As the time edges ever closer to the witching hour, a palpable ferocity rises from the impatient hoard. When the store doors open, the cinematic stampede can be heard from the other end of the parking lot. Adrenaline flows like a river as Black Friday arrives.
However, in the wake of the deaths and injuries associated with the event, many shoppers have become wary of participating in Black Friday, instead opting for other shopping opportunities like Cyber Monday.
Cedar Wiseman, a sophomore in the computer science and math programs at the University of Wyoming, talked about his views on the post-Thanksgiving shopping season.
“It’s a lot of hectic craziness,” he said. “You always hear about people dying because of mobs, so, in my opinion, it’s probably not worth it. Most things that are super discounted on Black Friday you can get on Amazon for about the same price. I have shopped on Black Friday in the past, but brick-and-mortar shops don’t appeal to me anymore. I plan on doing all my shopping online from now on.”
Many like Wiseman have also shifted toward online shopping. According to the International Business Times, The National Retail Federation coined the term Cyber Monday in 2005 “to describe a sharp rise in online revenue and traffic the first Monday after Thanksgiving.” In addition, this year’s Cyber Monday sales are up 17 percent from 2013, according to the Huffington Post.
“I think online has already started to gain an edge,” Wiseman said. “But, it seems to me that people still flock to actual Black Friday sales despite the fact that Cyber Monday exists. At this point things definitely seem undetermined. Things could swing more towards online.”
However, for Carter Henman, a sophomore in the philosophy department at the University of Wyoming, the experience of online shopping pales in comparison to Black Friday shopping.
“It’s exciting,” Henman said. “It has a lot of lure for me just because of the herd mentality where there’s a dedicated day for everyone to shop. It makes it seem like that’s the best time to do your shopping.”
Henman went on to explain why Cyber Monday doesn’t entice him as much as Black Friday.
“I feel like the same phenomena probably applies to Cyber Monday, but online shopping gives you this degree of separation from the visceral experience of being in the store where you can see other people who are all shopping for a limited number of things. Cyber Monday seems like a good opportunity to shop, whereas Black Friday seems like the opportunity to shop. Cyber Monday doesn’t have that feeling of exclusivity,” he said.
Henman also explained that the safety concerns regarding Black Friday are not enough to warrant a switch to online shopping.
“There are definitely problems with safety on Black Friday, I just have never experienced them firsthand. So, it wouldn’t be a big motivating factor for me to switch to exclusively shopping on Cyber Monday, though it might be a motivator for others.”
While Cyber Monday is not faced with the physical safety issues Black Friday encounters, some find that it has its own set of threats.
“I think there’s just generally a willful ignorance about threats to your identity with cyber shopping. I think it’s the same kind of willful ignorance of the dangerous personal and social implications of going out on Black Friday,” Henman said.
Eric Schneiderman, New York State attorney general, addressed the issue of identity theft on Cyber Monday.
“As the holiday shopping season kicks off and more consumers plan to shop online, there are simple steps you can take to avoid scams and protect your personal data,” Schneiderman said. “Consumers should know how to spot fake websites and deals that are too good to be true.”
Schneiderman provided a list of tips for safe online shopping, but some do not believe that consumers will make an effort to avoid cyber crime.
“I’m young and I’m not particularly responsible about my personal information on the Internet,” Henman said. “I think that people are going to make choices that aren’t particularly safe for themselves. So, we can probably expect corporate and government interests to step in and make sure that we are safe.”
