The acceleration of online shopping due to COVID-19 has brands focused on and investing in their online presence. In fact, almost a third (31%) of businesses are starting their holiday season promotions and sales earlier this year, and over a third (39%) of businesses think researching and purchasing will start even earlier this year due to COVID-19 (Bazaarvoice survey of over 140 brands and retailers in North America, Europe, and Australia 2020).
The start of the holiday shopping period often centres around Amazon Prime Day, which has typically taken place in mid-July. This year, Amazon has confirmed that Prime Day will be delayed until October, and yet 90% of brands and retailers say they’re ready to spend as much or more on Prime Day this year than in years past (Profitero, “The 2020 Prime Day Outlook.” April, 2019).
It goes without saying that during the upcoming holidays, gifting is going to be a big business. Brands are keen to do everything they can to recapture lost sales revenue from a very turbulent year. Shopping behaviours have shifted with a great deal of purchases likely taking place online. People will be eager to buy gifts for loved ones during the holidays even if they don’t feel comfortable venturing out into stores.
How can you prepare for the holiday rush?
The early bird catches the worm
The biggest gift that brands can give their customers in 2020 is that of confidence. According to the Bazaarvoice Sales and Client Success teams, the #1 thing brands and retailers mentioned to them as a pain point during the holiday season was not collecting enough user generated content on their pages before the shopping surge began.
Implementing intelligent guided selling platforms now will optimize your online customer journeys and increase shopper loyalty while also boosting positive user generated content. Properly configured, intelligent guided selling platforms can leverage social media reviews and ratings to help consumers make educated choices about the products they purchase online. As gifting sales grow those brands that have focused on guided sales platforms will have insight into customer preferences, which will enhance the development of accurate demand forecasting through the balance of the holidays.
Get personal
Brands who focus their efforts on creating a brilliant online brand experience will be the winners in the run up to Christmas and beyond. Gifting is something customers are keen to get just right, and clever gift finder tools not only reduce shopping stress but also give customers confidence they are making the right decision, improving purchase propensity and minimizing returns. A consumer persona that is emerging from the global pandemic is the continually conscious shopper, the person who does not want to be wasteful. A properly configured intelligent guided selling platform will help showcase ethical brand values that will resonate with this consumer type.
The metrics that matter
And if the previous calls to action do not resonate with a brand’s plan for innovating their gift giving focus, the metrics of successfully integrated dynamic customer journeys should be compelling. The results of this service are hard to ignore.
- Brands have seen 5X increases in online conversion rates
- Customers have been 3X more likely to make a purchase
- Engagement and online session times are 6X greater
How can Conversity Help?
The run up to Christmas and the effectiveness of each brands’ e-commerce ecosystem is quite possibly the most important consideration for brands as they battle to regain momentum post COVID-19. Conversity can help. As the global leader in deploying intelligent guided selling systems, we can help drive more personal online experiences and greater conversion rates yielding stronger sales revenue and profits.
We would love to discuss how your brand can bolster conversion and digital effectiveness in the run up to Christmas, get in touch.