Black Friday has come and gone, and the holiday shopping season is in full swing. This year, retailers and economic experts alike have high hopes for robust spending and a needed economic boost. And so far the results look promising.
On Cyber Monday, alone, the top online retail sites registered 242 million visits, followed closely by Black Friday’s 228 million visits. And according to a new survey from Experian Consumer Services, 36 percent of consumers plan to spend more on gifts this year than they did in 2013.
At Experian, everything we do is about putting insights into action. This entails formulating and analyzing insights that can help both consumers and businesses alike. We sat down with two of Experian’s leading experts, one from the consumer side of the business and another from our marketing services business, to find out more about the key trends that will define this holiday shopping season.
Guy Abramo, President, Experian Consumer Services and Matt Seeley, President, North America, Experian Marketing Services share their thoughts and insights below:
Q: What kinds of shopping and spending patterns are you expecting to see this holiday season?
Guy: We conduct consumer holiday shopping research to identify how people plan to make their purchases. Respondents report they plan to spend more than last year and fewer are using a budget. At Experian, we want people to better understand credit, so we commission meaningful research, and our findings can help people make more informed credit decisions.
Matt: This holiday season, consumer economic sentiment is strong, according to data and insights from Experian’s Consumer Expectation Index (CEI). We’re also seeing consumers doing more of their shopping online, whether on a computer, tablet or right from their phone. This year, marketers are beginning to respond to this more receptive audience by ramping up their cross-channel marketing campaigns – and more importantly, making them personal.
Ninety-one percent of global marketers will use email in their 2014 holiday marketing campaigns, and 40 percent of online adults will make a purchase because of a promotional email. But the companies that are really seeing results are those that are using personalization – adjusting messaging based on the customer’s purchases, demographics or preferences. Today’s consumer is more demanding than ever before. They want a consistent experience across channels, whenever and wherever they prefer, tailored to their unique desires. Compared to standard trigger mailings – emails in response to a customer’s actions or based on an event in his or her life – those that use personalization achieve a 147 percent increase in transaction rates.
Q: What does this mean for consumers – and retailers – when the lights and tinsel come down in January?
Matt: Well, for retailers and marketers it doesn’t have to mean anything different. Personalization is especially important during the holidays as consumers try to cut through an increasing volume of communication, but it’s critical all year round. This holiday season is a great reminder of how important it is to create meaningful connections with customers.
Guy: And for consumers, a happy New Year requires smart celebrations in December. People have a tendency to overspend in December, only to feel overwhelmed in January when it’s time to pay their credit cards statements. We want all consumers to live credit confident and that means avoiding the temptation to throw away good spending behaviors, and instead, setting realistic, specific budgets and sticking to them.
Q: So why does this data matter and where does Experian fit in?
Guy: At Experian, we transform all this information on shopping habits and spending patterns into insights and advice that consumers and businesses can actually use. We provide data, but more importantly, we use this data to help consumers make better credit decisions. We’re helping shoppers protect their credit information, set sensible budgets and avoid potentially detrimental spending decisions that could put a dent in their credit scores.
Matt: The holiday season is crunch time for our clients. Not doing well during the holidays could make or break a retailer’s business. That’s where our expertise in data comes in. We work with retailers to draw meaningful insights from their own data and third party data, like data from Experian Marketing Services that provides them with a complete picture of how their customers think, and what they do in a multichannel world during the holiday season. Further, our technology allows retailers to use that insight in real-time so they can tailor offers and messages in the moment that it matters most. This results in improved connections and engagement throughout the calendar year, and builds critical trust among consumers.
Guy: Data is at the core of our business. We’re using that data for good to help Americans live credit confident and move both businesses and individuals forward.
This holiday season, consumer confidence is up, and marketers are making meaningful connections with their customers. Additionally, a majority of Americans this year plan to charge their purchases on either a major credit card (48 percent) or a store credit card (22 percent), and another 17 percent plan to open a store credit card to purchase a holiday gift. And yet, only 38 percent plan to make a budget.
The credit economy empowers consumers and gives them the means to fully enjoy this season and make meaningful purchases, but it’s important to make smart credit decisions.
From everyone at Experian, we wish you a credit confident holiday season!