Holiday shopping trends start gaining traction as we move towards the final and most fruitful quarter of the year. The holiday season comes bearing happiness as people start buying gifts and businesses see their revenue spikes going up. This year is no different if we talk about the usual jazz that eCommerce stores go through ahead of the shopping season.
The predictions around holiday shopping trends start pouring in way early as retailers and e-tailers prepare their stores with holiday vibes. The year 2020 witnessed a global crisis and gave birth to an eCommerce boom and certain shifts in consumer buying habits that nobody had anticipated. And we all learned many things from the same while preparing for an influx of orders and finding ways to make the holiday shopping festive.
eCommerce businesses are looking to generate excitement as customers flock to their stores. It is safe to say that businesses benefitted tremendously from the eCommerce boom that the pandemic brought, and the trend has paved the way for 2021-2022 with permanent shopping behavioral changes of the mass. Before we reveal the holiday shopping trends for 2022, here are some shopping predictions that you should know.
Amidst inflation, consumers are grappling with tighter budgets. The holiday shopping trends in 2022 will be about going all-in with big discounts, big crowds, and big revenues where free shipping, convenient shopping, and easy checkouts will take the centre stage. On that note, let’s explore this year’s holiday shopping trends that will rule the season.
eCommerce businesses must put their best foot forward to make a memorable holiday shopping season this year and focus on customer experience to make long-lasting bonds with customers that can turn into brand advocacy. Here are the top holiday shopping trends in 2022 that are a reflection of the changing consumer behavior and the current scenario of the eCommerce landscape.
With that being said, let us dig deep into each of these eCommerce holiday shopping trends for 2022.
The current inflation rate is a big economic influencer, and businesses should be paying close attention to how this is going to impact shopping behavior and holiday shopping this peak season. Shoppers will keep an eye on the price drops and will be looking for big discounts this year. For this reason, buyers have already started making lists and plans for shopping early.
As early as June, 26% of shoppers globally have already begun their holiday shopping plans and 18% have already made a purchase. And with the holiday season in full swing towards the end of the year, the competition will be fierce. Hence, as the customers have started early, so must the retailers.
eCommerce retailers must make it a point to take an interest in the customer’s purchase journey to break the noise. If you are yet to stock your seasonal inventory, subtly changing up your messaging on your website and social media channels can be enough to get your followers thinking about the 2022 holiday shopping season close at hand.
Shoppers are returning to in-store shopping, but this doesn’t mean they are not using digital channels. The pandemic has changed the way people shop and it is here to stay. Now more than ever, shoppers expect a digital-first experience intertwined with physical shopping options. In fact, the NRF consumer holiday survey 2022 reveals that 56% of consumers will shop online this holiday.
Holiday shoppers prefer convenient shopping and thus, look for options online, search for gift ideas, and browse holiday deals before purchasing. The actual shopping starts way early and it is wise for eCommerce businesses to prepare their store with holiday-specific elements well in advance. It only makes sense for retailers to go with the flow and provide demand to stay ahead of the curve.
A major eCommerce holiday trend in 2022 is the expectation of substantial promotional offers and discounts during the spree. This expectation stems from shoppers being greatly dependent on online shopping last year. With in-store shopping coming back into play, online retailers need to provide a constant flow of promotional offers on their eCommerce stores to incentivize shoppers. This will go a long way in improving customer loyalty and retention. According to a Black Friday 2020 survey, 44% of the shoppers looked for special deals on their purchases, including free shipping. Retailers can consider cashing in on this situation by running limited-time offers, special discounts, or even gift vouchers during checkouts to enhance the customers’ enthusiasm.
It’s no coincidence that brands large and small are in the process of tinkering with their loyalty programs. With peak season approaching fast, loyalty programs allow you to offer existing customers additional incentives to stay loyal to your business. The better value your perks are, the more likely it is your members will want to continue their relationship with your brand as they search for holiday gifts. Due to the time it takes for customers to realize the benefits of tiered loyalty programs, it may be worth considering a premium loyalty option, where shoppers pay upfront for access to perks.
Complex and hard-to-navigate checkout processes often result in cart abandonment and customer churn. Customers want a simple payment process, including easy checkouts and multiple payment options. About 46% and 44% of the shoppers made card payments and used mobile wallets with PayPal, respectively, during the holiday shopping season 2020. These numbers speak for themselves to support incorporating a checkout process that uses multiple payment options. Retailers can also integrate guest checkout options and one-step checkout to reduce the hurdles in conversion.
The majority of the consumers claimed to have considered online shopping since the onset of the pandemic, and many more plan on increasing the usage of other shopping options like BOPIS and curbside pickup. Omnichannel shopping is a used concept with a reasonable success rate as it allows the customers the flexibility to choose the purchase and shipping medium. It only is fair for retailers to cater to the omnichannel demand of today’s shoppers to become better positioned to serve the shoppers regardless of the shopping channel.
As the pandemic continues to affect the lives of people and their shopping behaviors, many consumers expect a considerable impact of the pandemic on holiday shopping as well. Some of these disruptions may be negligible, like wearing a mask, but this might also impact the supply chain, and the shopper’s favorite product might not make it to the stock on time. Mounting shipping delays in the eCommerce retail industry could have a pivotal impact on the eCommerce holiday season. Retailers must not be caught unprepared in these hostile waters.
The busy nature of the holiday season can make it difficult for consumers to manage cash flow while also snapping up sought-after products before they sell out. Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) offers the perfect option by enabling shoppers worldwide to defer payments while still receiving their holiday purchases upfront.
The 2021 holiday season saw consumers utilize BNPL at double the rate seen the year before, while 45% of shoppers cited spreading out their holiday spending as their primary reason for using BNPL.
In the current inflationary environment, the value proposition of BNPL is more compelling than ever before. The recent Back to School spending spree saw some 40% of consumers relying on BNPL programs to afford goods such as textbooks and laptops. It’s safe to assume that the upcoming holiday shopping season will see a significant boost in the use of BNPL.
And it’s not just discount retailers who should consider offering Buy Now, Pay Later plans; Pymnts’ BNPL Tracker study discovered that 71% of BNPL users making over $100,000 increased their BNPL usage in the past twelve months. Far from being only for the low-income consumer, the zero fees, no-strings-attached nature of BNPL is also capturing more affluent shoppers. After all, why purchase items upfront if you don’t have to?
So, if your business doesn’t currently offer BNPL, now is the time to consider adding it as a payment option – or you could end up missing out on a large chunk of customers this holiday season.
It would make sense for retailers to consider this article as a handy guide to what to expect during the eCommerce holiday season of 2022. With these trends, businesses can acquire the trust of their customers and establish long-standing relationships. Although this is it, for now, check out more insight about the eCommerce Holiday season, like holiday email marketing and other aspects of the digital commerce world.
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Minal Joshi is a content marketer at Krish with a flair for eCommerce and Digital Commerce aspects. She is a MarTech fanatic with a knack of writing with which, she helps brands to curate, create, & commence digital brand positioning. Sharing insights via articles, case studies, eBooks, Infographics, and other forms of content creation is what she lives for. Being an ardent traveler, when not writing, you'll find her sipping coffee into the mountains or petting a stray.
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