As we enter the 2023 holiday shopping season, it is crucial for your business to consider predicted market trends during planning. With endless stores and alternatives for every item, your business must deploy effective strategies that can keep up with existing consumer demands.
In this article, we will be looking at how the economy, marketing trends, and business policies can guide your retailer decisions for the remainder of 2023.
Inflation Catching Up to Financial Decisions
In the post-pandemic era, we are being challenged with a recession. Inflation rates have increased, pushing interest rates up to curb the rising price of goods and services. For consumers, this is a difficult time to save money. For many consumers, their spending habits have changed for the 2023 holiday shopping season based on these predicted economic and market trends.
Survey data shows that 88% of people claim rising inflation has at least some impact on their purchasing decisions.
The most effective way to accommodate hesitation to purchase is to offer promotions and discounts frequently. 67% of people claim that they usually look out for sale items or discounted pricing. If your business is strictly online, this is a great time to offer codes that customers can cash in during the payment process of their buying cycle. If your business is in person, make sure to display signs and banners highlighting exclusive deals and promotions.
It is also important to note that your sale period or discounted pricing should begin as soon as possible. With big retailers having already started their sale periods, it is time for smaller businesses to catch up or else you risk losing out on the potential sales from this pre-holiday period.
However, rest assured that you do not have to hand out discounts effective immediately. If these discounts do not align with your business model right away, focus on creating a hype for when the sale period does go live. This could be through newsletters, website home pages or social media – remind consumers that a sale period is incoming so that you are on their radar for the holiday season.
Social Media Shopping is Highly Effective
Having a social media strategy is crucial for businesses in the goods and services sector. It is the most effective way of highlighting your products and does not require as much effort as designing a shop window. With channels such as Instagram and TikTok, you can also shop directly through the app. Imagine a consumer going about their daily scroll and your product pops up – there is no better way to introduce your brand. You can give up the aggressive sales tactics and enjoy the traffic coming onto your website through paid ads, video reels, and social media referrals via influencers.
It is a good idea to invest in video creation, with a specific focus on short-form videos – whether those are stories, reels, or livestreams. Gen Z claims that TikTok videos are a huge influence on their purchasing decisions.
One effective way to increase your video content is to get in touch with influencers. User-generated content and influencer testimonials add a personal touch to your products than your own marketing strategies. Remember that even micro-influencers have loyal followers, thus your product is likely to be more appealing to a broader consumer base.
Lastly, with channels such as Instagram and TikTok allowing for direct shopping, it is important to monitor comments, direct messages, and chatbot features. Consumers will comment and request information directly in social media. Address questions as best as you can in social media and clearly direct consumers to channels for further discussion. A strong customer service team practicing active listening supports your brand’s reputation and helps solidify purchasing decisions. The holiday season is a chaotic time for shoppers, so make sure your company is accessible and stands out when dealing with requests, queries, and reviews.
Flexible Shipping and Return Policies
91% of people report that free shipping plays a big factor in their holiday shopping decisions. Your business can advertise that over a certain dollar value of spending, consumers can get free shipping. During the pandemic, online shopping and doorstep delivery became a common practice for retail businesses. In the post-pandemic era, we can still see that it is popular.
By setting a spending threshold for free shipping, consumers are likely to purchase more to meet the minimum dollar amount to qualify for free shipping.
Easy and flexible 15-30 day return periods are also attractive to customers. Online purchasers worry that they will not love the product or if it won’t be the right fit for them. It is important to assure buyers that you will accommodate returns to influence their purchasing decision positively.
In fact, this is such a powerful strategy, promoting across your social media can make clients confident about their purchases.
Transparency and Diversity
Gen Z is the most likely to shop or buy from a company based on their missions and values. They value brands that are blatant about their mission statement and support good causes. As a company, you should be aware of common causes that align with the company mission and proactively promote your support of those causes. For consumers, knowing that their values align with yours may push them to promote and proudly purchase from your brand.
Your marketing collateral and social media platforms should emphasize diversity and inclusion. If you are a makeup brand, showcase how your product applies to different skin tones, races, and genders. Similarly, i clothing brands should promote a wide range of sizes. Through positive and informed diversity and equity initiatives, your brand can also gain more consumers via work-of-mouth referrals during the holiday shopping season. With the holiday season incoming, people are shopping for many relatives, friends, and colleagues.
Consider promoting the inclusivity of your brand to make it a one-stop shop for many holiday purchasers looking to get their shopping done swiftly.
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