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Timelines are getting tighter and shoppers are shopping earlier. Here’s how to get a head start on your Q4 campaigns now.
4 Min Read
Economic headwinds are potentially coming our way this Q4—which is exactly the reason why you should be making headway on your quarterly planning now. This year’s US holiday sales are forecasted to increase 3.3% to $1.262 trillion. Additionally, shopping habits have been fundamentally changed by the pandemic over the past years, with an emphasis on faster and more convenient shopping experiences (like Buy Now Pay Later and curbside pickup), layered on with heightened price sensitivity as inflation claims the wallets and mindshare of shoppers. “October will be the permanent new kick-off for the holidays, because it feels normal now after two years and it gives retailers three months to make their number versus two,” said Mike Black, Chief Marketing Officer at ecommerce analytics firm Profitero.
A holiday 2022 report by Barrons revealed that 42% of consumers are shopping earlier than the year prior, in an attempt to avoid future price hikes, since the ASP (average selling price) will increase monthly between 8% and 12% for the remainder of 2022. In other words: buying a gift will be more expensive in December than October. Meanwhile, retailers will raise their discounts of about 18% (up from 14% last year) to offset inflation.
This extended holiday season has been taking shape since pre-pandemic times. Data from research firm Placer revealed that store visits to Target rose 16.7% in October and 3.8% in November, but dipped 3.1% on Black Friday in 2021. Even Best Buy, a retailer that usually sees big traffic increases on Black Friday, saw visits down 23.9% on the day (even though November visits were down just 12.8% and October visits were up 10.2%).
At the same time, 64% of consumers are doing their due diligence and researching online before making a purchase—which stretches out those shopping timelines even further (preceding October where we’re seeing store activity pick up).
If consumers are converting as early as October, you’d better have a game plan ready as early as…well, now. This gives you ample time for a full-funnel strategy that will reach consumers at every touchpoint of their journey with your brand.