The stress of holiday shopping often outweighs the joy of gift buying. The crowded malls, parking space battles, long lines, limited store inventory and overwhelmed sales associates drive more people to shop online each year, where consumers sit quietly with a beverage in hand perusing a countless number of gift deals and choices. In fact, over half of consumers expect to utilize the Internet to purchase gifts and other holiday-related items this year, according to the National Retail Federation, with almost 40 percent of holiday purchases expected to take place on retail and company websites.
Online shopping represents just one portion of the growing Internet influence over holiday spending. Internet-related gifts fill a growing percentage of the buying market. Kindles, iPads, laptops and digital gaming top the list of the most popular gift choices this year. With consumer spending expected to exceed $586 billion, a massive portion of these sales will likely come from electronic devices.
Hemanshu (Hemu) Nigam is an online safety, security, and privacy expert and CEO of SSP Blue, an online security consultancy. He is also a frequent contributor to CNN, HLN, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, CBS, HLNTV.com, and abcnews.com. To sign up for SSP Blue’s Weekly News & Info, please click here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter. See also Hemu’s personal site.
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