Holiday Shopping Trends for 2012

Creating a successful web marketing campaign for the holidays means first understanding the holiday shopping trends. So what are the 2012 holiday shopping trends? 

According to the major consumer research companies like Experian, eMarketer, and others, this year is going to see more sales, an increase in buyer enthusiasm, and a huge tech influence on the holiday shopping season. 

2012 Holiday Shopping Trends:

1. Early shopping.  Doesn't it seem like each year companies bring out the holiday merchandise earlier and earlier?  This is because consumers continue to buy earlier and earlier, called 'Holiday Creep'.  Retailers will start promotions earlier (31%), and consumers will buy earlier (42%).  Black Friday (the major shopping day after Thanksgiving) deals become black November deals, and can be found throughout the month.  What does this mean for you as a business? Get your deals out early so you don't miss half the season.
2. Online shopping.  There is no question this trend will continue to grow. For the first time, last year's Cyber Monday beat Thanksgiving Day as the busiest online shopping day of the year.  Online sales are expected to be up 16.8% to 54.5 billion over last year.  Already online sales have been up 15% in the first half of 2012.
3. Showcasing.  This consumer strategy is expected to be increasingly popular this year.  Forty percent of surveyed consumers describe "showcasing" as their new shopping strategy: browsing in-store before buying online.  This creates a bigger challenge for local businesses, who will have to compete with major online retailers such as Amazon.  Creating a solid internet marketing strategy, using email marketing, and creating a personal presence on social sites like Facebook will help reach these consumers.
4. Shopping under the tech influence. Brick-and-mortars are sitting heavy under the influence of trends as they use interactive technology in-store to attract tech-savvy customers.  An example is Macy's past holiday promotion, which installed a Magic Fitting Room at the Herald Square store in NYC. Shoppers were able to try on the hottest new items in-store, creating up to 16 outfits which could all be placed in a digital closet. They then had the option to share with friends Facebook or email.  Using tech-friendly in-store promotions like QR codes to quickly research items while shopping will help you take advantage of this holiday shopping trend.
5. Mobile Shopping.  Shopping from a mobile device is, not surprisingly, another trend to watch out for as a business.  One example:  People are using mobile devices (18% more than last year) to begin shopping on Thanksgiving, to get a jump on Black Friday deals. Making sure your website is mobile-friendly, and optimizing for mobile SEO will be two key factors in ensuring you get your fair share of mobile traffic.
6. Social Media Influences Shoppers.  Facebook and Pinterest were the top traffic sources to the Experian Marketing Services Retail 500 last year.  Pinterest visitors most often went to etsy.com and amazon.com from the pinterest.com site.  Your consumers are using the social sites, so make sure your products are easy to find from these sites.

Tying web, email and in-store promotions together enhances the shopping experience and improves sales.  Use your knowledge of the 2012 holiday shopping trends to craft the perfect holiday marketing campaign on the web.  If you haven't already, get started on your holiday marketing campaign now!