Holiday 2019 Wrap-Up: Discounts, Shortened Sales Season Make For Tough Sledding
The 2019 holiday season was a solid if unspectacular success, with overall retail sales up 3.4% and online sales up 18.8%, according to data from Mastercard SpendingPulse. The results were slightly below the 3.8% to 4.2% total growth projected by the NRF, but the dip was not entirely unexpected due to geopolitical concerns that slightly […]
Harris Poll Survey: 82% Of Shoppers Say Retailers Should Reduce Returns To Boost Sustainability
Shoppers are increasingly aware of returns’ environmental impact, and they want retailers to fix the problem: 82% of e-Commerce customers say that that online retailers have a responsibility to do all they can to reduce returns due to the negative impact processing a return has on the environment, according to a survey by The Harris […]
4 Last-Minute Tips To Mitigate Holiday Returns Challenges
For retailers, the morning-after New Year’s hangover has nothing to do with alcohol and almost everything to do with returns. In fact, UPS dubbed Jan. 2, 2020 “National Returns Day,” projecting holiday returns to peak with 1.9 million returns taking place — a 26% increase from last year’s top returns day. Simply put, more online […]
Smoothing The Customer Experience To Close Out The Holiday Season
Before the first leaf dropped on a cool, crisp autumn day, holiday decorations were already on display in most local retail stores, reminding us all of the biggest shopping season to come. I admit, I am a sucker for a good Black Friday sale; I already planned for my future house appliance purchases to take […]
Mastercard: Holiday E-Commerce Sales Jump 18.8%, Far Outpacing 1.2% In-Store Revenue Growth
As the first of many holiday season sales results come in, it appears e-Commerce continues to be a chief driver of overall retail revenue growth. Holiday retail sales increased 3.4%, excluding automobile sales, with online sales growing 18.8% compared to 2018, according to the Mastercard 2019 SpendingPulse Holiday Report. The online sales increase is up […]
Brand Advocates Play Major Role In Holiday Gifting, Promotions
With more than half of global consumers desiring an online assistant to engage with as they browse products, more retailers are answering the call this holiday season by using their best customers, or “brand advocates,” as virtual shopping assistants. Shoppers frequently turn to brand advocates for gifting advice, since advocates already own many of the […]
Amazon Expands Free Holiday Return Policy To ‘Millions’ Of Items
With shoppers expected to return $41.6 billion worth of merchandise bought online this November and December, according to a study by CBRE and Optoro, Amazon is looking to make returns processes easier by expanding free returns to “millions” of items — including electronics, household items, pet supplies and kitchen appliances — as long as they […]
Mobile App Installs Jump 94% For Holiday 2019
Gift buyers are using their phones to search for deals, causing app installs to jump 94% during the holiday season compared to the 2019 average. Additionally, 25% of those who installed an app during Cyber Week went on to complete a purchase. Retail apps are more effective sales environments than mobile web pages: in-app conversion […]
Old Navy Partners With Postmates For Last-Minute Holiday Deliveries
Seeking to give last-minute holiday shoppers a less stressful buying experience, Old Navy is offering on-demand delivery for shoppers using its buy online/pick up in-store (BOPIS) capability. The retailer is partnering with Postmates to offer a new service that will deliver BOPIS orders directly to customers’ front doors. Shoppers in the 4,000 U.S. cities where […]
BOPIS Blossoms As Holidays Hit The Home Stretch
Black Friday has come and gone, but retailers can’t afford to rest on their laurels: seven of the year’s busiest shopping days are still ahead, according to data from ShopperTrak. Last-minute shoppers provide retailers with a bevy of opportunities — provided they can rise to the occasion and deliver a great shopping experience all the […]