What to Buy on Green Monday to Save

The old saving “unless you live under a rock” applies heavily to the sales that took place on Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, even if you’re not someone who necessarily took part in those events.

It was huge, to say the least.

The savings were touted, lines were long, computers buzzing with online sales all in the name of holiday shopping to save money on those wish lists you’re looking to fulfill as the holidays draw near.

The hype surrounding Thanksgiving Weekend (as it’s referred to with all three of those aforementioned sales dates) lived up to expectations with huge retail numbers that not only put certain stores on the map in their fourth quarter sales projections but did allow for consumers to save on products and services as the holidays draw closer.

The real winners were not only the retailers but the consumers who have, in recent years, gravitated more toward buying online than in stores, as the sales numbers for online growth are steadily climbing, leaving a lot of the “in-store” traffic flat or losing ground to shopping via your computer, phone or tablet.

That convenience was reflected in the numbers during Thanksgiving Weekend, 2018.

Cyber Monday arguably walked away with the highest of honors with 7.9 billion dollars in revenue, which made it the highest grossing sales day in online history in the United States, with an emphasis on buying computers, TVs, electronics and toys.^[1]

Black Friday, known initially for door busters and in-store specials that had crowds flocking to the doors as early as 5 a.m., saw a 23.6 percent increase in 2018 versus last year with 6.2 billion in online sales, including a record-setting sales results from 2 billion of that coming through smartphone orders, and that same report noted that even Small Business Saturday (the first Saturday after Thanksgiving, often overlooked) had about 3 billion in online sales, too.^[2]

Even Thanksgiving Day saw a shift in online sales with a 28 percent increase from last Thanksgiving, with 3.7 billion in sales just online, with 54 percent of that traffic coming from smart phones.^[3]

The cultural shift to online shopping for the holidays is real, and the numbers prove that, and that’s why Green Monday, which is hardly a slouch sales wise in its own right, is so paramount as a chance for holiday shoppers who missed out on online sales to recover in time for yet another discount shopping day online.

For those who aren’t familiar, Green Monday falls on the second Monday of December and has become for December what Cyber Monday is for November. The 2016 numbers show that retail sales online for this shopping day hit nearly 2 billion, and has seen steady increase year after year, and even thought it ranked two years ago as the fifth biggest online shopping day of the year, you can’t argue with the sales figures and propensity of retailers to offer discounts even after the Thanksgiving Weekend push.^[4]

Green Monday sales, since 2010 have seen increase anywhere between 10 percent to as much as 19 percent.

You also can’t discount, again, that Thanksgiving Weekend, while setting online records over that time period, still saw a dip in total number of shoppers who were active at that time, and roughly 56 percent of people who feel they still have more shopping to do in preparation for the holidays and subsequent gift giving.^[5]

That 56 percent reinforces that not every shopper is done, and with the influx of online shoppers this holiday season, Green Monday seems poised to make history again with better numbers and, most importantly for consumers, sales that rival what was offered over Thanksgiving Day sales, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

But, like any sales push or marketing effort, some sales and retailer do it better than others.

Here’s where you should be focusing most of your attention this Monday as Green Monday hits online:

Target: The bull’s eye embraces Green Monday, and 2018 is no different

Most of what makes Black Friday so endearing, and why Cyber Monday is so engaging is the savings you’ll get on the staples for those sales days: mostly TVs, laptops, electronics, phones and toys.

Target takes a different approach for Green Monday with online shopping that centers on clothing for kids, men and women, accessories in that same area as well as home items as well.

Target is offering 30 percent off kids, toddlers and baby clothing, along with that same discount on men’s and women’s clothing, accessories and shoes, with 30 percent off home items as well, if someone on your shopping list is in need of a redecoration.^[6]

In addition to the apparel, accessories and home, Target has a few discounts on toys, as well, for those last-minute pushes. You can save $10 when you spend $50, and $25 off $100 with emphasis on Paw Patrol toys, Nerf and Our Generation.^[7]

Last year, Target offered $20 off every $100 spent, so look for comparable deals this year as well.^[8]

eBay: Don’t sleep on this auction site and its December deals, Green Monday included

Often overlooked in the holiday hustle and bustle is eBay, which some associated exclusively with used items, but this retail heavyweight and auction holiday action star is all about last-minute shopping and December deals, specifically.

