• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

New

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Watch Fortune Daily, our new video show that brings you inside the Fortune newsroom and the boardroom

Lifestyle

Here’s Target’s Plan to Avoid Another Site Meltdown This Cyber Monday

Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 23, 2016, 3:21 PM ET
A smaller format Target store in Lower Manhattan.
A smaller format Target store in Lower Manhattan.Courtesy of Target
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

It’s every retailer’s nightmare to see its e-commerce site struggle to keep pace on a peak holiday season shopping day.

So Target (TGT) said on Wednesday it is offering its Cyber Monday deals in its stores this year as well as online, spreading them out over two days to avoid a repeat of last year when its website buckled under heavy traffic and impeded people from shopping for 40 minutes.

This year, Target is once again offering 15% off almost every item (with fewer exceptions), but starting the Cyber Monday promotion early Sunday continuing until late Monday night. Last year, Target set a company record for online sales on Cyber Monday. But that success was a double-edged sword as the event frustrated many customers. It also come seven months after Target’s site was overwhelmed during its Lilly Pulitzer collaboration launch in April 2015, earning it brickbats from shoppers.

“Traffic and orders exploded, shattering sales records and also causing our website to buckle under the pressure,” Target Chief Information Office Mike McNamara said of Cyber Monday 2015 in a blog post.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The company, which last Cyber Monday created virtual waiting lines to manage the traffic, technically avoiding a site crash, has redoubled its stress tests. “I’m confident the site can now handle far greater volume than a year ago.” McNamara wrote.

The new Cyber Monday approach is also aimed at meeting shopper expectations today, which means offering them the same deals in stores as online.

Target can ill afford to lose sales because of inadequate e-commerce site infrastructure as rivals redouble their efforts to win online sales.

Walmart (WMT) tripled its online assortment this year, launched a mobile app, and started its sales earlier, while 50% of shoppers start a product search on [hotlink]Amazon.com[/hotlink] (AMZN). In its most recent quarter, Target’s digital sales rose 26%, an improvement over preceding quarters but comparable sales slipped slightly.

Last year, Neiman Marcus’ web site crashed on Black Friday, and a year earlier, Best Buy (BBY) took down its site on temporarily on Black Friday.

Fortune Daily breaks the traditional barrier between audience and newsroom. The show transforms Fortune’s trusted reporting into actionable, conversational, and entertaining insights for an emerging class of business leaders. Watch here.
About the Author
Phil Wahba
By Phil WahbaSenior Writer
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Phil Wahba is a senior writer at Fortune primarily focused on leadership coverage, with a prior focus on retail.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Lifestyle

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Lifestyle

Hank Green, wearing a black shirt, stands onstage holding a card and a mic.
AIYouTube
‘I’m mortified’: YouTube star Hank Green apologizes for ChatGPT overuse after fans accuse him of including a prompt by mistake
By Sasha RogelbergAugust 4, 2026
29 minutes ago
Fidji Simo had to leave OpenAI. But she’s still building a business that could find cures to chronic diseases that affect women like her
NewslettersMPW Daily
Fidji Simo had to leave OpenAI. But she’s still building a business that could find cures to chronic diseases that affect women like her
By Emma HinchliffeAugust 4, 2026
55 minutes ago
Boostcamp App Review (2026): Trainer Approved
HealthDietary Supplements
Boostcamp App Review (2026): Trainer Approved
By Emily PharesAugust 4, 2026
3 hours ago
d
CommentaryMedia
Why Paramount might win its case and still run out of time to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery
By Paul HardartAugust 4, 2026
3 hours ago
backpack
HealthEducation
Back-to-school shopping raises the new-age question: how heavy should your kids’ backpack be?
By Cheyanne Mumphrey and The Associated PressAugust 4, 2026
5 hours ago
The Porsche Design Tower in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida.
Real EstateLuxury
From Porsche penthouses to Nobu lofts: Inside the $67 billion boom in luxury branded residences
By Zahra TayebAugust 4, 2026
11 hours ago

Most Popular

How Zohran Mamdani's pied-à-terre tax exposed an epidemic of 'ghost cars' instead
Personal Finance
How Zohran Mamdani's pied-à-terre tax exposed an epidemic of 'ghost cars' instead
By Catherina GioinoAugust 4, 2026
11 hours ago
Bars, bowling alleys, and movie theaters cost too much to run and visit. Americans have run out of places to hang out and we're paying with our health
North America
Bars, bowling alleys, and movie theaters cost too much to run and visit. Americans have run out of places to hang out and we're paying with our health
By Catherina GioinoAugust 2, 2026
2 days ago
Wall Street bulls are starting to admit the earnings bubble is real—and the 60/40 portfolio may be the first casualty
Investing
Wall Street bulls are starting to admit the earnings bubble is real—and the 60/40 portfolio may be the first casualty
By Nick LichtenbergAugust 3, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of August 3, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of August 3, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerAugust 3, 2026
1 day ago
Electric air taxis are finally ready for takeoff
Magazine
Electric air taxis are finally ready for takeoff
By Alexei OreskovicAugust 3, 2026
1 day ago
The Iran war already has a winner: The world’s largest shipbroker notching record earnings from the 'exceptional volatility' in the Strait of Hormuz
Energy
The Iran war already has a winner: The world’s largest shipbroker notching record earnings from the 'exceptional volatility' in the Strait of Hormuz
By Sasha RogelbergAugust 3, 2026
23 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.