Source: PHOTO: Ingram Publishing/Thinkstock
STATEWIDE — You’ve been through Black Friday and Cyber Monday before, but the shopping trends are starting to favor online shoppers in different ways.
There was a significant increase in online shoppers who used their phones over computers, says Gerry Dick with Inside Indiana Business. Dick tells WIBC’s Tony Katz that several companies are fine tuning their promotion to reach customers over mobile apps, but that creates an issue.
Dick explains that not only is this time of year tough on small shops but a turn towards more mobile shopping experiences could leave small town companies in the dust, “they’ve got to be online in order to compete, and those who aren’t really seem to be falling behind.”
Billions of dollars in sales have been generated since Friday, says Gerry Dick.
However, many people are leaning towards a concerning trend in Dick’s eyes, “one thing that we are seeing, and this relates perhaps to inflation and increases and those types of things, is an increase in the ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ deals in stores and online.”
When asked why people may be turning towards these deals, Dick tells WIBC’s Tony Katz it could definitely be a price issue, “but back to that whole ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’, it has some wondering what does that bode for the start of 2024 as the bills come due.”
Dick says that method of payment is risky, especially if you’re concerned about increasing bills and gas prices. AES Indiana is in the process of getting a rate hike approved, for example.
