It looks like the 2012 holiday season will be a happy one for online retailers.
In early November 2012, Forrester launched its US Online Holiday Retail Sales Forecast, 2012. The report covers predictions for the upcoming holiday season, noting that online holiday shopping revenue will increase by 15% over last year’s numbers, reaching $68.4 billion in online revenue.
The report also predicts that the average U.S. shopper will spend $419 online this holiday season, which is 12% higher than 2011.
‘Shopping Holidays’ Are Vital
As holiday shopping shifts to digital, we’re seeing more people venturing outside of the traditional Black Friday craze, making Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday equally important to stores and shoppers. Last year Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday each drove more than 170 million unique U.S. shoppers to the web. Combined, the three “shopping holidays” accounted for more than $2.5 billion in total online sales.
Online Holiday Shopping Tips for Retailers
Forrester offers several recommendations to maximize online holiday sales:
- Create a fast and easy mobile checkout process.
- Engage with users on the go via text message marketing and email blasts.
- Embrace the multi-touch shopping process. If yours is a product that consumers usually want to see in-store before purchasing, encourage them to stop by. Similarly, let your in-store customers know that products they see can also be purchased online.
- Studies show that loyalty programs are the most requested mobile feature among affluent consumers, so be sure to include these elements in your mobile site or application.
Curious what Cyber Monday looked like in 2011? Check out our report, Everything You Need To Know About Cyber Monday 2011.
