The falling gold and orange leaves mark an end to a tree’s seasonal cycle, but they also mark the start of the holiday season and gift shopping. According to Deloitte’s annual holiday retail forecast for the U.S., e-commerce sales will grow by 12.8 percent to 14.3 percent year-over-year, during the 2022-2023 holiday season.
This increase will likely result in e-commerce holiday sales reaching between $260 billion and $264 billion this coming season, up from 8.4 percent totalling $231 billion in sales, seen in 2021.
However, ongoing supply chain problems, surging inflation and the fear of economic downturn may bring some challenges to retailers.
Taking Canada, 48 percent of Canadians expect the economy to worsen in 2023, and 41 percent have seen their household finances worsen this year. Overall holiday spending will fall 17 percent this year, to $1,520, with the most significant drops in non-gift electronics (minus 55 percent), travel ( minus 30 percent), and non-gift clothing (minus 27 percent).
So how can retailers stay ahead of trends and create wins for a successful holiday season? Jason Raymer, Vice President of Enterprise Client Experience at iQmetrix, a North American provider of telecom retail management solutions, tells Digital Journal about the following tips that can set retailers up for success:
Making the online shopping experience seamless
Consumers developed new shopping habits in the early pandemic, and e-commerce sales grew 50 percent during that time. Investing in a well-designed website to ensure a seamless online shopping experience is of paramount importance in today’s world.
Retailers have to ensure their website loading speed and navigation are smooth, the product pages include all information for consumer research, have the inventory status updated and unify the online and in-store experiences.
Rolling out the best promotions early
This year, 37 percent of consumers will shop earlier, with 46 percent believing it will help them get better deals. Early promotions may help retailers catch the eyes of consumers and influence their purchasing decisions before their competitors can. 72 percent of consumers will also shift to other brands if their preferred one is too expensive, while 70 percent of them buy from retailers that sell at the lowest possible prices. The earlier you promote, the higher the chance you can win over consumers.
Maintain the customer stickiness
The loyalty of customers that retailers have already created through great customer experiences such as timely relevant offers, personalization, and seamless online-to-in-store shopping is crucial for the holiday season. Retailers can consider offering different considerate services, such as flexible payment plans, to maintain customer retention and help them stand out among the crowd.
