Black Friday - ReadWriteWeb

Kindle Sales on Black Friday Up 400% Over Last Year

Jon Mitchell — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 09:02:00 -0800

Amazon's Kindle sales on Black Friday were up 400% over last year, according to the company. The Kindle Fire tablet is now the bestselling item on Amazon.com. Prior to its release, Amazon ordered 5 million Kindle Fires to meet demand.

Amazon also refreshed the e-ink Kindle line this year, introducing a touchscreen version. Amazon is usually cagey about Kindle sales and won't specify numbers or the breakdown across the Kindle family. But 2011 has been the year of the Kindle, and Amazon wants to demonstrate its success.

]]> The new, basic Kindle model is $79 ($109 without screen saver ads). E-readers haven't yet replaced the printed book altogether, but a $79 price point is a great start for consumers. Between the basic model, the Kindle Touch, and the 3G Touch, the line of Kindle e-readers has options all along the price spectrum with the $199 Kindle Fire tablet as the top-of-the-line Kindle.

Amazon treats the Kindle line as an end-to-end retail service, rather than just a range of products. While it touts the hardware and its features, Amazon describes the Kindles as a "service" for consumers who buy media and other goods through Amazon, especially through Amazon Prime membership, which brings streaming video straight to the Fire.

The Kindle & Online Shopping

This year's Black Friday sales were "good" for retailers, so the story is that it was "good" for America. It's hard to argue that consumers pepper spraying each other to get at the goodies is "good." But the clear trend this year is toward online shopping and, consequently, away from the "chaos" of stores.

More than five times as many people shopped from mobile devices to beat the rush (and skip the violence) this year. The Kindle family is Amazon's handheld digital shopping portal, and its success this Black Friday is in line with this marked trend toward digital shopping.

Have you shopped on a handheld device this holiday season?

]]> Discuss

How Internet Shoppers Can Stay Safe On Black Friday

Alicia Eler — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 16:00:00 -0800

The biggest shopping day of the year is upon us. PayPal predicts that Black Friday will start on Thanksgiving with Internet users shopping from their couches right after the turkey feast ends. If you're one of the many who will be shopping online this Black Friday, there are a few things you need to know.

This past April Epsilon, one of the largest email marketing companies, announced that its database had been breached. Epsilon said that 2% of its clients were affected, including major retailers like Best Buy and Target. This was a phishing attack, the same kind that's bound to appear on Black Friday.

]]> Brendan Ziolo, VP at Kindsight, an Internet security provider, predicts that scammers will be launching spearphishing attacks and sending fake emails from retailers. How will you protect yourself from potential scams? Here are four key tips from Kindsight.

Stay alert for phishing emails - Keep a watchful eye on any "deal emails" you receive that appear to be from legitimate retailers. Look for poor grammar or misspellings in the email and unusual URLs. If you open a suspicious email by accident, don't click on any links or open any attachments. Go directly to the retailer's website.

Search safely when seeking deals - Hackers can use SEO techniques or even buy web ads to make their fake sites that distribute malware appear higher in search results for terms that shoppers would be searching on such as "Black Friday deals". Stick to recognized retailers when shopping online this season.

Download apps from trusted app stores - Mobile shopping apps are all the rage these days. When downloading a shopping app to help you on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, bear in mind that Android malware usually comes disguised as legitimate applications. So only download apps from reputable web sites that you trust. Android malware is up 472% since July of this year.

Update your security software and other applications - Hackers can exploit vulnerabilities in outdated security software, operating systems, applications and plug-ins. Before you start your holiday shopping online, make sure all of your software is up-to-date so you can safely surf the Web.

Make sure you update your browser to improve security (and speed!) and only use ultra-secure passwords on your accounts.

Or, you could always leave your house and hit the stores. It might look something like this, though.

Either way, you've been warned.

Images via MyBlack-Friday.com and DroidDog.com.

]]> Discuss

Big Question (Answered): "Will You Be Leaving Your House to Shop on Black Friday?"

