Consumer Behavior

Holiday shoppers hitting stores earlier this year

Photo by istock.com

September 28, 2022

While most holiday shoppers (80%) plan to shop the same or more this holiday season, as compared to past years, nearly one in two (45%) are going to shop earlier in a quest to find deals and discounts.

That's a prime finding of a Coveo survey of 4,000 U.S. and U.K. consumers conducted in partnership with Arlington Research.

"Despite the rising cost of living, we continue to see strong interest in shopping for the upcoming holidays, though brands should note the anticipated behavioral changes related to shopping timeframes, generational mindsets and expectations for intertwined online-offline customer experiences," Brian McGlynn, general manager of commerce at Coveo, said in a press release on the findings. "As economic conditions continue to fluctuate, we believe retailers must keep up with shopper behavior trends and test assumptions to keep the customer experiences relevant at all times and the focus on profitability and performance will be even more necessitated."

Additional survey highlights include:

• While 54% of consumers said they are likely to look at a product online and buy it in-store, an almost identical number (53%) reported being likely to look at a product in-store and buy it online.
• Abandonment and bounce rates are always significant challenges for retailers, and according to Coveo's survey, 42% of shoppers explicitly said they will leave a site if shipping options are limited or they don't have a buy online pick-up in store option. Of those polled 35% are turned off by restrictive returns policies.
• Brand loyalty continues to reign, especially with older generations: Millennials (58%), Gen Xers (67%), Baby Boomers (75%) and the Silent Generation (77%) all stayed loyal to the brands they liked in the last year.
• Approximately two-thirds (67%) are interested in product recommendations, tailored offers, discounts and promotions.