Thanksgiving Day sales up 29%, mobile wins

By

Cassidy Mantor

Published
Nov 24, 2017

Thanksgiving Day sales were up 29% over last year, according to holiday shopping flash report. Most consumers shopped on mobile sites and many bought AI-recommended products.

Mobile shopping accounted for 61% of all traffic on Thanksgiving over any other device, said Salesforce Commerce Cloud (Salesforce). Mobile sales led the day at 46%, beating out computer sales for the first time which accounted for 45%. A 12% increase in conversion rate was seen for mobile sales, a testament to how retailers have been hustling to improve their omnichannel experience.

Retailers have also become increasingly aware that they need to focus on creating personalized experiences to continue to win over the consumer, and Salesforce's data has revealed just how important AI personalization is. While only 5% of consumers clicked on or tapped a personalized recommendation, these recommendations converted to 28% of all sales on Thanksgiving Day.

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The data also showed consumers are starting to shop earlier, with Thanksgiving Day and Thanksgiving Eve as the new start dates for spending. Wednesday sales for Thanksgiving Eve were up 31%. Sales conversion rates remain high throughout the Black Friday weekend and into Cyber Monday.

Other data insights Salesforce culled include that the average Thanksgiving Day order value this year was $117, down from $119 last year. Discount rate remained flat compared to last year at 29%, and social traffic share was up 30% from last year.

Salesforce's flash report focused on direct-to-consumer brands and retailers in North America and Europe.