2019 Paid Search eCommerce Cyber Five Recap

In what may come as a surprise to many, Cyber Monday came in fourth on the list of YoY growth when measured by gross merchandise value (GMV), which measures the total value of merchandise sold online over a given period of time. According to BigCommerce, although Cyber Monday doubled in YoY GMV growth—from 6.3% to 13%—it still fell short when comparing it to this year’s Thanksgiving and the Sunday before Cyber Monday (+26%), as well as Black Friday (+23%).

This data offers valuable insight into shopper behavior throughout key holiday periods:

• People’s preference to shop online during the holidays is growing rapidly compared to shopping in stores.
• Shoppers are spreading out their online shopping days as opposed to focusing solely on Cyber Monday as brands continue to expand their promotions to multiple days and even week-long sales.

These industry trends align well with what our Paid Search eCommerce clients experienced this year. When comparing Black Friday to Cyber Monday in aggregate, our eCommerce brands spent 38% less on Black Friday while simultaneously generating 6% more revenue. This was due primarily to less online competition, which lead to lower average CPCs.

This shift in how consumers are researching and shopping online, presents an interesting challenge for retail brands: should they heavy-up on prime holiday online shopping dates (the Cyber Five) where there is stronger competition, or more evenly distribute paid search budgets across the holiday week to take advantage of lower CPCs and higher returns?

Looking for a last-minute eCommerce holiday tip? Thanks to Amazon changing the overnight shipping landscape, make sure to take advantage of last-minute holiday shoppers all the way up to December 24th!

As you look to execute against your 2020 goals and implement learnings from 2019 data, contact Rise to help you craft your Paid Search strategy.