From key search terms to AR-powered ads, this holiday season is a boon to brands that capitalize on digital opportunity and get in the game early.
Among the many shifts in shopper behavior that were triggered by the global pandemic is that of thinking about the December holidays as early as April. Marketing insights from Pinterest and Facebook were already published in June, so businesses can start to gear up earlier than usual.
Dreaming of the holidays under lockdown
In June, Pinterest put out its guide to marketing with the apt title, Earlier Than Ever Holiday 2020. While pinners always show earlier holiday activity than the public at large, this year, they were thinking of Christmas as early as April.
Pinterest reports that its search volume on terms like “Christmas gift ideas,” “holiday recipes,” “Christmas,” “holidays,” and “Christmas decor” were 70% higher in April 2020 than for April 2019. Clearly this past April was different from those of other years.
By then a fair amount of us were told to stay home to stay safe under lockdown conditions with no clear end in sight. Feeling both bleak and bored at home, it’s no wonder that people felt they could use a little Christmas right this very minute.
Cue up the song from Mame:
“As the coronavirus pandemic grips us with anxiety and fear, we should all follow Mame’s lead and light up the night with holiday lights and lighthearted music.” That’s the comment from April 2020 on the video.
From dreaming to planning and shopping
One major difference to note between the two guides, though is this: While Facebook does draw on some data from 2020 to account for the pandemic’s impact, it primarily draws its holiday trends from 2019, in contrast to Pinterest’s focus on 2020 for holiday searches. Consequently, even if Facebook reaches a wider range of people, Pinterst’s report is more up to date.
Pinterest quotes a male pinner’s observation: “I’ll be starting to look online much earlier than normal, simply because shipping delays are quite likely at the moment. You don’t know exactly when you’re going to see the products.”
Accordingly, Pinterest includes assurance of delivery on time and incentives for early orders among its guidelines for eCommerce businesses. But it’s not just about the purchases; it’s about the experience for the holidays that consumers seek as they have to find new ways to prepare.
Pinterest points out that with the possibility of restrictions remaining in place for shopping at physical stores or consumers’ own wariness about crowds, online discovery will be more important than ever as shoppers will look for web content to take the places of holiday displays to inspire them.
It quotes a pinner’s observation: “In previous years I would often go into the city and into shops for inspiration. We can’t do that at the moment at all.”
The Pinterest report ends with a reminder that with all the stress and suffering that people have been through this year, they really want to have a happy holiday season. They also will be thinking about it earlier than usual, which presents an opportunity for brands to connect with consumers ahead of the holidays, providing them with ideas for celebrations and timely delivery of the products that will make them realize their vision.
Facing the holiday now
Facebook also put out its holiday planning guide in June with a special site called Holiday, Unwrapped. That offers a link to a 35 page report called The 2020 Facebook Holiday Package INSIGHTS | SOLUTIONS | INSPIRATION.
Facebook agrees with Pinterest’s assessment that the holidays in 2020 will be different and that people are counting on the occasion to come together with loved ones – even if they will only be able to do so by sending them a gift and seeing them unwrap it virtually.
It also agrees with Pinterest that the self-gift is gaining popularity and offers a viable market for brands this holiday season. It found that 74% of global holiday shoppers indicate that they are on their own holiday gift list. Interestingly, the percentage drops to a mere 12% for shoppers in the U.S.
The great online shift
But the really big deal, according to both social media platforms, is the shift from brick-and-mortar to online shopping even for Gen X and Boomers. Facebook reports that as a result of the pandemic, over 80% of shoppers in those age brackets have shopped online (my MIL is not among them, though).
Whether it was a person’s own desire for safety, or government mandates that shut the stores down, people were forced to either not shop at all or shop online, and that proved that when needs must, people can adapt. Facebook reported, “43% of people surveyed say they expect to shop online more frequently after the outbreak is over.”
Online ordering doesn’t always eliminate coming to a physical store, though. Some people still opt to pick up their purchases in the store when they buy online under the model of BOPIS, which Facebook predicts “will be vital to the 2020 holiday season.” It found that “56% of global holiday shoppers surveyed care about the ability to BOPIS when shopping, up 19% from 2018-19.”
As Facebook is rolling out AR capabilities, that is something it is also pushing for holiday shopping as a virtual “try before you buy.” It points out that its AR camera effects can give people the experience of the product on Instagram and Facebook ads and suggests partnering with an AR producer to set those up.
The Met is set
It’s not just online marketers that are getting set for the holidays. The Metropolitan Museum of Art unveiled its Holiday Preview in July. Like all other New York City museums, it has been closed to visitors since March, and that puts a big dent in its revenue stream.
Those who purchase from the museum shop usually pick up something as a souvenir of a visit or a particular exhibit. The only other impetus they have to buy something from the shop is as a gift for someone else, which is why the holiday push makes sense.
Perhaps other museums and major attractions that still remain closed will follow suit with a push for online sales for the holidays even during the summer.