The Ten Commandments for Tablets

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.