As the leaves begin to change and a chill creeps into the air, retailers are gearing up to spread a little extra cheer – and for good reason. While it may seem premature to deck the halls and embrace the holiday spirit in September and October, there are compelling arguments in favor of jumpstarting the season earlier than ever.
Early holiday promotions can set the stage for a magical shopping experience that captivates customers, extends the shopping season, and, most importantly, delivers a festive boost to sales and overall success.
An article from Forbes explains how earlier sales just means more data on consumers for companies.
Regardless of how soon they commence their holiday promotions, consumer spending consistently surges as the holidays approach.
According to the Forbes article, “You can build a trove of valuable data based on those initial impressions, and that can help you coordinate promotions and allocate resources and staff later in the season. Based on the data collected in early fall, you can create more effective sales strategies for November and December and make for a successful year-end.”
An article written by CNBC highlights an important consumer shopping trend that has been increasing after the pandemic.
They emphasize that consumers are dealing with a unique form of pandemic PTSD.
Last year’s shortage of supplies on basics like toilet paper and cleaning products that were stockpiled at the start of the pandemic have made consumers more anxious with low inventory, said Vincent Quan, associate professor at FIT and global supply chain expert, and there are obvious benefits to partaking in a retailer’s early holiday promotions.
“The consumer thinks ‘Oh wow, well there is a deal going on and I don’t even know if I can get this again, so I might as well just take the chance now and buy it,’” he said.
Shopping for the holidays can be difficult, especially when you don’t have an idea of what to buy for your loved ones. Having holiday sales and promotions earlier on in the year allows consumers to plan better and actually give them more time to get a great gift.
In addition, starting holiday shopping early allows consumers to pay for gifts as they go rather than all in one month.
According to an article written by the University of Arizona, “Shopping early means you can spread the pain of your holiday shopping bills over several months. This is likely better for your budget and cash flow than it would be to pay for all of your gift purchases within a single month or pay period.”
