American consumer-worship of the iPad reached dizzying new heights during the 2011 holiday shopping season, as tablet ownership doubled and purchases from the devices reached 7% of all online sales on Christmas Day. Since recent numbers make it clear that retailers can't afford to overlook the growing popularity of these devices, here are the ten commandments for leveraging the Almighty Tablet:

1. Thou shalt make engaging, tablet-specific promotions - tablet users responded to Black Friday Cyber Monday promotions at higher rates than PC or mobile users.

2. Thou shalt appeal to affluent males aged 18-34, the largest demographic of tablet users.

3. Thou shalt create special weekend-only promotions, when tablet users shop online by greater margins than PC users.

4. Thou shalt not forget to optimize video content for tablets, as tablet users tend to spend more time on research and entertainment consumption.

5. Thou shalt not treat all mobile users the same - segment out tablet users from smartphone users due to distinct differences in spending behavior.

6. Thou shalt act quickly - approximately 29 percent of American adults now own either an e-reader or tablet device.

7. Thou shalt make the tablet shopping experience as seamless as possible - last year tablet visitors spent 54 percent more than smartphone visitors and 21 percent more per purchase than desktop/laptop visitors.
   

8. Thou shalt not ignore the next frontier of tablet saturation: public education.

9. Thou shalt optimize for home viewing - studies show that 58% of tablet use occurs at home.

10. You shalt not covet your competitor's tablet presence - make sure you have a customized mobile strategy that includes tablet optimization to engage your audience and empower your customers.

2011 was a huge year for digital, and 2012 looks to be even bigger. This year saw a search engine giant enter the social space, a two-horse race in the exploding smartphone market, a record-setting haul for holiday eCommerce, the death of icon Steve Jobs, huge sales for Amazon's Kindle, and social media tools like Twitter helping to fuel democratic revolutions around the world.

Cuker had a banner year as well, with global mobile commerce, multiple web awards, exciting eCommerce site launches, and rewarding non-profit work for great causes. We couldn't have done it without our great clients, partners, friends and associates - so thank you for helping to make 2011 our best year ever. Have a safe and happy New Year!

After a record-shattering Black Friday and Cyber Monday, online shoppers show no signs of slowing down in what has become a historic holiday spending frenzy. While Cyber Monday hit a record $1.25 billion - the biggest online shopping day in history - Web shoppers continued shopping throughout the week, generating sales of almost $6 billion on Monday through Friday. Black Friday sales on mobile and tablet devices surged to 9.8% in 2011 from 3.2% in 2010, and final mobile sales figures during Cyber Monday are expected to be double over the same period last year. With numbers like these, economists are hopeful that online sales during the 2011 holiday season could put Santa - and the economy as a whole - into overdrive.

Cyber Monday's not even halfway over and e-tailers are already finding lots to cheer about this season. While brick and mortar shoppers battled gunfire and pepper spray, online shoppers spent a cool $816 million from the comfort of their own homes via PC's and mobile devices. This impressive spike made Black Friday the biggest eCommerce date so far in 2011 and showed a 26% jump over Black Friday 2010. With today's Cyber Monday expected to break records of its own, Holiday 2011 could be a very merry season for online retailers across the board.

At Cuker, we love surfing - and we love supporting great causes! We'll be doing both on September 24th when we surf to raise money for Boys to Men, a non-profit providing mentors for at-risk boys in the local community. Learn more about the 100 Wave event and how you can help us support this important mission HERE. We'll see you there!