Black Friday Hit Over $10 Billion in Online Sales 💸

A whopping $10 billion in sales 💰! If you snagged a piece of that pie, congratulations. If not, well, holiday shopping isn’t over, right? 

Hey there, welcome back to The Ecom Press 🗞️.

Today, we take a moment to relish the success of Black Friday, with Shopify reporting $4.6 million in sales per minute at its peak.

But that’s not all. OpenAI is weighing the idea of ads on its platforms like its competitor, Perplexity. And heads up, marketers: Google Ads Creative Studio is set to shut down early next year.

Ready for the gist? Let’s jump in 🚀!

In a rush? Here’s the juice🤭:

💸 Black Friday hit over $10 billion in online sales.

🤖 OpenAI explores ad revenue model for its AI platforms.

🚧 Google Ads Creative Studio shuts down in March 2025.

🧰 Tool Spotlight

⚡️Worthy Mentions

💸 Black Friday hit over $10 billion in online sales.

This year’s Black Friday has taken online shopping to new heights, with both Adobe Analytics and Shopify reporting eye-popping numbers. Clearly, good momentum from Thanksgiving paved the way for the staggering online sales during the weekend.

Here’s the lowdown ⬇️:

• Consumers in the U.S. shelled out a record $10.8 billion online on Black Friday 2024, marking a 10.2% year-over-year (YoY) growth from 2023. For context, Adobe reported U.S. Black Friday sales at $9.8 billion last year.

• More than half (52.28%) of all Black Friday online purchases in the U.S. came from mobile devices. 

• Between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Eastern Time, online shoppers were spending at a rate of $11.3 million per minute. This was the highest spending rate recorded during the day.

• This is the first year that Black Friday e-commerce sales in the U.S. crossed the $10 billion mark, marking a major milestone for online retail. Adobe also highlighted that this year’s growth rate was faster than last year’s Black Friday, which saw $9.8 billion in online sales.

On the other side, Shopify also reported impressive numbers, as reported by Shopify President Harley Finkelstein. 

• Shopify merchants made an impressive $5 billion in sales on Black Friday. At the peak, Shopify recorded $4.6 million in sales per minute—up from $4.2 million last year, representing about a 9.5% increase in peak sales per minute.

• Harley Finkelstein highlighted the dominance of direct-to-consumer brands, with emerging names like BK Beauty achieving major success and having its biggest month ever.

• Finkelstein added that Shopify’s data paints a picture of the “new golden age of retail,” where businesses can connect with customers directly, regardless of whether they are shopping online, in-store, or both.

Our take 🤔? 

These numbers are screaming that shoppers seem to have embraced the convenience of online shopping. To cap it off, brands that can harness the power of mobile commerce while delivering personalized shopping experiences will lead the pack in the coming years.

🤖 OpenAI explores ad revenue model for its AI platforms.

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is reportedly considering introducing ads to its platforms as part of its revenue diversification efforts. While the company is still weighing the pros and cons, this move could change the way AI-powered platforms operate in the future.

Here’s what you need to know 😌: 

🤑 Exploring New Revenue Streams: OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar confirmed that the company is evaluating the potential for ads in the future, citing the need to “be thoughtful about when and where we implement them.”

💡 Advertising Expertise: OpenAI has been hiring professionals with extensive advertising experience from firms like Google and Meta, indicating serious intent to explore ads.

🧔‍♂️ CEO’s Perspective: CEO Sam Altman has previously expressed opposition to ads, calling them a “momentary industry” and a "last resort" during a fireside chat at Harvard University. He prefers the subscription-based model for maintaining a high-quality user experience.

💲 Growing Costs: OpenAI faces significant annual expenses (over $5 billion), driven by the development of tools like ChatGPT. Its rapid growth and the introduction of new products like ChatGPT Search add pressure to find sustainable revenue models.

