Marketing Pilgrim

When I was a kid, holiday toy shopping for my mom meant cracking open the Sears Wish Book. She’d chose the items from our lists, call in the order and everything would arrive on the doorstep a few days later. No need to step inside a toy store at all.

Times haven’t changed all that much. Today, parents are still avoiding the aisles by doing a large amount of toy shopping online. Even when they don’t buy online, the internet is influencing their decisions on what to buy. Check out this chart from the new Google study “The Role of Digital in the Toy Shopper’s Journey.”

I spent my New Year’s weekend watching a Project Runway marathon. At least once per episode, I saw a commercial for a website called JustFab.com. In it, a group of women are the office, they’re all looking at the same computer monitor as they “ooh” and “wow” and their eyes are dilating and they’re getting all excited. Obviously, you’re supposed to think they’re looking at content that isn’t work safe, but it turns out it’s all over shoes.

Personally, I believe shoes are like cars. As long as they get you where you’re going, that’s all I care about. But I hear tell, that shoe buying can be a karmic experience for some women and so you would think that the bigger the better, but not in this case.

Yesterday, we talked about the rise in the Consumer Confidence Index and today we’re seeing the proof in the online pudding. comScore checked in with every, single e-commerce site, then tallied up the holiday shopping numbers.

Compared to the same shopping weeks last year, 2011 came in 15% higher. And here’s a chart that lays it all out for you in black and white.

Okay, so they probably didn’t actually check in with every website and it’s not that I don’t trust their numbers but I do wonder how they arrived at this total. . .

Anyway, let’s take a second to bask in the joy of these numbers. Look at Cyber Monday with a 22% increase. And what’s with these new special days, “Green Monday” and “Free Shipping Day?” Next we’ll have “Deep, Deep Discount Day” and “Last Chance Day” for all those who wait until the last minute.

The Consumer Confidence Index is up for the second month in a row, rising to 64.5 in December from 55.2 in November.

The survey, which was conducted by random sample by Nielsen for The Conference Board, showed an improvement in both current conditions and hope for the new year.

The Present Situation Index increased to 46.7 from 38.3. 16.6% said the business conditions are “good,” up from 13.9%.

There was also in increase in those who thought available jobs were “plentiful” and an almost equal decrease in those who said jobs were “hard to get.’

What’s really encouraging is the outlook for the future. The Expectations Index rose to 76.4 from 66.4. A higher percentage expected business to improve and they anticipated more available jobs in the near future.

In 2011, small business owners in Singapore set up shop on LiveJournal and completed transactions worth $72 million USD. They call them “blogshops” and there are over 50,000 of them currently running on the social blogging site.

Livejournal recently released a statement about their success and it is pretty amazing, mostly because it’s a singularly Singaporean phenomenon. They say the businesses are mostly small, home-based operations that have grown organically as an inexpensive way of getting started.

Right now, says LJ, only 10% are earning more than USD $1,500 a month but that’s nothing to cry about. Top earners are pulling in as much as USD $15,000 a month selling mostly clothing, beauty item and tech items.

Last night, after the gifts were opened and the holiday glow was being to wear off, I saw a TV commercial for Wal-mart that shook me to the core. Wal-mart opens at 5 a.m. on December 26 for the the biggest, blow-out, post holiday sale ever.

I had instant Black Friday flashbacks. Seriously? 5 a.m.? I used to be a big post holiday shopper, but like 44% of the people Consumer Reports polled, I can’t deal with the crowds.

Consumer Reports also says that the holiday shopping season will continue until the ball drops in Times Square as 4 out of 10 Americans say they’re still shopping.

82% are hoping to take advantage of post-holiday sales. And a quick look around, says there are plenty of deals to be had. Stores aren’t just marking down holiday items, they’re clearing the shelves.

comScore just released a report on the Top 50 Web Properties for November, complete with an ironic twist.

BestBuy.com was one of the big winners for the month. They ranked #1 in their category with 35.3 million visitors and #2 on the list of top gainers with a 78% increase.

Most companies would be celebrating, but Best Buy is now feeling nothing but pain for their efforts. Seems their heavy advertising push and slashed prices (to compete with Walmart and Amazon) made them a little too popular. The company sent out notices to a large number of customers saying that they have to cancel their orders, orders that were gauaranteed to arrive by Christmas.