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Little or No Controversy About the Performance of This Holiday Sales Channel

Little or No Controversy About the Performance of This Holiday Sales Channel.

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Little or No Controversy About the Performance of This Holiday Sales Channel

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  1. Little or No Controversy About the Performance of This Holiday Sales Channel • The US Census Bureau and other reputable sources may disagree about total Q4 2018 retail sales, but there is little disagreement for the “electronic shopping and mail order houses” (NAICS #4541) category, as the Census Bureau reported a 7.4% increase. • A mystery still persists, however, as much like the Census Bureau’s meager 0.1% increase for December 2018 retail sales, it reported virtually the same flat performance for electronic shopping and mail order houses, or a 0.03% decrease. • Internet Retailer reported an even large gain, or a 17.4% increase for November–December 2018, to a total of $103.88 billion. Adobe’s data reflected a similar increase, or 16.5%, during the Nov.1–Dec. 31 period, or a total of $125.91 billion.

  2. Thanksgiving Weekend Is Where E-Commerce Thrives • Maybe that red number in the table on page 1 of the Profiler is the result of a large majority of consumers concentrating their online shopping during October and November, and especially the 5-Day Thanksgiving Weekend, which generated $24.21 billion in sales. • Thanksgiving Day 2018 scored an impressive 28% YOY increase, or a total of $3.7 billion in online sales, placing it third among the best 2018 holiday e-commerce days, with Cyber Monday #1 and Black Friday #2. • Mobile devices may have driven Thanksgiving Day to #3, but during recent years, consumers have been somewhat reluctant to shop that day, interrupting family activities. A mobile device makes it easy to do some shopping during the game.

  3. The Convenience of Mobile Shopping Is a Holiday Favorite • Smartphones and mobile shopping have transformed the experience for consumers, and online retailers reaped the rewards during the 2018 holiday season. Adobe Analytics reported mobile shopping on smartphones increased 56% YOY, Nov. 1–Nov. 25. • Black Friday was the first time more orders originated from a mobile device than a desktop computer, as 68% of all Black Friday traffic on retailers’ Websites were from mobile devices, and 54% of all orders. • Brands and retailers have been well aware of this trend, which is why mobile shopping campaigns on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday increased 44% and 43%, respectively, and video ads, almost 40% and 50%, respectively.

  4. Better Delivery Modes Reduce Holiday Stress • According to a November 2018 report from GPShopper, more than half (53%) of holiday shoppers said crowds and waiting in line are very stressful, which is why BOPIS (Buy Online Pick-Up in Store) was 67% of shoppers’ favorite holiday shopping stress-reliever. • Among other critical findings from the GPShopper survey were 36% of consumers would rely on a retailer’s mobile app to make shopping easier and 68% will shop at one store instead of another because of in-store sale offers. • Kurt Salmon, a consulting firm and part of Accenture Strategy, conducted a test of 52 US retailers’ holiday shipping capabilities and found approximately 93% delivered according to customers’ expectations, and, of course, Amazon scored the highest.

  5. Holiday Sales Success Requires a Multichannel Approach • Paraphrasing, “there is no off-line or on-line shopping; there’s just shopping.” Proving the point, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported more than 89 million consumers shopped both channels during the 2018 Thanksgiving weekend, a 40% YOY increase. • On-line only surpassed in-store only, or 41.4 million and 34.7 million, respectively. The NRF study found multichannel shoppers spent as much as $93 more on average than single-channel shoppers. • Online retailers spent 10.4% more for all media advertising during the Nov. 25–Dec. 25 period, or $106.6 million; however, they ran 25% more TV commercials than the same 2017 period. Department stores ran many more commercials, but only 12% more.

  6. Look for Affinities to Find Hot Audiences • The concept of “affinity targeting,” although not new, is becoming another critical element for all advertisers, especially for holiday shopping season retailers who must engage with ever-more diverse audiences via multiple channels. • Although similar to audience-lifestyle identification, affinity targeting reveals audience groups of similar characteristics hidden in demographic data. The primary affinity for a group typically cuts across all demographic metrics. • For example, The Media Audit’s 2019 Aggregate Report of 66 US markets with more than 143 million adults revealed 49.8% of adults 18+ who made 12+ online purchases during the last year planned to buy a foreign vehicle.

  7. Advertising Strategies • It’s absolutely clear that regardless of the size of the retailer, a multichannel approach is an absolute must for the 2019 holiday shopping season. Not only is this the time to help your prospects and clients plan their TV buys, but also their online campaigns. • Recommend local retailers train their in-store sales team to suggest shoppers use the store’s app and/or provide tablets and assistance, so shoppers can select and order items quicker in-store – and very likely purchase more. • Although retailers may want to emphasize products and special offers in their holiday TV spots, they should allocate some of those spots to emphasize their BOPIS service, the ease of online shopping and delivery guarantees.

  8. New Media Strategies • Suggest one or more local, online-only and brick-and-mortar retailers create pop-up store partnerships at local malls for the holiday season and promote them heavily on social media, especially to attract the increasing number of Gen Zers who shop there. • Relieving shopping stress is an excellent strategy for holiday retailers, especially using social media: share Thanksgiving Day time-saving cooking tips; promote BOPIS and with a dedicated entrance or counter and/or curbside service; etc. • Retailers should consider online campaigns a week or more before the Thanksgiving weekend, emphasizing an easier shopping experience as consumers can avoid massive Website traffic and a better selection of limited items that could all be sold later.

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