😤 ChatGPT’s Dominance: With over 250 million weekly active users and 3.7 billion visits in October, OpenAI's platforms are becoming increasingly influential, making the introduction of ads a potential game-changer for the organization.

While OpenAI is still cautious, competitors like Perplexity AI have already begun testing ads on its platform, and OpenAI could follow suit if successful. Its decision on advertising will have wide-reaching implications for the future of AI platforms, as AI-powered search and assistant tools become more integral to our everyday life.  

🚧 Google Ads Creative Studio shuts down in March 2025.

Google has announced that its Ads Creative Studio will be officially sunsetting by the end of March 2025, as part of a strategic shift to focus on new growth areas. The change will impact advertisers who use the platform for YouTube and Display ad customizations, leaving them with limited time to transition their creative workflows to other solutions.

Key dates and what this means for users:

• October 28, 2024: No new accounts can be created in Ads Creative Studio.

• January 17, 2025: The platform will stop allowing the creation of new projects or duplicating existing ones.

• End of March 2025: Ads Creative Studio will be fully sunset, with all services discontinued.

While the platform is being phased out, users will still be able to edit existing projects, export media, and add new assets or users until the official shutdown.

▶️ For YouTube Video Customizations: Advertisers will need to engage third-party creative partners.

📺 For Display Ads Customizations: Non-dynamic and dynamic customers can still use Ads Creative Studio, or explore external creative solutions.

As Ads Creative Studio enters its final year and Google adjusts its advertising strategy, there’ll be more opportunities for third-party creative agencies to step in and provide solutions. Regardless of how short the transition period is for marketers, with the right planning, your creative campaigns can still thrive even after Ads Creative Studio shuts down 🚧.

🛎️ The Ecom Press Insider

Ecom Fact: In 2023, mobile ecommerce sales reached $2.2 trillion, making about 60% of all ecommerce sales worldwide. By 2027, analysts project mobile ecommerce sales to hit $3.4 trillion globally. 

If your ecommerce business is not optimized for mobile, you’re leaving a lot on the table. Prioritize boosting load speeds, streamlining checkout processes, and enhancing personalized shopping experience. Trust me, it’s worth the investment 💵!

🧰 Tool Spotlight

This week, we’re spotlighting three tools making a splash with options to streamline shopping experience, ease store management, and boost affiliate marketing conversions. Let’s dive in…

Searchspring: enhances the shopping experience for ecommerce sites with powerful search, merchandising, and personalization tools. Its dynamic custom profiles offer real-time personalized recommendations, tailoring product suggestions based on shopper behavior, filters, and attributes. 

Miva: offers a versatile solution for various businesses and sales models, including B2B, B2C, and DTC. As a reliable, adaptable ecommerce platform, it simplifies online store creation and management with its point-and-click interface, responsive design, and extensive customization options for developers. 

Button: optimizes post-tap traffic to deliver seamless shopping experiences and boost revenue. Designed for affiliate and creator marketing, it lets users generate and manage affiliate links with its PostTap app, creating custom shortlinks for easy sharing. Button uses AI to enhance conversions by identifying and fixing broken journeys, redirecting traffic to higher-performing paths. 

⚡️Worthy Mentions

Amazon sellers flock to TikTok Shop amidst U.S. ban threat due to low fees.

FTC slams online retailer Goat with $2 million fine over illegal shipping practices.

Walmart Realm upgrades virtual store for the holiday shopping season.

Instagram launches Collage feature option for IG Stories. 

Google announces stricter guidelines on Misleading Ad Designs for 2025.

Wrapping up…

With the record-breaking success of Black Friday, online shopping is definitely headed in the right direction, and those who adapt and follow the trend will lead the pack 🚗💨. 

And speaking about trends, AI giants seem to be taking a liking to ecommerce with integrated ads, showing just how fast the space is evolving. 

Plenty to think about as we gear up for another busy week, right 🤔?

As always, stay curious, and we’ll catch you next week with the latest buzz.

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