eBay and its nearly 200 million buyers who remain active online consistently have made Green Monday a household name, a phrase that eBay came up with in 2007 as a means to talk about the “best shopping day in December.”^[9]

The “December Dozen” is an eBay creation with 12 days of deals. Green Monday starts with a bang on eBay with deals on Apple MacBooks and tilting toward the following day with 45 percent off JBL headphones.^[10]

In total, eBay plans to offer 30 percent off a variety of brands including Apple, Google and Dyson, among others in a sale that also includes a new “deal” popping up every hour from 6 a.m. Monday through the next 12 hours.^[11]

Some specific eBay Green Monday deals include the Bose Soundtouch 10 Wireless Speakers (50 percent off), Google Home Hub for $99, and the PlayStation 4 Slim 1TB Spider Man Bundle, a hot toy over the Thanksgiving Weekend, for $299, in addition to 42 percent off North Face jackets for women, iRobot Roomba at nearly 50 percent off and the Keurig K-Select K-Cup Pod and 24 pods at 50 percent off.^[12]

Walmart: Here’s an easy way to make Green Monday soar; offer Cyber Monday pricing

When it comes to sales, sometimes the easiest path of travel is the one most appreciated by those who are buying.

Prices for Green Monday as far as Walmart goes are similar to what the retail super heavyweight offered on Cyber Monday with a variety of deals that consumers can enjoy, particularly if they missed Cyber Monday as a whole or specific sales.

A few deals of note for Walmart include Lenovo Ideated 330S Intel core i5-8250U Quad-core laptop (15.6 inch screen) at $349, and the Dell Inspiron 5000 Intel i7-7500U 15.6 inch Pro laptop at $479, along with a Vizio 55 inch 4K UHD Smart LED HDTV at $378, and 55 inch Scepter UHD LED 4K TV at $299.99.^[13]

In addition, Walmart continues with its shipping staple of free in-store pickup and 2-day shipping at no charge if you spend more than $35.

By offering same deals on Green Monday as they do Cyber Monday, Walmart keeps it simple and gives consumers a “do over” of sorts.

Amazon: Green Monday yet another shopping day that Amazon knocks out of park

Amazon is all about online shopping. That’s all they do.

We don’t have the luxury of Amazon stores, but why bother when Amazon and its online shopping marketplace is the most popular online shopping destination in the world, and Green Monday is no different.

Well, back that up for a second because Amazon embraces the holiday shopping spirit with sales and deals every day, but you’d be hard pressed to ignore some of the Green Monday festivities that are ongoing.

Amazon and iPad have joined at the proverbial hip for Green Monday with deals that include the Apple iPad Wi-fi 32 GB tablets for $269, $60 less than the typical price, with $80 off the 128 GB model and the 10.5 iPad Pro Wi-Fi 65 GB for $499, $150 less than the advertised price.^[14]

As much as you could spend an entire article talking about holiday deals on Amazon, you also want to pay attention to their daily deals from now through December 25, with a myriad of products that range from Polaroid cameras to clothing as your disposal to shop.

The fanfare and buzz surrounding Black Friday and Cyber Monday is always going to be steady, constant and easily the most talked about shopping days of the year.

But much the same way AT&T and Verizon still have T Mobile nipping at their heels constantly or Verizon and Comcast might have to contend with other cable providers offering comparable services, you can’t discount the importance of having another option if you’re a shopper, no matter what the product or time of year.

It so happens that Green Monday does more than just hold its own: it has become its own shopping stop each year in December as the holiday draw closer.

While 56 percent of shoppers, as previously noted, aren’t done shopping, another 45 percent wait until the last minute to shop, period.^[15]

You can’t ignore billions of dollars in sales in one day, and that’s exactly what Green Monday has achieved in recent years.

Will it ever be Black Friday? Probably not.

Can it eclipse Cyber Monday? Doubtful.

But what it can do is offer yet another choice for shoppers and consumers alike who maybe weren’t ready to shop over Thanksgiving Weekend and now are primed and poised to save.

Green Monday might not make the rest of those shopping days nervous, but certainly green with envy with the amount of dollars being spent with a unique take on another means to cater to the bevy of online shoppers who value convenience and the green they’ll save as part of their holiday budget.