster offers, so called because those sales offer seemingly 121 00:07:47,720 --> 00:07:52,600 Speaker 1: huge discounts right at opening hours and are typically those 122 00:07:53,040 --> 00:07:57,280 Speaker 1: those figures, those those amounts, those discounts are only available 123 00:07:57,400 --> 00:08:00,400 Speaker 1: for a very short time, or the inventor or for 124 00:08:00,480 --> 00:08:03,120 Speaker 1: those products is so small that the store will no 125 00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:06,640 Speaker 1: doubt sell out within minutes of opening, or both in 126 00:08:06,680 --> 00:08:10,720 Speaker 1: many cases. So often these sales are tied to an 127 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:14,360 Speaker 1: effort to move older merchandise out of stores to make 128 00:08:14,400 --> 00:08:18,080 Speaker 1: way for newer products. So stuff like electronics, particularly big 129 00:08:18,120 --> 00:08:22,160 Speaker 1: ticket items like televisions or small appliances, tend to take 130 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:25,200 Speaker 1: up some space, and manufacturers want to come out with 131 00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:29,560 Speaker 1: new models every year, and according to uh Adam Burakowski 132 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:34,400 Speaker 1: of Wirecutter, large appliances are kind of a an exception. 133 00:08:34,520 --> 00:08:38,240 Speaker 1: You rarely see big, significant markdowns on large appliances, but 134 00:08:38,320 --> 00:08:41,640 Speaker 1: small appliances and televisions, which can get pretty darn big 135 00:08:41,679 --> 00:08:44,600 Speaker 1: these days, they can get marked off quite a bit, 136 00:08:45,040 --> 00:08:47,480 Speaker 1: and mostly in order to make room for new models. 137 00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:50,240 Speaker 1: Black Friday opened up a chance for stores to offload 138 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:53,880 Speaker 1: older stuff, perhaps at a discount, after sales had slowed 139 00:08:53,880 --> 00:08:57,839 Speaker 1: down considerably. So by the nineteen eighties, Black Friday was 140 00:08:57,960 --> 00:09:01,880 Speaker 1: established as the formal beginning of the holiday shopping season, 141 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:06,760 Speaker 1: and while some online service providers like compu Serve would 142 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:10,360 Speaker 1: introduce online shopping in the nineteen eighties, it was a 143 00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:14,440 Speaker 1: far distant second to shopping in physical stores. It had 144 00:09:14,600 --> 00:09:19,960 Speaker 1: barely registered. It really wasn't until the mid nineteen nineties 145 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:24,000 Speaker 1: when Netscape one point oh incorporated the Secure Socket Layer 146 00:09:24,080 --> 00:09:29,080 Speaker 1: Protocol the SSL protocol. That's when online transactions could be 147 00:09:29,160 --> 00:09:32,800 Speaker 1: considered truly secure for the first time. That led to 148 00:09:32,840 --> 00:09:36,760 Speaker 1: the possibility of turning the Internet, and specifically the Web, 149 00:09:37,160 --> 00:09:42,080 Speaker 1: into a commerce destination. Sites like Amazon and eBay helped 150 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:45,960 Speaker 1: usher in a new era of commerce, making it practical 151 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:50,199 Speaker 1: and then desirable to shop online. While those two sites 152 00:09:50,320 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 1: saw a lot of success, the early days of e 153 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: commerce also saw a lot of businesses rush into that 154 00:09:56,240 --> 00:09:59,880 Speaker 1: space without really forming a strategy around it. After the 155 00:10:00,080 --> 00:10:02,679 Speaker 1: dust would settle in the wake of the dot com 156 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:05,920 Speaker 1: bubble implosion in the early two thousands, companies began to 157 00:10:05,920 --> 00:10:08,520 Speaker 1: take a more measured approach and e commerce started to 158 00:10:08,559 --> 00:10:11,960 Speaker 1: come into its own. In two thousand five, a marketing 159 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:15,840 Speaker 1: team led by Ellen Davis at a company called shop 160 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:20,440 Speaker 1: dot Org introduced the concept of cyber Monday. This would 161 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:24,680 Speaker 1: be e commerce's response to Black Friday, the sales pitch 162 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:27,920 Speaker 1: road itself. Why would you leave your comfortable home and 163 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:32,920 Speaker 1: brave potentially bad weather and guaranteed terrible traffic to fight 164 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:35,520 Speaker 1: your way into a store only to find out that 165 00:10:35,559 --> 00:10:38,760 Speaker 1: the thing you wanted to buy has already sold out. 166 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:44,280 Speaker 1: Why risk getting hurt or worse as single minded consumers 167 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:48,040 Speaker 1: shove and elbow and kick their way to get the 168 00:10:48,120 --> 00:10:51,760 Speaker 1: last tickle me Elmo doll or whatever must have item 169 00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:54,840 Speaker 1: happened to be on sale that year. Why not instead 170 00:10:55,559 --> 00:10:59,600 Speaker 1: sit at home and order your holiday gifts online and 171 00:10:59,679 --> 00:11:03,280 Speaker 1: have them either delivered to you or even to the 172 00:11:03,320 --> 00:11:05,880 Speaker 1: people you plan to give gifts to. You take out 173 00:11:05,920 --> 00:11:08,040 Speaker 1: the whole step of having to take the gifts to 174 00:11:08,240 --> 00:11:12,800 Speaker 1: the people. Cyber Monday was born. I'll explain more