Salesforce Data: AI Steers the Cyber Week Shopping Cart to $61 Billion in Sales

Salesforce data and insights based on the activity of global shoppers reveal strong consumer interest in Cyber Week and the power of AI agents to maximize conversion
AI contributed to 17% of global purchases in the last seven weeks
Salesforce today reported that the upcoming Cyber Week is expected to drive $311 billion in global sales as consumers eagerly await holiday deals, with the use of AI and agents set to influence up to 19% of those orders.
The Salesforce Shopping Index — which analyzes data from 1.5 billion global shoppers, more than 1.5 trillion page views, and hundreds of millions of unique SKUs on the Salesforce Customer 360 platform — showed that since the start of October, digital retailers using generative AI and agents increased their average order value by 7% compared to those without the technology ($117 vs. $109). AI and agents were also responsible for driving 17% of global orders through personalized recommendations, targeted promotions, and smarter customer service.
Retailers using AI-powered agents during this time frame also doubled customer service engagement, addressing complex cases faster as 30% of consumers prefer agents for speedier service. 
“Agents have the potential to transform the holiday season by helping retailers provide personalized, timely, and efficient service to shoppers when they need it most,” said Michael Affronti, SVP and GM of Commerce Cloud. “There is a wide open opportunity for digital retailers to use AI for personal shopper agents that help consumers find exactly what they’re looking for and continue to make the path to purchase an easy one.” 
Salesforce’s Cyber Week 2024 predictions: Reviewing real-time aggregate data stemming from Agentforce, Commerce Cloud, Service Cloud, and Marketing Cloud, Salesforce expects to see four major trends during this year’s most critical shopping week:
Driving the news: Separately, a recent Salesforce survey found that 45% of global consumers are waiting to make purchases until Cyber Week, beginning November 26, to take advantage of the best deals of the season. This points to an opportunity for retailers to capitalize on shoppers’ excitement and drive more conversions with discounts and agentic customer service experiences. 
In addition, the Salesforce Shopping Index’s early holiday findings, captured between Oct. 1 and Nov. 14, showed:
Salesforce perspective: “While there was a slow start to shopping in October, November is kicking off with enthusiasm. With nearly half of shoppers waiting to make purchases during Cyber Week and nearly a quarter of all holiday sales expected to take place over these seven days, this is the time for retailers to pull out all the stops with the help of AI and agents.” – Caila Schwartz, Director of Consumer Insights and Strategy
2024 Salesforce holiday insights and predictions methodology
Powered by Agentforce, Commerce Cloud, Marketing Cloud, and Service Cloud, Salesforce analyzed aggregated data to produce holiday insights from the activity of more than 1.5 billion global shoppers across more than 89 countries, with a focus on 18 key markets: the U.S., Canada, U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, the Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan, Australia, and New Zealand), Switzerland, LAM (Latin America), MEA (Middle East and Africa), Eastern Europe, Belgium, and the Nordics. This battery of benchmarks provides a deep look into the last nine quarters and the current state of digital commerce. Several factors are applied to extrapolate macroeconomic figures for the broader retail industry, and these results are not indicative of Salesforce performance.
The prediction data that we present are from proprietary Salesforce research. The calculations we use blend first-party and third-party data, as well as several market assumptions, to generate the data points we present.