What is Green Monday?
If you are like many consumers, you may have heard of Black Friday, but find yourself wondering what is Green Monday. The phrase was created by retailers in an effort to spark excitement among various consumers, and Green Monday is always the second Monday in December. Similar to Cyber Monday, it refers to a day on which you can expect to find the best sales. Whichever date Green Monday falls on, there is usually a minimum of 10 days left before Christmas, and it is this approximate time that shoppers appear to spend the most money online. Therefore, if you are looking for bargains and want to prevent tired feet, consider shopping on Green Monday to find the desired items at reasonable prices.
What is Green Monday?
Originally created in 2007 by Ebay, Green Monday is specifically defined by retail research organizations, as the third biggest shopping day of the year and one of the last major online shopping days before the holiday. Similar to the way the post office warned people in the past to mail their cards by December 11th to ensure they arrive on time, Green Friday merchants have determined that the second Monday in December is the last “window” for ordering gifts guaranteed to arrive by Christmas.
Fierce Competition Benefits Consumers
When it first began, over $850 million in the United States alone was spent via the Internet on the sites of various retailers. By 2011, Green Monday sales reached $1.133 billion and this figure ballooned to $2.86 billion by 2014. This is likely due to the fierce competition between various retailers as they vie for the best customers. Because the holiday comes only once a year, the goal of each online merchant is to make his or her products as affordable as possible, while still enjoying profits. This can only work to your advantage, so you should compare different sites and prices before making purchases (See our Green Monday 2017 deals page).
Trends
Brent Shelton, spokesperson for a large online retailer, told MarketWatch that most Internet marketers consider Green Monday as important as Black Friday, the latter of which is the biggest shopping day of the year. According to the National Retail Federation, shopping on both Black Friday and Green Monday increased by five percent in 2014, and another increase is expected this year. In addition, it is almost certain that huge promotions will be launched just prior to Green Monday in an effort to attract even more cyber shoppers to the sites of popular merchants.
Expected Promotions
It is almost guaranteed that certain retailers will create huge sales events for the second Monday in December. For example, you can virtually count on stores such as Amazon and Walmart holding special promotions during which you can save a considerable amount of money. Best Buy and JC Penney have also announced plans to participate in this event. Most of the promotions, regardless of the retailer by which they are hosted, are labeled “Green Monday” sales and begin in the early hours of the morning.
A Few Tips
If you plan to do some Green Monday shopping, you will be pleased to know that it is not difficult to find the items in which you are most interested. From your favorite search engine, simply type in “Green Monday bargains.” This will bring up all the major retailers mentioned above, as well as other merchants who plan to run promotions that day.
If there is a specific store you prefer over the rest, you can also type “Green Monday deals Walmart” or “Green Monday deals Best Buy.” Alternatively, you can simply search by entering “Green Monday apparel” or “Green Monday toys, ” if you know exactly which items you plan to buy. Finally, do not assume that you cannot use coupons, Groupon’s, or even advertisements from competing merchants to get additional savings, as many retailers allow this option.