in 175 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:16,120 Speaker 1: just a moment, but first let's take a quick break 176 00:11:16,400 --> 00:11:27,079 Speaker 1: to thank our sponsor. Now, the concept of cyber Monday 177 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:30,440 Speaker 1: didn't just arrive out of the blue. For a few 178 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:34,439 Speaker 1: years leading up to two thousand five, analysts had seen 179 00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:39,319 Speaker 1: a boost and online line sales on the Monday following 180 00:11:39,360 --> 00:11:43,480 Speaker 1: Black Friday. They had seen this trend happening, So maybe 181 00:11:43,559 --> 00:11:46,160 Speaker 1: some people were late to the game and they weren't 182 00:11:46,160 --> 00:11:48,640 Speaker 1: able to land a deal on Black Friday. Maybe some 183 00:11:48,679 --> 00:11:51,520 Speaker 1: of them weren't able to get hold of that must 184 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:54,320 Speaker 1: have item in a physical store, so now they were 185 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:57,840 Speaker 1: looking online. But whatever the reason, by two thousand five, 186 00:11:58,160 --> 00:12:01,360 Speaker 1: Cyber Monday was one of the big easier online shopping 187 00:12:01,480 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: days of the year, but not the busiest, in fact, 188 00:12:05,000 --> 00:12:07,679 Speaker 1: not even in the top ten. By two thousand five, 189 00:12:07,720 --> 00:12:11,160 Speaker 1: it was more like the twelfth most popular shopping day 190 00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:15,720 Speaker 1: online at that point. But the Cyber Monday marketing idea 191 00:12:15,920 --> 00:12:19,720 Speaker 1: would change that. So the media, here's about this idea 192 00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:23,320 Speaker 1: in two thousand five, and they jump all over this 193 00:12:23,440 --> 00:12:28,040 Speaker 1: concept of Cyber Monday. And this is no surprise. News 194 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:31,840 Speaker 1: about sales tends to get a lot of attention, whether 195 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:36,320 Speaker 1: it's in print, audio, or television spots. You've probably seen 196 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:40,360 Speaker 1: countless articles and videos that lists the biggest Black Friday 197 00:12:40,559 --> 00:12:43,760 Speaker 1: or Cyber Monday deals. There's a whole industry around this. 198 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:47,600 Speaker 1: There are groups that start putting out information about it 199 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:51,480 Speaker 1: before November even starts, to talk about the big Black 200 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:54,440 Speaker 1: Friday or Cyber Monday deals that are coming down the line. 201 00:12:55,040 --> 00:12:59,319 Speaker 1: So media outlets were highly motivated to take this new 202 00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:03,280 Speaker 1: concept and to run with it. Online retailers would get 203 00:13:03,320 --> 00:13:07,280 Speaker 1: on board too, because the media coverage amounted to free publicity, 204 00:13:07,400 --> 00:13:10,600 Speaker 1: and they started to see their sales increase. So two 205 00:13:10,640 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 1: thousand five was a good start. Analysts estimated the online 206 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:17,679 Speaker 1: retailers saw about four d eighty four million dollars in 207 00:13:17,760 --> 00:13:22,720 Speaker 1: sales collectively on that Monday that year. But the retailers 208 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:25,360 Speaker 1: would prepare themselves to really push for it in a 209 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,800 Speaker 1: big way in the years to follow. By creating promotions 210 00:13:30,240 --> 00:13:34,439 Speaker 1: and sales tied to this concept of cyber Monday, they 211 00:13:34,440 --> 00:13:40,199 Speaker 1: could actually increase sales dramatically over a typical shopping day online. 212 00:13:41,160 --> 00:13:45,480 Speaker 1: In two thousand and six, CNN ran a story that 213 00:13:45,559 --> 00:13:49,880 Speaker 1: pointed out that certain sought after items were being really 214 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:53,679 Speaker 1: scarce in brick and mortar stores but were available online. 215 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:59,200 Speaker 1: The article had the title for e tailors, It's Cyber Monday, 216 00:13:59,240 --> 00:14:02,000 Speaker 1: and it had a ub headline that said traffic tracking 217 00:14:02,080 --> 00:14:06,840 Speaker 1: services showed a fifty increase in Internet traffic at various 218 00:14:06,920 --> 00:14:10,880 Speaker 1: online commerce sites on that Monday. The sought after items 219 00:14:10,880 --> 00:14:15,239 Speaker 1: included stuff like the PlayStation three gaming console from Sony, 220 00:14:15,480 --> 00:14:20,800 Speaker 1: Nintendo's we gaming console, and the aforementioned Elmo. Though this 221 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:24,080 Speaker 1: one was the Tickle Me Elmo t m X. And 222 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:26,960 Speaker 1: by the way, just as a side note, I actually 223 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:31,000 Speaker 1: watched a video of that Elmo toy for this podcast 224 00:14:31,040 --> 00:14:34,800 Speaker 1: because I'm nothing if not thorough in my research, and 225 00:14:34,840 --> 00:14:36,920 Speaker 1: I didn't remember this toy. That's why I was like, 226 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:39,640 Speaker 1: what is the tickle me Elmo t MX? How is 227 00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:41,840 Speaker 1: that different from the tickle Me Elmo, which was a 228 00:14:41,880 --> 00:14:45,800 Speaker 1: doll that would laugh and vibrate like crazy whenever you 229 00:14:45,840 --> 