As Cyber Monday rages on, let’s take a look at what’s already happened over the course of the Cyber Five weekend and what it means for both retail media networks and advertisers alike.

1. It’s all about ecommerce

The stat: Black Friday ecommerce sales in the US increased 8.5% YoY, while in-store sales rose just 1.1%, per Mastercard SpendingPulse.

The takeaway: While in-store retail media does present a massive opportunity, when it comes to Cyber Five shopping, online still dominates. And what do online shoppers want? Deals. Over half (51%) of digital shoppers in the US reported paying attention to retail media ads for products that are on sale and 44% said they purchased from them, per March 2023 data from Integral Ad Science.

2. Don’t forget desktop shoppers

The stat: Mcommerce represented nearly half (50.1%) of November’s ecommerce revenues, per Adobe Analytics. However, conversion rates for desktop during Thanksgiving and Black Friday were nearly double those on mobile.

The takeaway: Mcommerce is gaining momentum among consumers, but many are still shopping via desktop during the holidays. Both desktop and mobile ads should be aimed at increasing conversions, using discounts or special offers to drive customers to buy.

3. Go where the consumers are

The stat: Campaign messages sent through push notifications, SMS, and/or OTT messaging via platforms like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger increased 30% YoY during the period between Tuesday and Friday of last week, per Salesforce.

The takeaway: Brands are looking to engage with shoppers outside of web browsers, leveraging the devices (e.g., mobile phones) and channels (e.g., WhatsApp) consumers are already using to do it. Retail media networks should build out their ad offerings to make sure they’re keeping up with advertiser expectations.