Check out the 2023 Skai Holiday Hub, your go-to resource for tips, tricks, and best practices to grow sales and revenue, reduce errors, and save time.
For marketers, the holiday shopping season represents more than just twinkling lights and festive melodies; it’s the Super Bowl of retail, where months of meticulous planning culminate into a frenzied dash to capture consumers’ attention and wallets. Every bell chime and ornament sparkle is echoed by the clinks of virtual shopping carts and the hum of digital campaigns firing on all cylinders. This period is arguably the most significant in the retail calendar, where brands have a golden opportunity to end their fiscal year on a high note.
Yet, navigating this season requires more than just understanding traditional consumer habits. The landscape is ever-evolving, driven by technological advancements and shifts in consumer behavior. Skai is here to help you with our 2023 Holiday Consumer Survey, insights from 1000 US consumers that are like giving marketers a roadmap, rich with data, that can illuminate the path towards making informed decisions, ensuring they don’t just participate in the season but truly shine.
You can click the image below to see our survey infographic or visit our Holiday Hub, which has the infographic plus numerous resources for marketers to maximize their holiday season campaigns.
Check out the full 2023 holiday survey infographic here
Five consumer holiday insights that can help marketers win the season
The consumer insights from our survey alone aren’t the magic bullet for marketers to excel during the holiday season. This is where Skai steps in. Our robust omnichannel platform doesn’t just present insights; it equips marketers with AI-driven tools and features, enabling them to implement these findings effectively, ensuring that every digital effort they make aligns seamlessly with the festive pulse.
‘Tis the season to start shopping early
An overwhelming 90% of those surveyed embark on their end-of-year holiday shopping journey before the first snowflakes of December, with almost a quarter (22.6%) kickstarting their spree even before the leaves start to fall in October. This early-bird shopping behavior means brands must be prepared to engage and captivate these consumers well in advance of the holiday peak.
How Skai Can Help: By acknowledging the early shopper’s zeal, marketers can optimize their strategies using Skai’s AI-driven Dayparting. This tool redefines your Amazon advertising strategy, boosting your ROI while maximizing efficiency and precision. It eliminates the guesswork usually associated with dayparting and targets the most profitable times of the day, leading to enhanced conversions and a more significant return on your advertising spend.
Economic pinches can’t dampen the holiday spirit
The current economic climate and the accompanying inflationary pressures have impacted consumer sentiment. Only 30% of respondents expressed comfort with their financial well-being as the holiday season approaches. However, the festive spirit remains unbroken, with a significant 26.4% intending to spend more than usual, contrasting with the 19.7% who plan to tighten their purse strings.
How Skai Can Help: Using Skai Budget Navigator, search marketers can forecast, optimize, and monitor their campaigns with ease. Leverage machine learning technology to manage budgets and adjust spend to achieve your business goals. Skai provides continuous feedback on expected results so you can stay ahead of trends and the competition.
Seeking out digital elves for gift ideas
When inspiration strikes for the perfect present, consumers have their favorites. A massive 72% lean on retailer websites such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target to guide them. Notably, Amazon reigns supreme in the online shopping realm, with a staggering 80% of shoppers naming it as their go-to destination. Also worth noting is Best Buy’s surprising popularity, with twice as many respondents (16%) opting for it over the tech giant Apple, at 8.8%.
However, despite technological advancements and a surge in AI adoption, a mere 4.6% envision using AI for holiday gift ideas.
How Skai Can Help: Skai’s platform allows brands to enhance their online presence with tools like Dynamic Commerce Ads, which enables consumers to choose where they want to buy your product when on social media. Advertisers can create a single ad that promotes a product on multiple retailer sites and dynamically updates product details consumers want to know, like price and availability.
Counting Their Gold Coins, But Ready to Splurge
Gone are the days of whimsical impulse purchases. Today’s shoppers come armed with intent and knowledge. 30% thoroughly research all products, while a more significant 47.2% ensure they get their money’s worth by researching only the high-priced items. But it’s not all about the here and now; a large chunk (66%) exhibit patience, willing to wait until January if it promises better deals.
While over 50% of consumers have earmarked under $500 for their holiday shopping, there’s a noteworthy inclination towards splurging, especially in categories like clothing and accessories.
How Skai Can Help: Destination Optimization is a machine learning tool that helps businesses improve their Google Ads campaigns by surfacing the highest-performing landing page by topic. It works by collecting data from your Search Term Report for the terms that your customers are using to find your website, as well as the landing pages that they are being taken to. This way, when consumers research their gift ideas, they will be taken to the right page.
Trends to watch: Prime Day enthusiasm and splurging on style
With Amazon being a dominant player, it’s no surprise that 74% of respondents eagerly await the platform’s 2nd Prime Day, either to scout for gift ideas or to make their holiday purchases. Only a minor 9.4% expressed disinterest in this event. Meanwhile, fashion and personal style emerge as areas where consumers are keen to indulge. Nearly 30% (29.6%) anticipate spending more on clothing and accessories this holiday season compared to the previous year.
How Skai Can Help: Brands can leverage Skai’s Search Term Analysis tool, which allows brands to determine which Amazon search terms resonate most, enabling them to be at the right place, at the right time, with the right information for these meticulous shoppers.
Gear up, marketers. With these insights and Skai’s arsenal at your disposal, this holiday season promises to be not just merry but monumentally successful.
Gift your brand the Skai advantage this holiday season — and all year long
In the dynamic realm of holiday marketing, Skai emerges as a beacon for omnichannel excellence. Our unique platform seamlessly intertwines various avenues, from retail media and paid search to paid social and app marketing, ushering in an era where genuine omnichannel performance marketing takes center stage.
As the festive tide rises, trust in Skai to illuminate your path. With our unparalleled blend of data insights, strategic execution, and robust measurement tools, we’re not just preparing you for the digital future – we’re helping you shape it. Join us in pioneering brand growth that resonates, endures, and celebrates.
To learn more, schedule a brief demo to see all of our cutting-edge innovations for yourself.
