{"id":7847,"date":"2023-11-10T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-10T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/?p=7847"},"modified":"2023-11-10T13:06:26","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T13:06:26","slug":"cyber-monday-get-retail-business-ready","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/cyber-monday-get-retail-business-ready\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyber Monday: How to get your retail or e-commerce business ready"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/category\/money-matters\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Money Matters<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCyber Monday: How to get your retail or e-commerce business ready\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2023-11-10T12:00:00+00:00\">10 November, 2023<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"Cyber Monday: How to get your retail or e-commerce business ready\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/cyber-monday-get-retail-business-ready\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/author\/staceymcintosh\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2018\/11\/Stacey-McIntosh-350-1.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" height=\"40\" width=\"40\" fetchpriority=\"high\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Stacey McIntosh<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">As a retailer, Black Friday is likely to be one of your top sales periods. It\u2019s a great opportunity to bring in new customers, delight existing ones, sell lots of products and make plenty of money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">But when that\u2019s over and you\u2019re left with empty shelves and full tills, it\u2019s not time to rest on your laurels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Once Black Friday \u2013 the retail event that will have a seismic impact on your business \u2013 has ended, you\u2019ll need to get ready for the sales aftershock that is Cyber Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Although Cyber Monday may not seem as big as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/black-friday-how-retailers-can-prepare\/\">Black Friday<\/a>, it\u2019s still a key date in the retail sales calendar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Shopping habits of consumers are changing at a rapid pace, with online sales a key part of that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And retail is on the terms of the shopper more than ever before. So you simply can\u2019t afford to neglect your online presence as a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Read on below to find out how you can prepare your retail or e-commerce business to make the most of Cyber Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Here&#8217;s what we cover:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#the-anchor-link\">The true value of Cyber Monday<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#changing-anchor-link\">The changing habits of consumers<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#five-anchor-link\">5 tips to help you prepare for Cyber Monday<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#final-anchor-link\">Final thoughts on preparing for Cyber Monday<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<a\n\t\tclass=\"button button--primary gate-0b030cda-dfb7-482e-965b-86bff3d74d6d\"\n\t\trole=\"button\"\n\t\tdata-button-location=\"content_area\"\n\t\thref=\"#gate-0b030cda-dfb7-482e-965b-86bff3d74d6d\"\n\t>Download your free Black Friday and Cyber Monday checklist and get your business ready for the busy sales season<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"the-anchor-link\">The true value of Cyber Monday<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">A question that all retailers should be asking themselves is: \u201cIs Cyber Monday really worth it?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Because, truth be told, a lot goes into a successful Cyber Monday, including marketing, discounts, payments, packing and shipping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">To answer this, you needs to look at Cyber Monday historically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The size and value of this, now concrete, yearly event has continued to grow year on year for the past decade, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.salecycle.com\/blog\/featured\/11-black-friday-and-cyber-monday-online-retail-stats\/\">according to behavioural marketing company SaleCycle<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And while there is a slither of truth in the idea that big retailers benefit more from this event than their smaller counterparts, it doesn\u2019t mean the latter can\u2019t capitalise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">An effectively communicated sale will always be likely to attract customers, especially if they are already in \u2018buying mode\u2019, no matter the size of the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">However, Cyber Monday has historically been geared toward electronics and technology products, with some of the most sought-after items being video game consoles, cameras and smart speakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Give this a thought when thinking about your product offerings. A small independent technology store is more likely to benefit from Cyber Monday than, say, a knitting supplies outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"changing-anchor-link\">The changing habits of consumers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The success of Cyber Monday can be somewhat attributed to the change in consumer shopping habits and expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">People searching online for retail discounts from the comfort of their own homes rather than queuing in busy shops is a convenient option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Even more so than ever, the purchasing experience has to be on the customer\u2019s terms \u2013 and businesses need to adapt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Especially in peak sales periods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">But when it comes to focusing on customers who are buying products online, it can be all too easy to lose them (and crucial sales) if they don\u2019t complete the sales process and make a payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Research from <a href=\"https:\/\/baymard.com\/lists\/cart-abandonment-rate\">Baymard found that 18% of cart abandonment<\/a> stems from a long or complex payment process, with 25% abandoning carts due to being forced to create an account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/cart-abandonment-close-crucial-sales\/\">Cart abandonment<\/a> can be a problem for online retailers \u2013 if you fail to have a smooth payment experience, you could not only lose a sale but a customer too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">This is especially true during Cyber Monday, as your site may not be the last stop for your customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">They won\u2019t want to spend time on a convoluted payment process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">They will simply want the transaction to go through so they can carry on with their shopping