How did Singles Day, essentially a made-up holiday, become the world’s largest online shopping day? And how does it influence the rest of the world?

The 11/11 Global Shopping Festival just wrapped up with another record: $30.8 billion in sales in 24 hours. But If you think you know Singles’ Day by the numbers, think again.

With one of the fastest growing e-commerce businesses in retail, Walmart (including Walmart, Sam’s Club and Jet.com) is about to overtake Apple as America’s No. 3 e-retailer, according to the latest forecast from eMarketer. The estimate comes as the retail giant registered 43% growth in e-commerce in its third quarter, with a 32% rise just in the U.S.

It is almost impossible to sell something online and not compete with Amazon. But how can you attract more direct buyers to your site? Through superior service and expertise. Observe the behavior of actual users in Google Analytics. Try to find areas of friction where the path-to-purchase can be improved.

Almost 70% of 1,000 consumers surveyed by email analytics company 250ok and partner Lab42 said they read marketing emails on their smartphones, but about 40% said those emails are not well-designed for their mobile devices, according to the survey results.

Visiting Japan, but can’t stand the sound of people slurping their noodles? Nissin promises to solve that problem for you. The Japanese food maker announced the sale of a sort of noise-disguising fork that looks like an electric toothbrush.