Ireland is about to have its busiest-ever day for online shopping

CONSUMER SPENDING ON Cyber Monday is expected to hit new heights this year with today expected to become the busiest day of online shopping ever in Ireland.

Spending online is expected to increase by 32% to €53 million today as more Irish brands hop on the American-style sales frenzy, according to research by digital agency Core Media.

Originating from the US and traditionally held on the Monday after Thanksgiving, Cyber Monday is a day of sales that is seen as the online or digital version of Black Friday.

Analysis of 250 brands in Ireland has shown that an increasing number of them are using Cyber Monday as a tool to boost sales ahead of Christmas, with one in three online stores offering discounts on Cyber Monday compared to one in five last year.

The research also showed that one in every eight Irish adults will purchase something online today and that web traffic is expected to increase by 20% on 2015.

Core Media digital media director Colm Sherwin said that Cyber Monday is being seen as an established part of the sales calendar by more consumers every year, but this has always been a busy time for sales.

“Traditionally, this weekend was always seen as the busiest for online traffic and sales even before Cyber Monday was introduced,” he said.

“Some of the main reasons for this are that it is last pay date for many employees before Christmas, and consumers tend to buy online far in advance of the final postal dates.”

He added that searches for Cyber Monday on Google in the US only grew by 5% in 2015 year on year, but in Ireland they increase by nearly 25%.

Growing in popularity

Online traffic would naturally increase by 10% and sales would increase by 30%, in the lead up to Cyber Monday, according to Pádraig McFadden, head of digital operations at Core Media.

He said some categories are seeing sales growth in the region of 160% compared to the same period last year and this is caused by two very simple factors.

“It’s a mixture of two things: consumers are getting more familiar with the concept, and brands are now offering some amazing deals online only. It has made the date one of the most important for retailers and consumers.”

However, McFadden added that online sales are still only a growing channel for Irish retailers that were involved in the research.

“Even though e-commerce channels are important for all brands in our research, it’s still far from their lead sales channel.

“On average online sales still only equate to 18% of all sales here in Ireland. It might not be the area brands get most their conversions but it’s still an important channel within the purchase cycle. Online is an important channel for research though and plays a role in 80% of store sales.”