Guohua's wealth investment products, boasting an annualized return of 7 percent (as opposed to the approximately 4 percent return provided by banks), were gobbled up in a buying frenzy that pushed transactions up to 100 million yuan in the first 10 minutes of trading.

Liao Zhi, general manager of the Internet finance department for E Fund, said the double 11 promotion provided a great opportunity to study the unique demographics of online shoppers so even more innovative products can be created to fit their needs.

Bargain hunters also sought tourism deals, with hit products, such as 10 round-trip flight tickets to the Maldives, sold out in two minutes.

The top three provinces by gross merchandise value during the sale were the southern province of Guangdong and the eastern provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu.

Alibaba revamped its logistics systems in the hope of correcting the parcel delays that plagued the extravaganza last year.

Tmall pledged to share data with its logistics partners through an online "dashboard" that identifies potential problems in the supply chain and allows companies to adjust their operations accordingly.

As a result, shoppers nationwide began receiving their parcels starting in the early hours of Monday.

Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Alibaba, said the purpose of the promotion was to help businesses build bridges with people and provide a way to give back to the nation's online shoppers through cheaper products.

"We will continue to do 11.11, but not for the sake of big numbers - whether it is 50 billion yuan, 80 billion yuan or even 100 billion yuan. We hope to turn Nov 11 into a day when merchants can thank consumers," Ma told reporters.

"What we hope for is the healthy development of this festival and to not just blindly pursue a numerical goal," he said.

The Nov 11 promotion first kicked off in 2009, when 27 merchants on then-fledgling Taobao pledged discounts to perk up sales during a slow period.

Alibaba successfully leveraged the artificial holiday by sparking shopping enthusiasm during the annual lull between two big Chinese holidays - the National Day holiday in October and the Lunar New Year, said Hong Bo, an independent ICT analyst in Beijing.

Many domestic counterparts joined the fray to cash in on the occasion, with promises of even steeper discounts and faster deliveries. Online electronics vendor Jingdong Inc launched a price war on Nov 1 and slashed up to 70 percent off such items as slimming belts and facial moisturizers.

Sales record

Suning Commerce Group Co Ltd, which has extended its physical stores to an online presence, broke a one-day sales record on Monday with sales of some products, including electronics and household appliances, jumping threefold to fourfold, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

Even higher-end luxury fashion brands tried to steal Alibaba's thunder by holding an eye-catching animal fashion show prior to the sales campaign.