00:14:51,000 Speaker 1: activated it. So in the video, I saw Elmo as 230 00:14:51,080 --> 00:14:54,880 Speaker 1: a toy that could stand up is actually standing, and 231 00:14:54,960 --> 00:14:57,800 Speaker 1: you would activate it by pressing certain points on the 232 00:14:57,880 --> 00:15:00,680 Speaker 1: doll and it would start to laugh and it moves 233 00:15:00,720 --> 00:15:03,840 Speaker 1: its arms, and eventually it bends over like it's laughing 234 00:15:03,880 --> 00:15:06,280 Speaker 1: so hard it can't stand up straight. It falls over 235 00:15:06,360 --> 00:15:08,880 Speaker 1: onto the ground, and then ultimately at the end of 236 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:11,760 Speaker 1: this it stands itself back up. The best part about 237 00:15:11,760 --> 00:15:15,080 Speaker 1: this story is while I was watching this, my coworker 238 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:17,880 Speaker 1: Noel Brown, who's one of the hosts of Ridiculous History, 239 00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:20,200 Speaker 1: walked up behind me and he asked me what the 240 00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:23,080 Speaker 1: heck was I watching? Although he didn't use those words 241 00:15:23,120 --> 00:15:25,960 Speaker 1: he he was a bit more coarse in his language, 242 00:15:26,440 --> 00:15:29,520 Speaker 1: but Upon explaining it, he shook his head and walked away. 243 00:15:29,640 --> 00:15:31,920 Speaker 1: That's the typical response I get here at the office. 244 00:15:32,440 --> 00:15:35,320 Speaker 1: In two thousand seven, online sales were up to seven 245 00:15:35,400 --> 00:15:40,600 Speaker 1: hundred thirty million dollars. Then, in December two thousand seven, 246 00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:44,520 Speaker 1: the United States entered what was later called the Great Recession. 247 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:48,400 Speaker 1: This was when the real estate market collapsed, which in 248 00:15:48,480 --> 00:15:52,280 Speaker 1: turn made mortgage backed securities issued by banks to fall 249 00:15:52,320 --> 00:15:55,960 Speaker 1: in value dramatically, and that in turn threatened the solvency 250 00:15:56,000 --> 00:16:00,160 Speaker 1: of various financial institutions like those banks, that led to 251 00:16:00,200 --> 00:16:03,800 Speaker 1: the government bailouts, and banks and businesses began laying off 252 00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:07,720 Speaker 1: workers and eliminating jobs. It doubled the unemployment rate in 253 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:11,480 Speaker 1: the United States until it hit ten. Now. The reason 254 00:16:11,520 --> 00:16:17,320 Speaker 1: I mentioned all of that is because, despite this economic downturn, 255 00:16:17,400 --> 00:16:21,880 Speaker 1: online retailers would see a year over year increase in 256 00:16:22,040 --> 00:16:24,840 Speaker 1: sales from two thousand seven to two thousand eight two 257 00:16:24,880 --> 00:16:29,560 Speaker 1: thousand seven seven thirty million dollars two thousand eight, eight 258 00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:34,320 Speaker 1: hundred forty six million dollars despite the economic downturn. Now, 259 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:38,200 Speaker 1: one possible reason for the higher number is that people 260 00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:40,520 Speaker 1: weren't just looking for a good deal in two thousand eight. 261 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:44,120 Speaker 1: They needed good deals. People still wanted to buy presents 262 00:16:44,320 --> 00:16:47,480 Speaker 1: for friends and family, but money was tight, so sales 263 00:16:47,520 --> 00:16:50,600 Speaker 1: were more important than ever, and online seemed to give 264 00:16:51,080 --> 00:16:55,560 Speaker 1: the biggest access to those sales. The holiday season in 265 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:58,920 Speaker 1: two thousand eight also saw a rising battle between traditional 266 00:16:58,960 --> 00:17:03,960 Speaker 1: retailer walm Art an online giant Amazon. Amazon would take 267 00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:08,359 Speaker 1: the number one spot according to traffic tracking services, with 268 00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:13,719 Speaker 1: an increase of twenty one percent more traffic year over year. Walmart, 269 00:17:13,840 --> 00:17:18,760 Speaker 1: by comparison, only saw a six percent increase. More importantly, 270 00:17:18,880 --> 00:17:22,879 Speaker 1: for Amazon, it became the most popular online destination for 271 00:17:22,960 --> 00:17:27,080 Speaker 1: commerce on Cyber Monday. In two thousand nine, comm Score, 272 00:17:27,119 --> 00:17:29,879 Speaker 1: which is a data analysis firm, published a report that 273 00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:33,520 Speaker 1: said forty one point six percent of all online shoppers 274 00:17:33,520 --> 00:17:36,879 Speaker 1: were logging in from home, but fifty two point nine 275 00:17:36,920 --> 00:17:40,920 Speaker 1: percent were logging in from work. So maybe that don't 276 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:45,080 Speaker 1: want to go to work itis bubonic plague that prompted 277 00:17:45,160 --> 00:17:49,080 Speaker 1: that initial article that gave us the term Black Friday 278 00:17:49,160 --> 00:17:52,879 Speaker 1: for the day after Thanksgiving, maybe that now extends to 279 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:56,639 Speaker 1: everyone on the following Monday. They might be at work, 280 00:17:56,760 --> 00:17:59,760 Speaker 1: but instead of actually working, they could be scouring the 281 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:03,239 Speaker 1: internet for the best deals in lowest prices. Same as 282 00:18:03,280 --> 00:18:07,320 Speaker 1: it ever was. I guess Walmart would strike back against 283 00:18:07,359 --> 00:18:11,400 Speaker 1: Amazon in two thousand nine when when it announced cyber 284 00:18:11,600 --> 00:18:16,520 Speaker 1: Week and set the chorus for things as they are now. 285 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:20,440 Speaker 1: This extended the sales that Walmart was showing off for 286 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:24,760 Speaker 1: a full week following Thanksgiving. That would prompt other retailers 287 00:18:24,800 --> 00:18:28,960 Speaker 1: to follow suit in and would also be when Cyber 288 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:32,840 Speaker 1: Monday would become the busiest online shopping day of the year, 289 00:18:33,280 --> 00:18:36,240 Speaker 1: and it's been that way ever since. Was also the 290 00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:41,359 Speaker 1: first year that Cyber Monday sales would top one billion dollars. 