The holiday season is upon us and new seasonal shopping reports are showing key trends that could mean an increase for your business! After nearly two years of limited interactions and celebrations with family and friends, all trends are pointing to consumers wanting to spend more time with loved ones and gift more than they have in the past. Beyond the traditional gift categories, consumers are thinking about gifts that are practical, experiential, and a good value for the price.
Read more about the top five holiday trends below and how you can make sure your business is ready.
TREND #1: “CONSTANT COMMERCE” SHOPPING, STARTING EARLY
Constant commerce describes the continuous search and review of potential gifts. While consumers are not always making a purchase, they are always looking for their next purchase. This trend has become increasingly common as individuals are constantly connected to their phones, tablets, and other smart devices. The ongoing shopping cycle typically starts towards the end of November, heightened with holiday commercials and in-store displays changing. However this year, 83% of shoppers plan to start (or even finish!) their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving.
It is important to think about your holiday promotion plan now and get started as soon as possible, if you haven’t already. Create a cadence of sharing that is consistent to help reach your audience, This might include a social media plan that includes retargeted ads or a series of direct mailers to help you stand out from the crowd. The more awareness and impressions you can provide a shopper, the higher likelihood they are to purchase your product or service.
Gift cards continue to be one of the most requested Christmas list items each holiday season, with people liking the flexibility to select their own gift at a later date. Last holiday, as consumers looked for convenient, contactless ways to spread holiday cheer, gift cards recorded a banner year as one of the season’s most popular gifts.
That trend is anticipating to be larger than ever this year. Shoppers are planning to spend 54% of their holiday budget on gift cards, with an average of 15 gift cards purchased. Dining and restaurants top the list of types of gift cards to be purchased, along with certificates for experiences (more on that in trend #5!)
If you offer gift cards or certificates, now is the time to share with potential customers. While updating your website and social media presence is important, consider a more direct and impactful approach with a mail piece, such as an oversized postcard. Not only will it stand out from standard mail pieces, it helps visualize your products, services, and offerings along with the benefits of gifting to friends and family!
With limited in-store shopping options in 2020, consumers relied heavily on stores that provided a seamless online shopping experience. And while the convenience and speed of online shopping is not a trend that is going away any time soon, reports show a nearly equal split of shoppers purchasing online versus in-store. An in-store purchase allows for shoppers to experience the product with all of their senses – smelling a candle, feeling the softness of a blanket, trying food before sending a gift card – but that does not eliminate digital touchpoints in their decision making process.
When was the last time you purchased something, online or in-store, without research product features, asking a friend, or reading online reviews? Your customers are doing the same before heading to your business. Therefore, it is crucial to have consistency of messaging across all of your customer touchpoints. Website, emails, social media, direct mail and in-store messaging should all share a consistent message and tone, even if the amount of information shared on each is different.
Before the holiday season, take a look at your website – when was the last time you added details of new products or reviews of your services? Are your emails talking about what shoppers can purchase as gifts or the benefits of booking appointments or reservations with your business during the holidays? If you are selling gift certificates or experiences, are you sharing the exciting details of gifting those items?
The idea of customers finding new products or services online is not new. In fact, the phrase “google it” is a well-known verb! However, social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and others are allowing a more personalized experience. This includes organically found items, as well as targeted ads that promote services or products that fit a specific lifestyle profile. Discovery Commerce allows products to find people, so they can discover the things they are most likely to love.
Last year, 8 out of 10 consumers said they used Facebook to find or research at least one new product or service. If you have a social page, consider how you can use ads to reach customers who are mostly likely to interact with your brand and make a purchase. Creating custom audiences allows you to move away from casting a wide net and hoping to reach the right people. Dedicated strategists at Moving Target work to ensure our custom audience filters are reaching the best possible customer matches, optimized throughout the life of a campaign.
After spending 18+ months away from gathering with friends and families, all trend reports are showing the most exciting part of the holidays for consumers are the group celebrations. And while spending is expected to be up on gifting, the feeling of togetherness is the goal for this season, with big and small experiences being purchased as gifts. Experiences might include trying new restaurants or dining locations, attending events or activities, or trying new things with group classes.
How can you package and offer an experience to shoppers? A few ideas from our clients:
- If you are a restaurant, hold a cooking class or private dining event
- As a boutique or shop, plan a “Shop and Sip” event while presenting new products
- Home service businesses can offer a practical “new year clean up” to help reduce stress for the gift receiver