Are you ready to cash in on the holiday season? The holiday surge in consumer spending represents an ideal time for your business to get a piece of the pie and boost sales heading into the new year. To make the season as effective as possible and attract more customers, you need to develop your marketing campaigns ahead of time. 

Here are some holiday spending stats to inspire you to start early and take advantage of the massive potential available to retailers this holiday season.   

Over $658 Billion in Retail Holiday Spending 

1. According to the National Retail Federation, holiday retail sales during November and December of 2016 increased four percent over 2015. Sales topped out at an impressive $658.3 billion for the season, which included $122.9 billion in non-store sales.

2. A Visa.com study broke down the 2016 holiday season spending growth into nine categories. The greatest spending growth occurred for furniture and drug stores, as well as garden and hardware at 8.7-11.2% over last year. Modest increases were felt by the clothing, sports/hobby and general merchandise businesses. 

2017 sales are up

3. In 2017, retail sales are likely to rise by 4.0% over last year. This suggests that holiday retail spending will also surpass last year’s numbers.  

Early Shopping

If you want to attract the early shoppers, get started marketing to them right now. 

4. According to a National Retail Federation study, 33% of shoppers purchase gifts in October or earlier, while 55% research gift purchases during the same time. While the majority of purchases occur in November and December, most of the research is done prior. This data suggests that by the time the holiday gift-giving season kicks in, consumers are already aware of what they want to buy and they are just waiting for the discounts to emerge. 

November and December

5. The NRF study also revealed that 36% of purchases occur in November while 32% occur in December. Consumers are purchasing earlier each year and getting smarter and more strategic about their purchases.

Black Friday?

6. Though Black Friday is traditionally one of the biggest shopping days of the year, only 9% of holiday retail spending took place during the five-day period from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday. Most of the gift purchases started before Black Friday.

If you expect increased sales during the holiday season, start promoting in October to capture the attention of the research crowd. Get your customers excited about your upcoming holiday promotions and consider launching a pre-holiday discount event for early shoppers. 

Self-gifting

Not everyone who shops holiday sales are purchasing gifts for friends and loved ones. Self-gifting has become prevalent, especially with the deep holiday discounts retailers offer. 

7. In a National Retail Federation study, 70% of respondents revealed that they purchase gifts for themselves. And personal gifts accounted for 20% of their holiday purchases. 

Capitalize on the self-gifting trend, and speak directly to consumers who like to splurge on themselves. The National Retail Federation suggests offering bonuses with gift cards and holiday purchases as incentives for self-gifting. Reported by the NRF, Martine Reardon, former CMO at Macy’s, said that their “Friends and Family Sales” offered 30% off and consumers received two coupons, one for a gift and one for personal purchases. Reardon said, “It became an event where customers didn’t feel guilty about buying something for themselves.”

Get started promoting for the holidays

Smart marketing suggests planning holiday promotions now and broadcasting them to your customers so you can maximize your sales. And one of the easiest and most effective ways to get the word out about your holiday promotions, whether early or during the prime holiday season, is via a cost-effective technology called voice broadcast. 

With a few clicks and for pennies a call, send custom voice messages to all of your contacts simultaneously. Save money on tedious, time-consuming manual calls and widen your exposure instead. In addition to the time and money-saving benefits, voice broadcast also imparts a human touch to your communication because you are using your voice. This will help customers feel more connected to your brand.

Dave Shaheen, luxury shoe manager, used CallFire’s voice broadcast solutions to promote his upcoming sales. Using voice broadcast technology, Dave’s store experienced the highest growth out of 33 other stores in the nation, including the Beverly Hills branch, and he led his company to record sales.

Want to experience this level of growth for your holiday promotions? Getting your voice broadcast account started is quick and easy. Simply sign up for free here, and we will help you prepare for one of the most profitable holiday seasons of your business’ history.