291 00:18:41,400 --> 00:18:44,680 Speaker 1: But just to put things into perspective, that same year 292 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:48,399 Speaker 1: saw shoppers visit real world stores to the tune of 293 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:53,520 Speaker 1: ten point seven billion dollars in sales, So Cyber Monday 294 00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:55,800 Speaker 1: was a big success, but it was still trailing far 295 00:18:55,880 --> 00:19:00,840 Speaker 1: behind Black Friday and traditional stores. The next year in 296 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:06,679 Speaker 1: CNBC rather predictably reported that Black Friday and Cyber Monday 297 00:19:06,800 --> 00:19:11,720 Speaker 1: had effectively gloamed together to create this mutated beast of 298 00:19:11,760 --> 00:19:15,040 Speaker 1: a long shopping weekend, and we were starting to see 299 00:19:15,080 --> 00:19:19,119 Speaker 1: sales extend further out in both directions from Black Friday. 300 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:22,000 Speaker 1: While this also had the effect of cannibalizing some of 301 00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:26,119 Speaker 1: the sales on Friday and Monday themselves. Ultimately, I'm pretty 302 00:19:26,119 --> 00:19:29,640 Speaker 1: sure merchants don't really care when they're selling stuff. They 303 00:19:29,680 --> 00:19:32,040 Speaker 1: just care if they are selling it and how much 304 00:19:32,080 --> 00:19:35,320 Speaker 1: they're able to sell. In two thousand twelve, we would 305 00:19:35,320 --> 00:19:38,879 Speaker 1: see another shift in consumer behavior, one that would shape 306 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:44,159 Speaker 1: the way retailers would target customers. More shoppers, nearly twenty 307 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:47,359 Speaker 1: percent of them, began to use smartphones to look at 308 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:51,040 Speaker 1: cyber deals. This was a twelve increase from the previous 309 00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:55,320 Speaker 1: year and also an indication that mobile browsing was the future. 310 00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:58,520 Speaker 1: And this, by the way, was something the entire online 311 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:01,960 Speaker 1: content world was star to realize. Right around this point, 312 00:20:02,359 --> 00:20:05,600 Speaker 1: anyone who worked in that world, such as yours truly 313 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:09,159 Speaker 1: was starting to think about ways to optimize content for 314 00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 1: the mobile experience. It was clear that companies that could 315 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:15,800 Speaker 1: make their online experience a positive one, no matter what 316 00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:18,679 Speaker 1: sort of the device someone might use to access it, 317 00:20:18,720 --> 00:20:21,600 Speaker 1: would be well ahead of the game. That included e 318 00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:25,080 Speaker 1: commerce sites, which began to invest more money in creating 319 00:20:25,160 --> 00:20:29,960 Speaker 1: user interfaces for their stores, specifically for smartphones. In all, 320 00:20:30,359 --> 00:20:34,960 Speaker 1: consumers spent one point four six five billion dollars in 321 00:20:35,160 --> 00:20:39,880 Speaker 1: online shopping on cyber Monday. In two thousand twelve, electronics, 322 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:43,760 Speaker 1: computer hardware, and video games all experienced huge jumps in 323 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:48,080 Speaker 1: sales gains year over year, but the top performing category 324 00:20:48,320 --> 00:20:52,359 Speaker 1: according to com Score, was in digital content and subscriptions. 325 00:20:52,840 --> 00:20:55,880 Speaker 1: Also by two thousand twelve, there was a pretty much 326 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:58,920 Speaker 1: even split between people buying stuff while surfing the web 327 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:01,200 Speaker 1: from home and those who were still on the clock 328 00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:04,879 Speaker 1: at work. In two thousand thirteen, fashion websites began to 329 00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:08,639 Speaker 1: finally get in on this Cyber Monday game. Clothing retailers 330 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:12,320 Speaker 1: like Old Navy started to launch their own Cyber Monday deals, 331 00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:16,000 Speaker 1: taking advantage of the same shopping frenzy as other retailers. 