What physical stores should expect this holiday shopping season

This COVID-impacted holiday shopping season, the question keeping brick-and-mortar retailers up at night is: will people even be shopping in-store?

Morning Consult survey conducted 1-3 September, which found that 31% plan to split their holiday shopping between online and in store, while 27% plan to do most of their holiday shopping in stores.

That same Morning Consult survey reported that 19% of holiday shoppers will start their holiday shopping earlier this year than in previous years. A report from Salesforce agreed, claiming that earlier holiday shopping would likely be due to “Cyber Week” and Amazon’s “Prime Day” being close to each other, in late October and early November.

Tip 1 - start early

Updating your location listings with accurate information is a great place to start – after all, if holiday shoppers can’t find you, they can’t buy things from you.

Washington Post predicts that this holiday season, people will be giving fewer “experiences” (e.g. concert tickets) and more material goods – which is good news for retailers. According to IBM’s annual retail survey, shoppers will likely be buying more groceries, alcohol and home improvement supplies than in past years.

“Some retailers will offer 15% discounts to people who fulfill in the stores,” says Caila Schwartz, a senior industry strategist at Salesforce Commerce Cloud.

Tip 2: offer COVID-friendly pickup options

Salesforce predicts that brands offering store pickup — curbside, inside, drive-through —  will see a 90% increase in digital sales over the previous holiday season.

Listings tool. Another way to get the word out is by sharing to your local social media audiences, and Location Posts can help you maximize the reach of your messages while tailoring them so they’re relevant to local audiences.

In summary:

• Offer in-store pickup if possible, and be sure to spread the word by keeping your location listings updated and sharing offerings & promotions with your audience