• by November 27, 2000

Nielsen//NetRatings today revealed that the online world mirrored the offline world the day after Thanksgiving in being the busiest shopping day so far this season. If only in terms of traffic.

The Nielsen//NetRatings Holiday E-Commerce Index, which measures Web surfing in eight product categories, surged 27% at home on Friday, November 24, as compared to the rest of the week.

"Shoppers flocked to e-commerce sites the day after Thanksgiving, traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the year for brick-and-mortar retailers," said Sean Kaldor, VP of eCommerce at NetRatings. "We're seeing the same trends on the Web, with spikes in apparel and consumer electronics sites."

Apparel sites were the hottest category, with an overall rise of 68% on Friday, as compared to the rest of the week. Landsend.com skyrocketed 93%, followed by Gap.com, which soared 86%, and Spiegel.com jumped 85%.

Consumer electronics sites rose 46%, with CircuitCity.com jumping 126% in unique audience at home on Friday. Outpost.com rose 48%, and 800.com increased 40% in traffic.

"A surge was seen in every e-commerce category the day after Thanksgiving, but the biggest contributor to overall growth in sheer numbers were virtual department stores, led by Amazon.com," said Kaldor. "Amazon alone accounted for more than 1.3 million people online on Friday, an increase of 36% as compared to the rest of the week."

"Multi-channel sites or 'brick-and-clicks' attracted a large number of visitors on Friday, with a 49% increase as compared to the rest of the week, while dot com pure plays leapt 26%," said Kaldor. "While the two have been battling back and forth throughout the holidays, no clear winner has yet emerged."