332 00:21:16,240 --> 00:21:19,119 Speaker 1: And this actually reminds us that one of the values 333 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:21,960 Speaker 1: of these days, both Black Friday and of Cyber Monday, 334 00:21:22,040 --> 00:21:25,000 Speaker 1: to retailers, in large part is due to the fact 335 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:28,879 Speaker 1: that we as consumers have been conditioned to shop on 336 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:32,680 Speaker 1: those days. So many people are already in a mindset 337 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:35,480 Speaker 1: to go out there and get ready to buy stuff, 338 00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:39,280 Speaker 1: and by leveraging that from the retail side and pairing 339 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:41,359 Speaker 1: a good deal or two to take advantage of it 340 00:21:41,400 --> 00:21:45,000 Speaker 1: wherever you can, just makes really good business sense. In 341 00:21:45,080 --> 00:21:48,239 Speaker 1: two thousand fifteen, Target announced it was offering up a 342 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:51,639 Speaker 1: fifteen percent discount across all of Target dot Com for 343 00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:55,840 Speaker 1: Cyber Monday, showing that the big retail businesses were really 344 00:21:55,880 --> 00:21:59,879 Speaker 1: playing serious at this point and in ten things would 345 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,160 Speaker 1: really go crazy as the concept of cyber Week took 346 00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:06,560 Speaker 1: hold for more retailers. I'll explain more in just a moment, 347 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:09,280 Speaker 1: but first let's take another quick break to thank our 348 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:22,480 Speaker 1: sponsor so In. According to com Score, retailers saw eleven 349 00:22:22,720 --> 00:22:27,159 Speaker 1: billion dollars in sales during cyber Week. Now that started 350 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:31,720 Speaker 1: on Monday, November and it ended on December four. Cyber 351 00:22:31,760 --> 00:22:35,600 Speaker 1: Monday itself accounted for nearly two point seven billion dollars 352 00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:38,919 Speaker 1: in sales all alone. And not only that, but starting 353 00:22:38,920 --> 00:22:43,400 Speaker 1: on Thanksgiving Day, e commerce sites collectively saw more than 354 00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:49,240 Speaker 1: one billion dollars of sales every day for eleven days straight. 355 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:53,199 Speaker 1: It drove the holiday season sales, which comm Scored defined 356 00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:56,360 Speaker 1: as starting on November one and ending on December four, 357 00:22:56,800 --> 00:23:02,160 Speaker 1: to achieve nearly thirty eight billion dollars in sales. That's 358 00:23:02,320 --> 00:23:07,160 Speaker 1: a ton of money. Also, in twenty six one two 359 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:10,920 Speaker 1: million people in the United States did some online shopping 360 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:14,880 Speaker 1: on Cyber Monday, but on Black Friday, only one hundred 361 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:19,720 Speaker 1: sixteen million Americans did any shopping, and that includes sixty 362 00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:22,920 Speaker 1: seven point nine million people who were doing online shopping. 363 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,679 Speaker 1: So in twenty sixteen, cyber Monday pulled ahead of Black 364 00:23:27,800 --> 00:23:31,680 Speaker 1: Friday as the busiest shopping day in the United States 365 00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:34,199 Speaker 1: and all without having to line up in front of 366 00:23:34,200 --> 00:23:38,399 Speaker 1: a store at three in the morning. In comm Score 367 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:43,600 Speaker 1: reported that consumers spent three point three six billion dollars 368 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:49,720 Speaker 1: on Cyber Monday from desktop computers, so just from desktops. 369 00:23:49,760 --> 00:23:53,640 Speaker 1: According to the Verge, purchases made from mobile devices accounted 370 00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:56,960 Speaker 1: for another two billion dollars in sales. And according to 371 00:23:57,040 --> 00:23:59,720 Speaker 1: multiple sources, although this doesn't really match up with the 372 00:23:59,720 --> 00:24:04,359 Speaker 1: comm score numbers, the collective cyber Monday sales efforts in 373 00:24:04,440 --> 00:24:11,080 Speaker 1: tweventeen amounted to six point five nine billion dollars in sales. Now, 374 00:24:11,160 --> 00:24:13,840 Speaker 1: if you look at the sales figures from Thanksgiving through 375 00:24:13,960 --> 00:24:18,280 Speaker 1: Cyber Monday, online sales amounted to nineteen point six to 376 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:23,760 Speaker 1: billion dollars, truly an enormous sum of money now. According 377 00:24:23,760 --> 00:24:27,520 Speaker 1: to a survey from National Retail Federation as well as 378 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:30,840 Speaker 1: a company called Prosper Insights and Analytics that partnered to 379 00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:35,479 Speaker 1: make this survey, fifty eight million Americans chose to do 380 00:24:35,520 --> 00:24:40,280 Speaker 1: their holiday shopping online, only fifty one million chose to 381 00:24:40,320 --> 00:24:44,359 Speaker 1: shop only at physical stores, and more than sixty four 382 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:48,200 Speaker 1: million Americans did some combination of the two. So while 383 00:24:48,240 --> 00:24:52,439 Speaker 1: online shopping has definitely pulled ahead of going to actual 384 00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:56,000 Speaker 1: brick and mortar stores, there's still a place for those 385 00:24:56,080 --> 00:25:00,479 Speaker 1: physical shops. They are not obsolete. People are still shopping 386 00:25:00,480 --> 00:25:04,760 Speaker 1: there and droves, just they're doing it more online. The 387 00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:08,000 Speaker 1: Wall Street Journal reported that brick and mortar stores did 388 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:10,800 Speaker 1: see a decrease of about four percent in the number 389 00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:15,000 Speaker 1: of people visiting those stores in compared to the same 390 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:19,199 Speaker 1: time in so we are seeing fewer people going to 391 00:25:19,280 --> 00:25:21,720 Speaker 1: these stores. It's not quite to the point where I 392 00:25:21,760 --> 00:25:24,240 Speaker 1: would want to try and go out on Black Friday. 