What to Know About the 2020 Holiday Season: The Year of Shopping Early

If you’re not actively telling customers to “shop now for the holidays” or running your holiday deals, you’re already behind.

This year is “unprecedented”. That word is egregiously overused; however, it holds true when it comes to the 2020 holiday season. In the words of Levi Strauss & Co. CEO Chip Bergh, “This holiday is going to be unlike any holiday season I think any of us have ever seen before.”

The 2020 Holiday Shopping season kicked off with Amazon Prime Day on October 13th and 14th. Black Friday is expected to be almost entirely online — and, deals are expected to run for a week (at least) rather than a day.

As expected, the COVID-19 pandemic remains a huge contributor to future uncertainty.

“Unfortunately, the merriment we crave — eating, drinking and singing together in a cozy room — are among the highest-risk scenarios for transmitting COVID-19.” — M. Kit Delgado, an assistant professor of emergency medicine and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania

71% of Amercans said that their holiday traditions will change this year, up from 10% in early August 2020. With that in mind, it’s no surprise that consumers are planning to spend less on holiday gifts (39% of consumers) and gatherings (~60% of consumers)— and, that the majority of that spending will transition online (Morning Consult, 2020).

2020 has been the year of ecommerce — the channel experienced over 10 years of growth in just 90 days’ time (McKinsey, 2020). And things don’t appear to be slowing down — quite the opposite. Ecommerce retailers have, of course, realized that an increase of online traffic can create a slew of other inventory and distribution issues.

With that in mind, retailers are doing all they can to convince procrastinators to SHOP EARLY to have peace of mind guaranteed delivery by Christmas. Already, consumer studies indicate that more than 50% of consumers are concerned about delivery speeds and are planning to shop early (RetailMeNot).

Warehouse and delivery companies are already foreseeing problems with needing to operate over capacity and an inability to meet demand. As a proactive measure, many are warning retailers about package caps and delayed delivery dates. Retailers are choosing to start their holiday sales now — encouraging customers to buy while there is still capacity in the supply chain.

So, as I said — as an ecommerce retailer, if you’re not already reaching out to your customers about shopping early and running holiday promotions, then you’re behind schedule.

What is driving consumers online?

It’s simple: safety and convenience.

Given changes in consumers’ holiday traditions and celebrations, companies should be aware of consumers that fall in the following categories:

• Buying online to gift in-person on the holiday
• Buying online to gift in person before / after the holiday
• Buying online to send directly to the recipient

According to a Market Consult Survey, 47% of consumers say that their holiday get-togethers will be cancelled in 2020 amid the Coronavirus pandemic. 72% of consumers report that they aren’t planning to travel for or around any winter holidays. The amount of consumers desiring to buy online and ship directly to the recipient will likely be higher than ever this year.

Even with its complications, the 2020 holiday season does present opportunities for ecommerce retailers to expand retail sales, relevance and recognition. According to a survey conducted by CommerceHub, 89% of customers plan to continue spending about the same or more in online shopping through the month of November. Over half of consumers say that they’re planning to explore new brands when shopping online this year.

Retailers should be prepared for higher traffic this holiday season, and make the necessary preparations so that their site doesn’t run significantly slower or crash altogether.

What will customers be buying?

The overwhelming majority of consumers will be prioritizing practical gifts (e.g., home, fun, or entertaining) over luxury gifts.

The most popular gift this year will be gift cards — 48% of adults plan to buy or give them this year, and spend more on them than the next-highest gift type (apparel). Companies should make sure that they offer gift cards that consumers can give across a variety of channels: physical (in-person), via email, and even via text.

It’s no surprise that experiential gifts (e.g., travel, classes) will take the biggest hit this year. Before the pandemic, this had been the fastest growing gifting category.

What makes the ideal advertisement during the 2020 holiday season?

The study shows that Americans are more likely to buy from companies whose ads either:

• Explain how they’re keeping shoppers safe
• Provide gift ideas
• Showcase realistic or optimistic themes
• Talk about how a company is acting on their values versus just talking about the values themselves

An FYI — Somber and serious ads this year are likely to lead to net decreases in purchasing.

Got questions? Contact INTO for more on Holiday 2020 trends — and how to increase your business’ sales, recognition and relevance!