Latest Commerce Department report shows holiday shopping is on track for strong growth
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November 2018 retail sales grew 4.2% compared with the year prior, indicating that US consumer spending has picked up so far this holiday season, according to a Commerce Department report cited by The Wall Street Journal.
This means that the holiday season (defined as the months of November and December) has not only gotten off to a better start than it did last year, but it's also nearly on track to hit prior growth estimates of 4.3-4.8%.
Although the end of the season is approaching, retailers wanting to capitalize on rising spend still have opportunities to reach customers.
- Most consumers aren't done shopping yet. Even after the flurry of deals that accompanied Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, only 18% of consumers said they were completely finished making holiday purchases. In fact, 58% of shoppers stated after Thanksgiving weekend that they had half or more of their purchases left to make. On top of that, US shoppers are expected to spend $26 billion on December 22, the last Saturday before Christmas, according to Customer Growth Partners President Craig Johnson. This would top even Black Friday’s spending total, showing that, even as Christmas gets closer, there's still a large opportunity to make sales.
- Retailers are pulling out all the stops to become consumers’ last-minute online shopping destinations. While consumers can shop in-store as late as Christmas Eve, businesses aren't neglecting last-minute online shoppers either. Several retailers have deployed strategies to become the go-to resource for late purchases, even as their regular order deadlines for guaranteed Christmas delivery pass. These include leveraging stores to offer last-minute click-and-collect options, encouraging digital gifting via e-gift cards, or, in Amazon’s case, relying on fulfillment prowess and Prime Now to make sure Prime members have options until the eleventh hour. These tactics give dedicated online shoppers a last chance to order online, helping retailers pull in those who are finishing their shopping.
The battle to gain consumers' favor doesn't end when the holidays are over. Retailers won't be able to relax after the holidays, as the 2018 holiday season is expected to see $94 billion in returned goods.
And the returns experience that businesses present to customers can make a huge difference for repeat business: A scorching 95% of consumers say that how smooth a retailer’s returns process is influences whether they’ll buy from that company again, according to a survey from Voxware.
Data suggests that retailers can appease shoppers who have to make returns by letting them return products to physical stores or via a prepaid shipping method — a resource desired by 88% of consumers. Enabling customers to carry out returns the way they want can positively influence their opinion of the shopping experience and lock in their repeat business.