Mother’s Day Draws Millions of Last-Minute Online Shoppers to Flowers, Gifts & Greetings Category

Site Traffic Spikes and Online Sales Approach $200 Million in the Week Prior to Mother’s Day

RESTON, VA. May 18, 2006 –Comscore Networks today released a review of Internet activity in the weeks leading up to Mother's Day 2006. Comscore reported strong growth in traffic and sales for online retailers of flowers, gifts and greetings compared to the previous year.

Sales Growth Continues for Flower & Gift Retailers

Online spending in the Flowers & Gifts category showed continued growth, peaking in the week prior to Mother’s Day at $195.8 million in sales. That weekly total eclipsed the coinciding week last year (week ending May 8, 2005) by nearly $28 million and marking 16 percent year-over-year growth.

“Online retail spending related to Mother’s Day exhibited strong growth over last year, as increasing numbers of consumers continue to become more comfortable making their purchases online,” said Rob Harles, senior vice president of Comscore Networks. “Mother’s Day has a way of sneaking up on many consumers, but Internet retailers have done an excellent job adapting to last-minute shoppers to capture their business. While most gift retailers are able to ship out just a couple of days in advance of Mother’s Day, flower retailers are reaping the benefits of being able to fulfill orders placed as late as that Sunday.”

Traffic Surges to Flowers, Gifts & Greetings Category
Looking for last-minute Mother’s Day gifts, consumers flocked to sites in the Flowers, Gifts & Greetings category during Mother’s Day Week (May 8 – May 14). Nearly 18 million visited the category during the week, which amounted to 60 percent more traffic than the average of the previous five weeks. American Greetings Property and Hallmark, the most-trafficked sites in the category, saw double-digit gains over prior weeks. American Greetings jumped 15 percent to 3.3 million visitors, while Hallmark drew slightly fewer visitors (3.2 million) but showed a larger percentage gain (32 percent).

However, flower retailers experienced the biggest jumps in visitation for Mother’s Day Week, with the top sites increasing their traffic by multiples. FTD.com saw the biggest gains and was the most visited site in the category, drawing 4.2 million visitors during Mother’s Day Week, which marked a 504 percent increase over the average of the previous five weeks. ProFlowers.com jumped 327 percent to 2.5 million visitors, while 1-800-FLOWERS.com rose 277 percent to 2.3 million visitors.

About Comscore Networks

Comscore Networks provides unparalleled insight into consumer behavior and attitudes. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section of more than 2 million consumers who have given Comscore explicit permission to confidentially capture their browsing and transaction behavior, including online and offline purchasing. Comscore panelists also participate in survey research that captures and integrates their attitudes and intentions. Through its proprietary technology, Comscore measures what matters across a broad spectrum of behavior and attitudes. Comscore consultants apply this deep knowledge of customers and competitors to help clients design powerful marketing strategies and tactics that deliver superior ROI. Comscore services are used by global leaders such as AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Verizon, Best Buy, The Newspaper Association of America, Tribune Interactive, ESPN, Fox Sports, Nestlé, MBNA, Universal McCann, the United States Postal Service, Merck and Expedia. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com.

Press
Bill Daddi
Daddi Brand Communications
646-370-1341
press@comscore.com