The last few months of the year usually see the emergence of new shopping behaviours. With the large scale changes that COVID19 has brought this year, the habits that are formed at this time will possibly lay down the stepping stone for new trends for 2020 and the year beyond that.
While understanding and adjusting to the new consumer buying behaviour may seem like a daunting task, the Facebook Mega Sales Package report on shopping behaviour will provide valuable insights into what to expect during the 2020 festive shopping season.
Here are the major highlights of the report.
1. Boomers & Gen X Leading E-commerce Growth
Of the people surveyed by YouGov, 50% of the Boomers and 72% of Gen X people said that they were spending more time on their mobile phones during COVID19, which means that the pandemic has accelerated digital adoption. While 85% of the people shop online globally, 80% of such buyers are Gen X and Boomers.
The trend is expected to pick up further with 43% of these people saying that they would continue to shop online even after the pandemic.
Moreover, the role of messaging services in E-commerce is also expected to boost significantly, with 46% of global consumers saying that they were spending more time using messaging services. Also, 55% of the responders said that they messaged a business during the year-end festive season.
There was an 8% increase in this trend from 2018 to 2019. In fact, of the people who were surveyed, 40% said that they were more likely to buy from a business if they could connect with it via messaging.
2. Economic Challenges May Give Mega Sales Significant Traction
Although COVID19 has affected almost everyone, the scale of its impact may differ from people to people. While 53% of the people surveyed by YouGov said that the pandemic had little to no impact on their finances, 43% of the respondents agreed to have been significantly affected by the outbreak.
In such a scenario, Mega Sales could play a major role in driving people to shell out money on purchases. Almost 33% of the responders said that they will either wait for the products to be on promotion or for some discount and sale to make a purchase.
However, it is true that Mega Sales Day shoppers are 40% more likely to spend more on shopping than the people who don’t shop at these events. In fact, 20% of the shoppers at these Mega Sales events are high earners or heavy spenders. Also, they are usually younger and are more likely to go from discovery to purchase via their mobile phones.
3. Shopping Can Be Therapeutic in a Difficult Time
It has been seen that shopping often helps people stay positive and deal with a difficult phase. This was evident during the 2008 recession when people rewarded themselves with small treats.
Euromonitor research revealed that nail polish sales increased by over 30% and 10% in the US and Western Europe, respectively, between 2008 and 2011. Similarly, the sales for sugar confectionery grew by 11% in the UK. The sales of assorted boxed chocolate saw a jump of 12% in Germany. There was a massive surge of 150% month on month from mid-February 2020 in the sales of eye cosmetics in China, as reported by Alibaba.
A giant leap of 800% was reported in the sales of luxury hand soap in France during the week of 16th March 2020. Zalando, which is Europe’s largest E-commerce marketplace, revealed that the sales of self-care products went up by 300% year on year. Amazon too reported a 218% hike in the sales of nail-care products.
This trend of self-gifting is probably going to be more pronounced this year considering the impact COVID19 has had globally.
4. Disruptions Make Way for First-Time Experiences
Although COVID19 has brought about major disruptions into how people’s lives, it has also pushed people to try new things. This trend can be seen across the world. For instance, in China, 84% of the people who were surveyed said that they had tried at least one service for the first time during the outbreak.
The year-end is the time when people mostly try a new service or a product. 64% of the respondents revealed that they were more likely to explore a new product during the festive season than through the rest of the year.
In fact, year-end shopping also leads people to explore cross-border products. In fact, the people surveyed said that they spent an average of 50% of their money on products from a different country than theirs.
That’s why it is crucial how businesses interact with audiences from different markets. More than two-thirds of surveyed year-end shoppers said that they preferred ads to be in their local languages.
5. Affordability Should Align with Brand Authenticity and Consumers’ Personal Values
People were mindful of price, discounts, and sales even before the onset of COVID19. Beyond competitive prices, consumers tend to care more about the people behind a specific business and the actions that they take, especially during testing periods like these.
That’s why social responsibility and brand authenticity have assumed great significance. People want to know what your business stands for and support you for the actions that you take. While the year-end shoppers may be price sensitive, they want to see authentic and informative content too.
Almost 74% of responders said that they wanted to see brand activity on Instagram and Facebook during the year-end. Also, an average of 65% of the respondents said that the brand’s response to the pandemic will play a significant role in their chances of buying from that brand in the future.
Wrapping Up
This year’s festive season is going to be significantly different from previous years. Having gone through so much throughout this year, people will feel grateful for what they have and celebrate it by shopping for themselves and their loved ones. The insights provided in this report will help you understand how to plan your campaign to become a part of their shopping exercise.
To delve deeper into the report, click here.