“From “Black Friday to Cyber Monday”Many moms, dads, and grandparents have patiently waited the biggest shopping day of the year to find the gifts of loved ones around the world. Most shoppers wake up before 5:00 AM, drive many miles to participate in this busiest shopping day of the year. Over the years there have even been stories about people waiting in line for more than 4 hours for a long awaited game, or newly launched product.We’ve all heard about “Black Friday”, the Friday after Thanksgiving when shoppers still reeling from the effects of tryptophan wrench themselves out of bed at 6 A.M. to catch holiday shopping bargains. But what about “Cyber Monday”? This new term applies to the Monday after Thanksgiving when consumers return to work to take advantage of shopping online with fast broadband connections. Generally, 58 percent of all online shopping is done in the workplace, but 88 percent of Cyber Monday shoppers made purchases from the office.Last year’s Cyber Monday sales totaled $687 million, up from $484 million last year. So, although Black Friday’s storefront shoppers have slacked by about one million consumers since last year, Cyber Monday welcomed two million more shoppers to the Web this season.
Although rarely reported, there are many that dread Black Friday because of the heavy traffic, overdrawn bank accounts, and domestic arguments over finances.I feel obligated to tell all who want to do holiday shopping without getting dealing with traffic, and the other headaches of high impact shopping that there is an alternative.Cyber Monday takes place the first Monday following Back Friday where you can do more in much less time and the great thing about that is you never even have to leave your home.If you are a holiday shopper you can participate in both shopping days and really have the best of both worlds. I have listed below some of the advantages both “Cyber Monday” and “Black Friday”. Although I am not much of a shopper I recognize the importance of balance in order to avoid the stress and negative impact that can result between Thanksgiving and New Years.December is a month that unfortunately has a bit of devastation for many American families because of the financial decisions that are made during the holiday shopping season. For example:o More people announce decision for divorce during December than any other month.o More people attempt suicide between December and end of January than other months of the yearo Family bankruptcy and financial woes are strongest during the first quarter of the yearAdvantages of Participating in Black Friday1. enhance your local economy2. have a holiday experience when shopping with loved ones3. Get a head start on holiday shopping4. Occurs shortly after Christmas club money is available5. Occurs during Thanksgiving holiday (Schools closed and usually non workday)Advantages of Participating in Cyber Monday1. You can purchase holiday gifts without ever leaving home2. You can make thousands of dollars so that there is no debt in Januarya. Because millions of consumers are on line looking for specific holiday gifts you can do the following to make sure you are getting paidi. Become an affiliate for major merchandisersii. Purchase resell rights to digital products and sell themiii. Attend trainings where you can learn make money this holiday seasonb. Have many items shipped directly to the recipient with Free shipping3. Get ongoing discounts for using the internet for your purchase4. Earn residual incomes that will pay you long after the holiday season5. Position yourself to even quadruple your 2008 holiday income while saving time and money.2006 was my first year participating in online holiday shopping, and selling and it literally changed the way my family lives are lives for ever. Remember “Cyber Monday” is responsible for $687 million in online transactions 2006. Although “Black Friday” is down in annual revenue, as you can see it’s really not down at all. Shoppers now are shopping on and offline and you can too.Now I am aware that many folks right here in Tampa are not use to using a computer for more than email, solitaire, and games, however you can definitely turn your computer into what I call an ATM, and a Shopping Mall at the same time. I am sure you agree that this is a wonderful combination.I have listed some tips for the Black Friday and Cyber Monday for you below.o Save time during the holidayso Take advantage of free wrapping offered by most departments storeso For Black Friday participants get started at approximately 5:00 AM to avoid most of the heavy rusho For “Cyber Monday” shoppers, ship gift items as early as possibleo Save Money during the holidayso Visit the site of the store in which do your shopping now and look cyber Monday promotionso Ship gifts to loved ones early to avoid sending overnighto Look early for the many free giveaways in sales papers and online for all sorts of products (batteries and many other items)o Make money during holiday shopping seasono Get to a training as soon as possible to learn how to leverage these huge consumer days (this will pay for all of your shopping)o Look up places online where you can lean how to get the most out of the holiday season shoppingo Set a goal of how much you are determined to make this year to offset your spending. My first year I made over $3,800$100-$500$500-$1,000$1,000 and upo Remember the importants of both “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” so can truly leverage botho Recognize that Christmas holiday time really has nothing do with shopping in it’s true meaning. However you can have more time to focus on the true meaning if you are not caught up in using your off days for shopping.On November 3 at the Westshore hotel from 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM, D. Golden & Associates, Inc. will host a free training “How To Pay For Holiday Shopping”to show Tampa residents how to face participate in the “Cyber Monday” and even “Black Friday” shopping without negatively impacting your family budget and more. During this event we will be giving away gift cards and more.