spree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">It\u2019s important to understand what the future of payment technology means for you, so you can prepare your business for busy periods such as Cyber Monday (and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/black-friday-small-businesses-boost-sales\/\">Black Friday<\/a>), and throughout the course of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<a\n\t\tclass=\"button button--primary gate-0b030cda-dfb7-482e-965b-86bff3d74d6d\"\n\t\trole=\"button\"\n\t\tdata-button-location=\"content_area\"\n\t\thref=\"#gate-0b030cda-dfb7-482e-965b-86bff3d74d6d\"\n\t>Download your free Black Friday and Cyber Monday checklist and get your business ready for the busy sales season<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"five-anchor-link\">5 tips to help you prepare for Cyber Monday<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">So, how can you get ready for Cyber Monday? Here are five tips to get your business set for what will hopefully be a busy day of selling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>1. Check your website is stable<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Website stability should be one of your key considerations when it comes to putting on a Cyber Monday sale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Is your website modern and sleek? Can it accommodate and cope with increased and concentrated traffic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">These are vital components to ensure your website isn\u2019t underperforming (or even crashing) at crucial times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>2. Ensure pages are loading well<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Make sure your pages are loading at an acceptable speed and that increased traffic isn\u2019t putting the stability of the site at risk. There are a number of free online tools to help you analyse your website performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">However, if you\u2019re going to be making optimisations, you should always ask your web developer to step in and make the necessary tweaks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>3. Be aware of cart abandonment<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Once your customers have reached the checkout process, it is imperative that things go as smoothly as possible.&nbsp;Cart abandonment is the killer of sales \u2013 and a poor payment process will lead to just that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Your business should be using a payment provider with a proven track record of reliability and minimal downtime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And if something does go wrong, they should be able to offer you 24\/7 customer service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>4. Use the right payment provider<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">If your current payment provider isn\u2019t offering the levels of service that you need, it\u2019s important you switch to one that can as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">To minimise disruption, you should choose a payment provider that is \u2018acquirer agnostic\u2019, so there\u2019s no need to change your merchant accounts. This will help to keep business running as smoothly as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">5. Check your stock levels<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">If you haven\u2019t got enough stock, you could end up with disappointed customers and lost potential in sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">However, too much stock will mean you\u2019ve overspent \u2013 and you\u2019re left with money tied up in unwanted goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Getting the balance right at sale time is important, so use insights from your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/sage-business-cloud\/accounting\/\">accounting software<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/sage-business-cloud\/accounting\/features\/stock-management\/\">track your inventory<\/a> and get the right amount of stock come sale time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"final-anchor-link\">Final thoughts on preparing for Cyber Monday<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Black Friday is an earthquake of a retail date, sending shockwaves across the industry with highly concentrated sales volumes across most retail businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">This is aided by organically occurring consumer hype and the desire to find lots of bargains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">However, remember to take advantage of the aftershock that is Cyber Monday. By doing so, you can look to increase sales even further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">And by putting the right steps in place, you should end up with lots of sales and plenty of happy customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><em>Editor&#8217;s note: This article was first published in November 2021 and has been updated for relevance.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Black Friday and Cyber Monday checklist <\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Get your free checklist for tips to prepare your business for the busy sales season, covering the promotion of your products, staying on top of stock levels, and more.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-0b030cda-dfb7-482e-965b-86bff3d74d6d\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Download your free checklist<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1282456779-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1282456779-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Join 1.5 million subscribers and get the best business admin strategies and tactics, as well as actionable advice to help your company thrive, in your inbox every month.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-53abbdcc-410c-4c8c-bf97-ca5c6982eebd\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"999\" height=\"666\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg 999w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cyber Monday is one of the key sales periods of the year. Learn about five steps your retail or e-commerce business can take to prepare.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":346,"featured_media":7203,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[163],"tags":[331,309],"business_type":[5],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[191],"persona":[232],"imagine_tag":[192,229,230],"coauthors":[394],"class_list":["post-7847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-money-matters","tag-ecommerce","tag-retail","business_type-small-business","industry-ecommerce"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-ie","author_name":"Stacey McIntosh","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/PIXOCOLOR_BB_00091.31362.jpg","imagine_tags":{"192":"Ecommerce","229":"Retail","230":"Small business"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice Ireland","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/346"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7847"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7847\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/7203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=7847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}