In 2021, global online sales hit an all-time high of $275-billion, up 2% compared to 2020.
This is among the findings from Salesforce’s annual Cyber Week report, which analyses shopping data from over 1-billion shoppers on the Salesforce Customer 360 platform and activity across commerce, marketing, and service.
The data shows that digital patterns established during the pandemic are still a force this holiday season, with strong early November growth driven by consumers who were not deterred by higher prices, lower discounts, and decreased product inventory.
Cyber Week (23 November to 29 November) itself saw muted growth as a result of these early-season shoppers working ahead of the traditional shopping peak.
Top 2021 shopping insights from the Salesforce survey include:
* The major digital holiday shopping period is over: Holiday shopping began in earnest at the start of the season with consumers spending $74-billion over the first three weeks of November (up 10% YoY) and $297-billion globally (up 5% YoY). During Cyber Week, US sales reached $62-billion (up 4% YoY) and global sales reached $275-billion (up 2% YoY). The largest single shopping day over Cyber Week was Black Friday (up 2% YoY global, up 5% YoY US) as holiday demand was smoothed out across the entire month of November.
* Consumers find high prices and fewer discounts: Holiday inflation coupled with lower discounts meant deals were harder to find this year. Over Cyber Week, the Average Selling Price (ASP) was up 11% in the US and 5% globally compared to last year. Meanwhile, the average discount over Cyber Week was 26% in the US (down 8% YoY) and 24% globally (down 8%).
* Holiday supply chain crunch leaves shoppers with fewer gift options: Early and persistent supply chain issues meant digital shelves weren’t as well-stocked as in years past. Product catalogs (number of products being sold) over Cyber Week shrank 6% in the US and 5% globally compared to last year.
* Holiday inflation leads to holiday financing: With higher prices and fewer discounts, shoppers embraced buy now, pay later (BNPL) offerings. Globally, BNPL usage over Cyber Week grew 29% YoY (8% of all orders) with over $22-billion in holiday orders financed. On Black Friday, 7% of global orders and 4% of US orders were paid for with BNPL
* Consumers favour stores with order online, curbside pickup services: Consumers continued to prioritise health, safety, convenience, and trust this Cyber Week. US stores offering curbside or in-store pickup grew their revenue by 50% more YoY over Black Friday than retailers not offering these pickup options.
“While online sales leveled off over Cyber Week compared to the holiday surge we experienced during the pandemic, digital shoppers drove significant sales for the first few weeks of November and maintained the high Cyber Week baseline they established in 2020,” says Rob Garf, vie-president and GM of retail at Salesforce.
“Consumers entered into this holiday season aware of supply chain bottlenecks and inflation and shopped early and often to smooth out the demand we usually see concentrated over one week.”