The date was Dec. 2, a Monday - and a particularly busy day for me at work.

I stayed focused on my to-do list, so I could head out the door on time. It was Cyber Monday, and I had a mission.

I rushed home from the office, opened my laptop and systematically attacked my family’s Christmas lists, finishing the orders before anyone else got home that afternoon. What a sense of accomplishment at having gotten such great deals!

Fast forward to Dec. 3, a Tuesday - and emails from my favorite stores that Cyber Monday had been extended. Same thing Dec. 4, a Wednesday, and then Dec. 5, a Thursday. What?! Cyber Monday on a Thursday?!

What’s the hurry, and where’s the excitement and sense of adventure, if you can take advantage of “one-day-only” deals on extended days?

Black Friday, the week before, also offered multiple opportunities, including Thanksgiving Day, to shop for bargains. In fact, many stores opted for Black Friday Month. No longer is it necessary to set the alarm for 3 a.m. and stand in line till your favorite store opened its doors 6 a.m. You likely can snag that item you’ve been wanting at the price you’ve been hoping for right after the holiday meal - and that’s if you choose to even venture out into the cold. Many people are opting instead to shop online from the comfort of their living room.

Black Friday online shopping hit a record $7.4 billion, short of Cyber Monday’s online total of $9.4 billion - also a record - per preliminary calculations by Adobe Analytics.

Amazon has reported its customers purchased more items worldwide than any other day in the company’s history.

Brick-and-mortar sales were less than projected on both Thanksgiving and the following day.

According to the National Retail Federation, more than 174 million Americans shopped from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday. Adobe Analytics estimates spending totals will hit $29 billion when all the receipts are tabulated.

Those shoppers, per research by Pixlee, spent an average of $335 per person in that five-day period. I count myself among that group. My family purchased a television at an “exclusive Black Friday-only” price.

We bought it the night before, on a Thursday, and the price was still offered a few days later. Hmmm.

Kelly Lutterschmidt

editor

Whitehall-Coplay Press

Northampton Press

Catasauqua Press