More Holiday Success Strategies
Good, bad or ugly, the holiday season is upon us. Many retail analysts, consumers and retailers think shopping will start earlier – and for many well-organized shoppers, it has. A better forecast for the season is it will encompass a much greater period of time, although the peak of shopping/spending will still occur from mid-November to just before Christmas.
Despite Media Group Online’s in-depth coverage of the season and, especially what to expect this year, there are many more strategies to share with your prospects and clients than what we can include in our reports.
Jack Kleinhenz, chief economist for the National Retail Federation (NRF) offers a few very practical ideas to help retailers maximize holiday sales as well as shoppers’ health and safety.
- An easy-to-navigate store – It’s common for stores to pack the entry area with loss leaders and advertised specials, which has proven to be a winning strategy. With the pandemic on everyone’s mind, however, recommend local advertisers create a holiday store layout easy for customers to shop, checkout and leave, and to minimize crowding.
- Hire holiday help staff – Most stores need extra help during the holidays, but this year some of them should be dedicated to guiding people quickly to the items on their gift lists. Whether stores have a robust or minimal BOPIS and delivery service, another group of holiday help’s sole focus should be fulfilling and delivering curbside pickup orders just as quickly.
- Promote more practical, at-home gifts – People are likely to be remaining at home this year, neither traveling as much and/or hosting large gatherings. Although many gift lists will include luxury and discretionary items, retailers will want to dedicate a larger portion of their promotions for merchandise to make home life more bearable, even enjoyable.
Consumers’ increasing attraction to companies and products with strong ethical and environmentally-conscious principles is another strategy for retailers, especially during the holidays. Use social media to communicate transparency in terms of what materials are used in the products offered and under what conditions workers make them.
2020 holiday shopping will be the same and different, which requires retailers to be clever and thoughtful and offer the right mix of the traditional and new.