393 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:26,480 Speaker 1: I think there's still way too many people out there, 394 00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:29,600 Speaker 1: but we're getting there now. There is a growing concern 395 00:25:30,040 --> 00:25:33,359 Speaker 1: that by extending these deals out from Black Friday and 396 00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:36,680 Speaker 1: Cyber Monday, the whole Cyber week thing, and the Black 397 00:25:36,680 --> 00:25:40,360 Speaker 1: Friday sales that start two weeks before Thanksgiving, that these 398 00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:43,120 Speaker 1: sales are going to lose their luster. And again, part 399 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:47,920 Speaker 1: of what drives so much sales activity are the limitations 400 00:25:47,960 --> 00:25:51,240 Speaker 1: around the sales dates. If you make items available only 401 00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:54,440 Speaker 1: for a limited time at a lower price, it drives 402 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:58,680 Speaker 1: up consumer interest and it encourages shopping. You just introduced 403 00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:01,000 Speaker 1: that idea and the customer's head that the thing that 404 00:26:01,200 --> 00:26:04,199 Speaker 1: kind of sort of wanted is only going to be 405 00:26:04,240 --> 00:26:06,680 Speaker 1: at a discounted price for a short while, and then 406 00:26:06,680 --> 00:26:09,760 Speaker 1: you're more likely to move them to actually buy that thing. 407 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:13,240 Speaker 1: But if you extend the sale out, you make it 408 00:26:13,359 --> 00:26:17,240 Speaker 1: less special. You dilute that effect to some extent, and 409 00:26:17,280 --> 00:26:20,199 Speaker 1: the danger is that ultimately you'll start to see sales 410 00:26:20,320 --> 00:26:24,320 Speaker 1: slow down or worse yet, decline as a result, because 411 00:26:24,320 --> 00:26:27,960 Speaker 1: people don't feel compelled to go out and buy that 412 00:26:28,080 --> 00:26:31,399 Speaker 1: thing because it's been marked down. As for what is 413 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:35,159 Speaker 1: driving the popularity of online shopping, a lot of it 414 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:38,560 Speaker 1: is opportunity. More people have access to getting online than 415 00:26:38,600 --> 00:26:41,880 Speaker 1: ever before, and for many people, working at a computer 416 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:46,120 Speaker 1: is part of their job, so they can easily access 417 00:26:46,240 --> 00:26:49,080 Speaker 1: these deals whether they're at work or at home. For 418 00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:51,840 Speaker 1: other people, a smartphone and a credit card is really 419 00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:54,200 Speaker 1: all they need to get some shopping in. So even 420 00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:58,200 Speaker 1: if employees are limiting their online shopping to just times 421 00:26:58,200 --> 00:27:01,280 Speaker 1: when they're on break and they're not actually trying to 422 00:27:01,400 --> 00:27:04,520 Speaker 1: snag a deal on the company dime. You would still 423 00:27:04,560 --> 00:27:07,360 Speaker 1: expect to see growth in this field, just because we're 424 00:27:07,359 --> 00:27:11,840 Speaker 1: seeing more penetration in computer access and internet access. The 425 00:27:11,960 --> 00:27:16,160 Speaker 1: National Retail Federation predicts that in retailers will see an 426 00:27:16,160 --> 00:27:19,240 Speaker 1: increase in sales between four point three percent and four 427 00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:23,119 Speaker 1: point eight percent. That's actually a step down from the 428 00:27:23,200 --> 00:27:26,040 Speaker 1: increase in twenty seventeen that was at five point five 429 00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:30,199 Speaker 1: percent over the sixteen figures, but it still means that 430 00:27:30,240 --> 00:27:33,720 Speaker 1: we're going to see more sales this year, and it 431 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:36,879 Speaker 1: would mean that the entire holiday season, not just Black 432 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:39,679 Speaker 1: Friday and Cyber Monday, but during the course of the 433 00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:45,159 Speaker 1: holiday season, we will see sales between seven hundred seventeen 434 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:51,680 Speaker 1: point five billion dollars and seven twenty point nine billion dollars, 435 00:27:52,200 --> 00:27:55,600 Speaker 1: getting close to a trillion dollars in sales over the 436 00:27:55,640 --> 00:27:59,959 Speaker 1: holiday season. That is crazy. So now let's get down 437 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:03,880 Speaker 1: into brass tacks. How do you find good deals? Well, 438 00:28:03,880 --> 00:28:08,040 Speaker 1: like I mentioned earlier, deals are happening before and after 439 00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:11,720 Speaker 1: Black Friday and Cyber Monday, so those days don't really 440 00:28:11,760 --> 00:28:15,320 Speaker 1: matter as much in the grand scheme of things. By 441 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:17,639 Speaker 1: the time you are listening to this episode. On the 442 