It’s that time of the year once again! Holidays booked, family get-togethers are planned and of course…. Presents! This is the time of year most associated with gift-giving and for a lot of retail businesses, this is one of the busiest times of the year.
Do consumers shopping online behave the same way as they do when you’re dealing with them one on one?
What can businesses primarily operating offline do to ensure they’re not losing customers?
WHERE ARE PEOPLE SHOPPING?
We might think that the days of the brick-and-mortar store are on their way out as people move more and more towards purchasing online but when it comes to the Holiday Season, it’s important to be able to not only see but also feel what they’re purchasing.
CPM reports in their survey of 575 Australians that over 60% will be using both digital and physical channels over this period and that physical stores will still rule the roost.
WHAT ARE PEOPLE BUYING?
Clothing, electronics and gift cards are the consistent top three gifting categories across age groups according to Tinuiti. If your business is selling clothing or electronics, congratulations! This should be a busy and profitable time of year for you. If not then ensure you’re promoting your gift cards as they will always be a great last-minute gift.
HOW ARE PEOPLE DECIDING WHAT TO BUY?
While it might be safe to assume that social media is the main driving force behind purchasing right now, Tinuiti also reports that e-mail remains a strong performer as a promotional channel with 58.5% said they sometimes or often make purchases because of email promotions during the holidays. This, of course, varies across different age groups but it’s a sensible idea to be running an email campaign promoting any seasonal sales.
Another important promotional channel to consider is video. Nielsen in their Digital Content Ratings report has stated what we’ve all known for a long time: Australian consumers are watching YouTube more now than ever. In June 2019 16.5 million adults spent an average of 24 hours and 18 minutes per person on YouTube. That’s a LOT of videos. Running ads on YouTube is a no-brainer but another idea is to regularly create video content you can share across multiple platforms. It’s cheaper than running ads on commercial TV.
WHEN ARE PEOPLE BUYING?
Australia has adopted the U.S traditions of Black Friday and Cyber Monday in recent years which, in addition to Boxing Day, has provided a great way for businesses to drive sales as consumers drive themselves into a frenzy of anticipation over getting a great deal. In their recent study of 5 markets – US, Canada, UK, Australia, and Germany MiQ reports that most Australian consumers plan on buying on at least one of these days with over half surveyed saying they plan on spending on at least one.
Ensuring you’re running promotions on these days will guarantee sales and hopefully bring some new customers your way.
ARE PEOPLE UNHAPPY WITH THEIR PRESENTS?
It seems like it! Or at the very least more people are being honest about it. A robust return policy is crucial this time of year according to Tinuiti with some 40% of shoppers surveyed saying they returned at least one of the gifts they were given. This is still an opportunity to impress with your speed and efficiency so be sure your processes are working correctly and you can turn those returns into future purchases.
We hope you’ve found some useful info here and from everyone at Digital Meal we wish you and yours a safe and happy holiday season!
