Dig in to explore the strategies that helped brands meet and exceed consumer expectations to guide your 2025 planning.

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As the dust settles on another Cyber Week, one trend has become crystal clear: consumer behavior is shifting and brands that use AI to anticipate their needs will be rewarded. 

According to Mastercard SpendingPulse, e-commerce sales increased by a notable 14.6%. 

With shoppers increasingly seeking personalized, convenient experiences (and turning to their phones in the process), brands who prioritized mobile-first strategies saw unprecedented success.

What’s more, AI is helping brands make the most of this shift to mobile. Brands using AI Pro and AI Journeys saw 2x higher revenue growth than brands that didn’t use AI. 

Let's dive into the key trends that defined Cyber Week 2024 and explore how brands capitalized on these shifts to convert more shoppers than ever before.

Get the full read-out when you download the Attentive Cyber Week 2024 Recap.

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Brands broke records, sending 3.9 billion messages 

This Cyber Week, Attentive brands successfully captured the attention and spending power of consumers, sending 3.9 billion SMS and email messages. This marks a 38% lift in growth year-over-year. 

On Black Friday alone, brands set a new record by sending out 620 million text messages. With the 2024 holiday season expected to see the largest use of mobile shopping of all time, it was no surprise to see an increase in mobile messages sent during Cyber Week. 

This increase in message sending paid off. By tailoring shoppers' messages based on their behaviors, triggered SMS messages drove up to a 35% conversion rate (CVR) while email saw a 19% CVR, on Black Friday alone.

AI drives higher conversions and spending among shoppers 

Cyber Week was all about maximizing impact. We already know personalization is the name of the game and AI continues to be the vehicle brands use to drive results. 

But it wasn’t just about driving more purchases. It was about capturing consumer attention. The brands that used AI Pro and AI Journeys outperformed those that didn’t, driving 2x higher Attentive-attributed revenue growth. 

Brands that leaned into AI-powered messages throughout Cyber Week saw a significant boost in performance. AI-powered messages saw 86% year-over-year revenue growth. 

Attentive Concierge™ AI messages led to a 13% increase in average order value via mobile, showing AI personalization drove larger mobile purchases. Brands that used AI also saw a nearly 23% lower opt-out rate, deepening customer loyalty.  

Using Attentive Signal, brands could recognize more customers and triggered 17% more journeys based on those subscriber interactions. This enabled them to send tailored messages that resonated more effectively without the need for any mid-week tweaks.

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Brands captured the attention and wallets of shoppers   

Marketers saw incredible wins during Cyber Week. The week brought in 12 million new SMS subscribers and 19 million new email subscribers. 

When it came to subscriber growth, showing value was paramount. Shoppers needed to see the value they’d get from both channels, whether it was exclusive content and discounts, or early access to shop future sales. 

Brands updated their sign-up units for Cyber Week, using them to not only capture new subscribers, but as additional real estate to promote their weekly deals.

List growth isn't a passive strategy. Brands that see some of the best results are leaning into multiple marketing opportunities, like driving sign-ups at checkout, inviting in-store opt-ins, and even implementing gamified tactics. 

Cracking the delivery code and getting to the right place at the right time 

Campaign messages and messages triggered by consumers’ behavior complemented each other over Cyber Week. Cyber Monday was the top-performing day across channels as shoppers jumped on brands’ final promotions.

Email excelled as an awareness channel, with click-through and conversion rates peaking on Tuesday as it captured shoppers' attention and drove early engagement. SMS was a clear conversion driver, achieving the highest click-through and conversion rates on Friday and Monday.

For the third year in a row, brands sent the most text messages at 12pm ET time. Email sends peaked even earlier than last year at 9am ET.

The second-most popular send time was 11am ET for text messages and 12pm ET for email. Interestingly, while SMS send times trended towards the afternoon (capturing shoppers on their lunch break or after dinner), email send times were concentrated in the morning, catching shoppers as they started their day. 

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Successful strategies emerge across key categories

During Cyber Week, consumers made substantial purchases across a variety of major categories. This year, apparel, beauty, and accessories led the charge in mobile purchases, with apparel sales peaking earlier in the week and beauty peaking late in the week.

The average order value (AOV) from Attentive-powered brands ranged from $91 to over $250, showing consumers' appetite to make large purchases on their mobile devices.

Pet-related purchases saw a 26% increase, the highest year-over-year growth of all categories, as consumers continue to prioritize their furry family members. 

Another notable mention is the lift in electronics this Cyber Week. The category experienced a 10% year-over-year increase in AOV as shoppers invested in high-ticket items,‌ potentially signaling a desire to secure key purchases ahead of economic uncertainty in the new year.

In addition, we noticed that sports, travel, and entertainment purchases were popular, reflecting a growing trend of gifting experiences. 

While Cyber Week has come to an end, consumers are far from finished with their shopping. Explore these resources for valuable tips on how to wrap up the year with strong sales:

• Download a Cyber Week reporting template and celebrate your wins
• Sleigh your holiday marketing goals and stand out in your customers’ inbox
• Check out these Boxing Day marketing ideas to boost your end-of-year sales

Data source: Attentive anonymized internal data from brands who partner with us, from Monday, November 25 through Monday, December 2, 2024, i.e. Cyber Week. Revenue data is based on UTC timing. Data is for all markets that Attentive operates in.