00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:22,200 Speaker 1: day that it publishes, deals are already going on. Amazon 443 00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:25,000 Speaker 1: typically leads the charge, and I imagine part of this 444 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:29,320 Speaker 1: strategy is that they're trying to head off all the 445 00:28:29,359 --> 00:28:31,760 Speaker 1: retailers at the past. They're trying to get ahead of them, 446 00:28:32,040 --> 00:28:34,879 Speaker 1: get ahead of Black Friday, because there's a limited amount 447 00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:37,639 Speaker 1: of money out there. Right, Shoppers are only going to 448 00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:41,280 Speaker 1: spend so much this year, so Amazon wants to get 449 00:28:41,280 --> 00:28:44,480 Speaker 1: ahead of all the other deals to get as much 450 00:28:44,600 --> 00:28:49,320 Speaker 1: of those dollars as it possibly can. That's the deal 451 00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:54,800 Speaker 1: with business, right. Online sales are actually best on Thanksgiving Day, 452 00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:59,880 Speaker 1: typically with an average discount of twenty four. Categories of 453 00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:02,920 Speaker 1: stuff that tends to have the biggest discounts on Thanksgiving 454 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:08,200 Speaker 1: Day include things like sporting goods, computers, video games, and clothing. 455 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:10,880 Speaker 1: So if you're shopping for any of those things, set 456 00:29:10,880 --> 00:29:14,200 Speaker 1: aside some time on Turkey Day to pop online and 457 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:16,440 Speaker 1: check out some deals. But if you want to buy 458 00:29:16,480 --> 00:29:19,960 Speaker 1: something like a television or a tablet, computer, or maybe 459 00:29:19,960 --> 00:29:23,120 Speaker 1: a small appliance, your best bet for the biggest discount 460 00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:27,840 Speaker 1: online is actually Black Friday, not Cyber Monday. But there's 461 00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:29,320 Speaker 1: no need for you to jump in a car and 462 00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:31,600 Speaker 1: head to the local mall. You just go online. Online 463 00:29:31,600 --> 00:29:34,400 Speaker 1: sales tend to be best for those items. On the 464 00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:38,280 Speaker 1: old traditional shopping day. Cyber Monday is still great for 465 00:29:38,320 --> 00:29:40,760 Speaker 1: a lot of different deals, but if you're really in 466 00:29:40,800 --> 00:29:43,760 Speaker 1: the market for something new, or you're looking to save 467 00:29:43,800 --> 00:29:46,920 Speaker 1: the most money on gifts Thanksgiving and Black Friday, or 468 00:29:46,960 --> 00:29:49,480 Speaker 1: when you should pop open the computer and hunt around 469 00:29:49,480 --> 00:29:51,600 Speaker 1: a bit. It's also a great idea to do some 470 00:29:51,680 --> 00:29:54,200 Speaker 1: research on the various items that are for sale. You 471 00:29:54,280 --> 00:29:57,960 Speaker 1: might find that the discounted items are ones that are 472 00:29:58,040 --> 00:30:02,160 Speaker 1: not really the best in their class. They might lack 473 00:30:02,280 --> 00:30:06,040 Speaker 1: some interesting features. This happens a lot with television's. You'll 474 00:30:06,080 --> 00:30:09,320 Speaker 1: see a lot of TVs get marked way down. Then 475 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:11,480 Speaker 1: if you do a little research, you might find out, oh, well, 476 00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:16,160 Speaker 1: that's because that television doesn't have a particularly high resolution 477 00:30:16,560 --> 00:30:19,280 Speaker 1: or it's got a lot of limited features. And then 478 00:30:19,400 --> 00:30:21,840 Speaker 1: you realize, well, yeah, I could buy a television for 479 00:30:21,880 --> 00:30:25,000 Speaker 1: super cheap, but it's not necessarily a good TV. So 480 00:30:25,040 --> 00:30:27,600 Speaker 1: you want to do that research. And just because something 481 00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:31,000 Speaker 1: is being sold at a big discount doesn't always mean 482 00:30:31,000 --> 00:30:34,240 Speaker 1: it's worth buying. Also, it's not a bad idea to 483 00:30:34,280 --> 00:30:38,320 Speaker 1: look around to see what the price history was of 484 00:30:38,400 --> 00:30:42,000 Speaker 1: certain items. Every now and then a retailer will mark 485 00:30:42,240 --> 00:30:46,640 Speaker 1: up an item just before a big sale, and that way, 486 00:30:46,920 --> 00:30:49,960 Speaker 1: when they put in the discount, the sale price is 487 00:30:50,040 --> 00:30:55,520 Speaker 1: really not that different from the original price of the item. 488 00:30:55,560 --> 00:30:58,600 Speaker 1: It could be that in October you could have bought 489 00:30:58,640 --> 00:31:03,040 Speaker 1: something for fives, and then going into November it gets 490 00:31:03,080 --> 00:31:05,760 Speaker 1: marked up to six hundred dollars, But then the discount 491 00:31:05,800 --> 00:31:08,480 Speaker 1: means that they're selling it for four seventy five dollars, 492 00:31:09,160 --> 00:31:11,800 Speaker 1: So it looks like a bigger discount because the original 493 00:31:11,840 --> 00:31:15,080 Speaker 1: price appears to have been six hundred, But if you 494 00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:16,680 Speaker 1: go back just a little further, you see that the 495 00:31:16,680 --> 00:31:21,360 Speaker 1: price was lower earlier. Just be careful. Sometimes that deal 496 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:23,680 Speaker 1: that's too good to be true is too good to 497 00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:27,040 Speaker 1: be true. Online holiday sales tend to feature pretty good 498 00:31:27,080 --> 00:31:30,240 Speaker 1: deals leading all the way up to Green Monday. Now, 499 00:31:30,240 --> 00:31:34,080 Speaker 1: Green Monday is the second Monday in December, and it's 500 00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:38,520 Speaker 1: just ten shipping days out from Christmas Day, meaning if 501 00:31:38,560 --> 00:31:41,480 Speaker 1: you wait any longer, you may not have enough time 502 00:31:41,520 --> 00:31:44,360 Speaker 1: for your order to get to you before the gift 503 00:31:44,400 --> 00:31:49,440 Speaker 1: giving festivities occur in That day falls on December ten, 504 00:31:50,160 --> 00:31:54,360 Speaker 1: and the name Green Monday actually comes from the site eBay. 505 00:31:54,480 --> 00:31:58,320 Speaker 1: eBay coined the term green Monday in two thousand seven. 