Small Manufacturers Embrace Cyber Monday

http://www.jhbuffalomeat.com For many American manufacturers, Internet sales can make or break a business. And with Cyber Monday gaining in popularity, many companies are turning attention to one-day Internet deals, promoted to potential consumers and current fans through email updates and Facebook (FB) posts. How Cyber Monday Began In 2005, shop.org debuted the term "Cyber Monday" in a news release hoping to persuade the public to shop online. E-commerce retailers had been looking for a way to highlight the spike in online spending seen the Monday after Thanksgiving. Cyber Monday allowed consumers to shop from their desk or home, with equal or better discounts to the stampedes, fights and long lines on Black Friday -- which was creeping into Thanksgiving. In 2013, comScore (SCOR) reported that Cyber Monday sales topped $1.735 billion -- an 18 percent increase from 2012. Joining the Monday Campaign For smaller manufacturers trying to make a name for themselves stateside -- often only selling online -- Cyber Monday can be a blessing. Consumers looking for an extra-special gift can find unique items not available in stores. The Jackson Hole Buffalo Meat Co. in Jackson, Wyoming, does 60 percent of its business online and will embrace Cyber Monday for the first time this year. Owner Dan Marino purchased the company, which was founded in 1947, in 1997, when the Internet started to take off. He saw an opportunity to expand by offering the highest quality all-natural raised-in-the-USA products to those outside of Wyoming. "We do custom gift packs and corporate gifts, and we ship all over the USA," he said. "I saw a great opportunity to really make the Jackson Hole Buffalo Meat Co. into a national supplier of game-type healthy meats, and make this company a household name brand." The Great Alaskan Bowl Co. in Fairbanks, Alaska, has used the Internet to sell it one-piecebowls, from sustainably harvested birch, to the rest of the United States -- and as far as India and South Africa. "We have done Cyber Monday and continue to do so," said Malen Bratcher, marketing and wholesale director. "It does increase our sales and hopefully will continue to move us in the right direction." Jacob Bromwell kitchen and household accessories has been around since 1819, and 50 percent sales are now online. "We've had an online store since 1999, and up until 2010 it was only a small part of our business," said Sean Bandawat, president. "In recent years, we've implemented many online marketing initiatives that have driven our online through the roof. That distribution channel has become extremely important to the overall financial health of the company." On Cyber Monday, it will offer 30 percent off all items.