Robyn Tippins — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:00:08 -0800

As many ReadWriteWeb staffers plan their Thanksgiving meals, we wanted to turn today's Big Question towards the turkey-themed holiday. In the U.S., the day after Thanksgiving is a major retail event, complete with $10 televisions and stampeding crowds. Though most of the staff confessed to ignoring the event totally, we wondered if our readers were going to brave the retail battlefield on Black Friday.

Will you be leaving your house this year to join the Black Friday madness?

We asked and culled your responses from Facebook, Google+ and Twitter and we used Storify to present it all back to you. If you have additional responses, please leave them in the comments.

]]>

View the story "Will you be leaving your house this year to join the Black Friday madness?" on Storify

]]> Discuss

Chow Down All You Like: Black Friday From the Comfort of Your Couch

Alicia Eler — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 14:00:00 -0800

PayPal predicts that the real spike in holiday shopping won't happen on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, but rather on Thanksgiving Day right after dinner. And this shopping will all be online, from the couch. PayPal says that shoppers will participate in "couch commerce," otherwise known as sitting on a couch and shopping from smartphones and tablets. A new report from Nielsen concurs with the idea of "couch commerce," indicating that 80% of consumers will be skipping the stores on Black Friday. TechFlash.com takes this idea one step further, calling Thanksgiving Day the new Black Friday.

]]> Big retailers like Target, Toys R Us, Best Buy and Walmart are all offering Black Friday deals online one day early. These same stores are planning to open early on Friday, and a few may be open on Thanksgiving. But the store that's always open is the one online - and retailers are banking on the idea that consumers want to buy, and fast. According to data from Hitwise, Walmart is the most frequently searched Black Friday term. For the four weeks ending on November 12, 2011, Walmart received 10% of Black Friday-related terms, up 9 percentage points from the same time frame last year. Walmart is number two after Google.com in a chart of BlackFriday.info top destinations from November 2010.

Another survey from NielsenIncite notes that the daily buzz about Black Friday/Cyber Monday on social media sites has been on the rise for the past two years. The most Black Friday buzz comes from Twitter, not surprisingly. Public posts accounted for 63% of the buzz. Message boards and groups were another venue for online buzz, comprising 22% of the online discussion.

Stats from InsideFacebook.com reflect the strong social media presence of Target, Macy's and Toys R Us. All three have joined the list of top 20 Facebook Pages by Likes for this week.

Image via BlackFridayDeals98.com.

]]> Discuss

Amazon Black Friday Deals Can't Keep Up With Demand

Mike Melanson — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 08:26:00 -0800

Let the madness begin. This Friday, also known as "Black Friday", is the busiest shopping day of the season in the U.S.. For Amazon users, however, the day known for profit-busting deals has been extended into a weeklong affair known as Amazon's Black Friday Deals Week.

The online event kicked off this morning and already there is a flood of complaints that you can't click fast enough to get in on the savings.

]]> Amazon describes the events as running from Monday to Friday and "offering hundreds of deals on thousands of products, at must-have prices." Those "must-have prices", though, don't seem to last very long.

According to CNet U.K., "the mood has turned sour for many in Amazon's own forums, with threads entitled Amazon deals only last a second, and Damage to reputation, business and customer trust, and Absolutely load of tosh! Amazon deals available for all of 2 seconds!! Boycot them!!."

Another blog describes the situation, saying that "A lot of people who were patiently waiting for the Amazon Black Friday deals were disappointed, as frenzy erupted as soon as the site opened its doors. [...] Users excitedly logged in to the site only to be disappointed that almost all of the great deals were taken."

Looking at the Black Friday Deals page, however, shows plenty of "Lightning Deals" that seem to be lasting well long enough to get in on the discounts.

To get a jump on the competition, CNet suggests following Amazon's Facebook page. The company has also created a Twitter account to announce this weeks deals. Maybe, just maybe, if you're quick on the digital draw, you too can get a copy of Susan Boyle's latest and greatest hits. Rejoice in one thing, at least, if you don't - you weren't caught up in a discount induced stampede if you miss out.