506 00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:02,800 Speaker 1: That was after they had noticed that this particular Monday 507 00:32:02,960 --> 00:32:05,200 Speaker 1: had some of the highest sales of the year. In fact, 508 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:09,280 Speaker 1: it was the busiest online shopping day for quite some time. 509 00:32:09,720 --> 00:32:14,360 Speaker 1: Cyber Monday would pass Green Monday in two thousand nine 510 00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:17,760 Speaker 1: during the Great Recession, and then Cyber Monday would ultimately 511 00:32:17,800 --> 00:32:21,600 Speaker 1: become the busiest online shopping day and Green Monday would 512 00:32:21,600 --> 00:32:26,360 Speaker 1: fall quite a bit. But it's still very popular online 513 00:32:26,400 --> 00:32:28,480 Speaker 1: shopping day. In fact, now I think it's climbed back 514 00:32:28,560 --> 00:32:31,160 Speaker 1: up to number two. It was down in its number 515 00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:33,360 Speaker 1: five for a while, but I think it's back up 516 00:32:33,360 --> 00:32:36,400 Speaker 1: to number two at this point. So until Green Monday, 517 00:32:36,480 --> 00:32:40,400 Speaker 1: you're likely to see some pretty good deals online. And 518 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:46,240 Speaker 1: that is the history and evolution of cyber Monday. Again, 519 00:32:46,360 --> 00:32:51,200 Speaker 1: it's some combination of marketing, some combination of psychology, some 520 00:32:51,280 --> 00:32:57,680 Speaker 1: combination of just trying to capitalize on already established consumer habits. 521 00:32:58,280 --> 00:33:01,040 Speaker 1: It's good to know all of these elements because it 522 00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:04,280 Speaker 1: informs you before you start making decisions on what you're 523 00:33:04,280 --> 00:33:06,960 Speaker 1: gonna buy and who you're going to buy it from. Also, 524 00:33:07,760 --> 00:33:10,240 Speaker 1: Small Business Saturday is still a thing, and I still 525 00:33:10,280 --> 00:33:13,239 Speaker 1: really like it. I like supporting small local businesses when 526 00:33:13,320 --> 00:33:16,360 Speaker 1: I can, because you can get some really unique stuff. 527 00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:20,240 Speaker 1: I know that that's redundant to say really unique, but 528 00:33:20,520 --> 00:33:22,920 Speaker 1: you can get stuff that you can't find anywhere else 529 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:26,040 Speaker 1: from a lot of small businesses, and you support people 530 00:33:26,080 --> 00:33:29,200 Speaker 1: who are working really hard to keep those businesses going. 531 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:31,640 Speaker 1: And might mean paying a little more for the gift, 532 00:33:31,720 --> 00:33:35,080 Speaker 1: but it also probably mean the gift means a little more, 533 00:33:35,240 --> 00:33:39,400 Speaker 1: so it all evens out right. If you, guys, I 534 00:33:39,560 --> 00:33:42,000 Speaker 1: want to buy a very special gift for someone, why 535 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:44,719 Speaker 1: not look over at t public dot com slash tech Stuff. 536 00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:47,720 Speaker 1: That's our merchandise store that's not exactly a small business, 537 00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:50,640 Speaker 1: but every purchase does go to help our show and 538 00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:53,600 Speaker 1: we greatly appreciate it. If you have any suggestions for 539 00:33:53,760 --> 00:33:57,320 Speaker 1: future episode topics of tech Stuff, send me a message. 540 00:33:57,560 --> 00:34:00,480 Speaker 1: You can go to our website that is tech Stuff 541 00:34:00,640 --> 00:34:04,120 Speaker 1: podcast dot com and there you're gonna find all the 542 00:34:04,200 --> 00:34:07,600 Speaker 1: different means to contact me and let me know what 543 00:34:07,680 --> 00:34:09,720 Speaker 1: it is you would like me to talk about. Also, 544 00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:13,200 Speaker 1: do not forget. Tech Stuff has been nominated for an 545 00:34:13,280 --> 00:34:18,400 Speaker 1: I Heart Radio Podcast Award and votes are still coming in. 546 00:34:18,520 --> 00:34:21,200 Speaker 1: You can. You can go and vote every single day 547 00:34:21,239 --> 00:34:23,680 Speaker 1: if you go online and go to their website for 548 00:34:23,760 --> 00:34:26,359 Speaker 1: the I Heart Radio Podcast Awards. You can vote up 549 00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:28,560 Speaker 1: to five times a day. In fact, you can dedicate 550 00:34:28,640 --> 00:34:31,440 Speaker 1: all five of those votes to text stuff. We are 551 00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:35,439 Speaker 1: nominated in the Science and Technology category, so go check 552 00:34:35,440 --> 00:34:37,440 Speaker 1: that out. Look at the other shows that are nominated. 553 00:34:37,480 --> 00:34:40,719 Speaker 1: Throw your love around those shows deserve it, and I'll 554 00:34:40,719 --> 00:34:49,279 Speaker 1: talk to you again really soon. For more on this 555 00:34:49,440 --> 00:34:51,920 Speaker 1: and thousands of other topics because it has to works, 556 00:34:51,960 --> 00:35:00,399 Speaker 1: dot com one