create your own

Cyber Monday

69
rate or flag this page

By Lissie


Cyber Monday and Black Friday for Non-Americans

Cyber Monday is an interesting American phenomena. Building on from the Black Friday of shopping madness the Americans indulge in the day after Thanksgiving, the following Monday has now been dubbed Black Monday or Cyber Monday. On the Monday following Thanksgiving on-line stores offer substantial discounts for shoppers to encourage them into the pre-Christmas spending frame of mind! Shops open very early in the morning so that shopping can be done on the way too work. However Cyber Monday takes it one step further and means that you can shop while AT work! Cyber Monday originated in 2005, and was picked up by the American mainstream media who dubbed it as the biggest on-line shopping day. In fact it was originally true that many workers would shop on-line from work on that Monday, but with the general availability of fast connections at home this is probably not so true any more. Regardless of reality though the marketing push remains!


Its interesting the way different terms mean different things in different cultures. In most of the non-American English speaking world, black Friday is Friday with the date of the 13th - a combination of bad luck items apparently! The term black Monday therefore had me totally confused! The term apparently was originally coined from the line-up of black cabs in front of the large department stores who started off the sales promotion!

Naturally too the natural opposite has also been created - "Buy Nothing Day" coinciding with Black Friday! This was started in Canada in the early 90's by activists wanting to protest the western world's increasingly consumer-driven society.

However the good news is that even if you have never heard of Cyber Monday, Monday (or Tuesday depending on your timezone) may be a great day to grab a bargain at an American on-line retailer!


Comments

RSS for comments on this Hub

MrMarmalade profile image

MrMarmalade  says:
2 years ago

Did not know anything about black Monday You are the 5th this year.

thankyou

stubbs profile image

stubbs  says:
2 years ago

hi lissie you might want to make your links open in a new window to keep people on your hub. if they are navigated away from it they may not return, you want them to navigate away through an ad. just a thought

Lissie profile image

Lissie  says:
2 years ago

Thanks stubbs - good point !

Patty Inglish, MS profile image

Patty Inglish, MS  says:
12 months ago

Interesting to know what is going on in the rest of the world in regrads to Black Friday and anti-Black Friday movements. More people shuld read this.

Lissie profile image

Lissie  says:
12 months ago

Thanks Patti - Black Friday/Cyber Monday doesn't exist anywhere in the world excpet the US ! I wrote this hub because I had never heard of it!

Pete Maida profile image

Pete Maida  says:
6 months ago

I always had a problem with Cyber Monday. Aren't people getting paid to do something at work? Isn't this a clear theft of company resources for personal use? Shouldn't companies shut this practice down? Just becomes something is popular doesn't mean it's right.

Lissie profile image

Lissie  says:
6 months ago

Its really quit odd Pete because Americans in general are very well-behaved at work. It would never take off in Australia cause most Australians buy online any day of the week if they are at work :-)

Submit a Comment

Members and Guests

Sign in or sign up and post using a hubpages account.


optional


  • No HTML is allowed in comments, but URLs will be hyperlinked
  • Comments are not for promoting your hubs or other sites

Cyber Monday in the News

  • Web retailers not waiting for "Cyber Monday"Denver Post8 hours ago

    Online retailers traditionally have waited until "Cyber Monday," the Monday after Thanksgiving, to launch their biggest deals.

  • Bargains, ease of online shopping boost 'Cyber Monday'The Columbus Dispatch5 hours ago

    Tomorrow isn't the biggest online shopping day of the year, but there is no doubt that "Cyber Monday" is the day when online shopping steps into the spotlight.

  • Forget Black Friday, Try Cyber MondayNBC San Diego2 hours ago

    As if Black Friday wasn’t enough, you also have Cyber Monday to cash in on great savings.

  • Local retailers prepare for Cyber MondayThe Scranton Times-Tribune7 hours ago

    With the push to boost holiday sales, businesses throughout Northeast Pennsylvania are offering special online sales and promotions for Cyber Monday and beyond. While the day after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday, the point when retailers have hist

  • Walmart Cyber Monday Sales To Open Early Too?I4U4 hours ago

    The Walmart Cyber Monday Sale is advertised to launch on the actual Cyber Monday, November 30th. Amazon and Best Buy have though already launched their big Cyber Monday Sales events today. Will Walmart also open the Cyber Monday sales today as well? We wil...

  • Hate to shop? Cyber Monday may be your answerDaily Press7 hours ago

    It's not quite a Hallmark holiday, but Cyber Monday has been gaining traction over the past few years as a well-known day to score shopping discounts.

  • More retailers, shoppers buy into Cyber MondayBoston Herald10 hours ago

    Worker productivity could take a dip tomorrow in the Northeast. Tomorrow is Cyber Monday - a phrase coined by the retail industry in 2005 for what's hyped as Black...

  • Protect yourself while shopping on Cyber MondayRichmond Times-Dispatch11 hours ago

    Cyber Monday hits tomorrow when shoppers are expected to swarm to the Internet in search of online deals and all things gifty. The busiest day of the virtual shopping season comes with lots of bait—free shipping, crazy discounts, hourly specials. And across the country, workers will steal some time to search online for the perfect present.

working