Also, keep an eye out here this week, as we'll be looking for more hot iPhone apps and online sources for Black Friday deals.

]]> Discuss

Black Friday, Cyber Monday...Mobile Tuesday?

Sarah Perez — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 06:10:32 -0800

Do we really need another shopping holiday? Some marketing firms and major retailers think we do. To follow up on the success of Black Friday, the start of holiday shopping season for American consumers, and Cyber Monday, the day when we surf online for the deals we missed at the mall, a mobile marketing firm called Mobigosee is planning to launch "Mobile Tuesday" on December 2nd of this year.

]]> The concept for Mobile Tuesday was born out of research that showed that the Tuesday after Thanksgiving was a slow shopping day, as are many Tuesdays throughout the year. To encourage the shopping madness to continue, Mobile Tuesday will send out coupons from various retailers to participants' cell phones. Mobigosee is paid only when those mobile coupons are redeemed.

According to AdAge, the advertising campaign, including radio and outdoor media, will launch tomorrow in 10 U.S. cities. Earlier this year that campaign was going to include a major car manufacturer and several well-known luxury brands, but due to the weakening economy, many of the early participants were forced to pull out as budgets were slashed. Tomorrow's launch will now just include McDonald's, Finish Line, and RedTag.

Mobile Tuesday's promotion will also have an online presence at a yet-to-be revealed URL. However, some 18,000 crafty shoppers have discovered the link thanks to sites posting Black Friday deals. Mobigosee already considers the campaign a success as they have surpassed their original goal of 5,000 and the campaign has not even officially begun.

]]> Discuss

25 Online Resources to Prepare You for Black Friday

Lidija Davis — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 12:54:05 -0800

Black Friday has traditionally been one of the busiest shopping days of the year, but with the current state of the economy, many people are wondering whether 2008 will be a comparative disappointment.

Last year, online spending was recorded at $272 million on Thanksgiving, and $531 million on Black Friday; this year holiday shopping is expected to be more challenging with one in five shoppers saying they simply have less money to spend. With that in mind, we've created a Black Friday resource list to help you navigate your way to a bargain.

]]> If you're not familiar with Black Friday, it is the day following Thanksgiving (always on a Thursday), and typically signifies the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Retailers slash prices and open stores in the wee hours, and customers are known to line up hours before the store is expected to open in an attempt to grab some bargains.

According to Shopzilla's Helen Malani, shoppers are turning to the Web, not only for shopping, but for gift ideas and product research. "Whether they make those holiday purchases online or in stores, the Internet will have a tremendous influence on holiday sales this year," she said.

So if you're willing to do a bit of research on the Web, there is a strong chance you'll find some of the best deals available.

Where to find information about Black Friday online

In the lead up to Black Friday, retailers oftentimes leak special offers, and there are plenty of sites that offer up that information. Problem is, how do you know where to look? Here are four sites that you might want to bookmark. All offer RSS and e-mail subscriptions to keep you up-to-date.

Black Friday 2008

Black Friday Info

Cheap Stingy Bargains

Note: Cheap Stingy Bargains offers coupons and coupon codes all year round
as well as Twitter updates

Black Friday at Gotta Deal

Comparison Shopping Search Engines

According to a recent study by Shop.org, 78 percent of retailers plan to offer free shipping at some point during the holiday season. This is great news for the budget conscious among us, but where do you find the best deals online? You start with price comparison search sites.

If you do decide to go and face the crowds, don't forget to plan your strategy by visiting ShopLocal to find the best deals in your area.

Finally, if you're willing to rise before dawn and wait in line in the cold there's a good chance you can find a bargain on Black Friday; if you miss out, don't worry too much, you can always find a great deal online come Cyber Monday.

If you know of any other great sites, please share them with us.

]]> Discuss