30/05/2017
Brits Getting Ahead of the Game by Starting their Christmas Shopping Early
A study from Criteo is showing that the British people already made a splash and spent £2 billion on Christmas presents this year. The report shows that over 15% have spent at least £200 on presents for Christmas 2017, indicating a move away from the traditional Christmas rush in December.
Spending Changes
There are a number of possible reasons for these changes, including the possibility of uncertainty due to Brexit and the General Election, for example, but regardless of the reasons, this shows that fresh marketing strategies and tactics may need to be considered by businesses and brands.
The study shows that 12% of the British people have bought all of their Christmas gifts before June, and 30% have spent at least £100 in total. Somewhat surprisingly, this is a trend that is being headed by the younger generation – with 47% of customers being between 18 – 34 years old and having bought their first Christmas present by May.
According to the study, 9% of the shoppers between 18 – 24 years of age also claim that they have already bought all the Christmas presents they planned, but 50% of the British population are planning on looking for good deals on Black Friday.
Marketing
These new trends mean that the more traditional marketing push that we see nearer to the end of the year is set to have less impact, and it is likely that marketers will be having to focus on creating and nurturing relationships with a business or brand`s customers all year round.
We’re haven’t even reached half of the year, and it became clear that customers all across the globe are already preparing for Christmas,” claimed Thomas Jeanjean, who is the EVP of Global Mid-Market Sales at Criteo. “As the hopping is easier today than it was ever before due to high usage of tablets, smartphones, and in-store experiences that are constantly improving, people don’t wait to get a head start on their spending that is usually carried out in December! The retailers, for whom this means they will face early shoppers’ engagement, the timely reaction is essential, if they intend to provide satisfactory service to those people who are looking to get ahead of the schedule come Christmas. Even more importantly, by investing in Christmas shopping spree now, brands will make significant steps towards establishing a loyal customer base, which will result in real spending kicks near the end of the year.”
Changes such as theses - in the way that the population are shopping is something that marketers need to be paying attention to, for them to continue to be able to carry out their jobs effectively. By adapting to the way that people are shopping, business marketing can help to ensure that a business or brand doesn`t get left behind, especially in the Christmas `rush`.