Retailers are getting mixed signals about the upcoming holiday shopping season. Lingering supply chain problems hindered sales growth for much of the year and created uncertainty about many products’ availability for the holidays. The shortages have spurred many consumers to plan to start their holiday shopping early this year.
The expectations for an early start to the shopping season have spurred major retailers like Amazon and Target to roll out discounts for online shoppers. With the competition for consumers’ holiday gift dollars heating up fast, merchants are keen to boost the online and in-store shopping experiences they deliver. How well merchants deliver a steady and reliable shopping experience will determine if this season becomes a boom or a bust.
The 2021 Holiday Shopping Outlook: Why Convenience And Personalization Will Be Key, a PYMNTS and Kount collaboration, examines consumers’ preferences for digital shopping and the factors that will affect which merchants they shop with, their purchasing decisions and the payment methods they use. The report’s findings are based on a survey of 3,643 consumers in the U.S. from Aug. 26 to Sept. 17 who plan to shop for the 2021 holiday season, both online and in stores.
PYMNTS’ research found that consumers plan to use credit cards and debit cards more often than other payment methods when buying gifts during the 2021 holiday season, which will continue the pattern from last year. Consumers’ overall preferences for payment method frequency are also in line with last year’s pattern, with one exception: buy now, pay later (BNPL). The expected proportional increase to 3% of consumers mainly using BNPL for online holiday shopping is nearly double the 1.6% from a year ago.
Consumers now have more than 20 years of experience shopping online. In that time, they have become more discerning about the quality of their online shopping experiences, creating clear preferences about what they expect from online retailers. The retailers, particularly in the online shopping space, that recognize this heightened discernment and tailor shopping experiences to meet consumers’ preferences for convenience and personalization will position themselves for a successful 2021 holiday season.
To learn more about consumers’ plans for shopping online during the upcoming holiday season, download the report.
About the Report
The 2021 Holiday Shopping Outlook: Why Convenience And Personalization Will Be Key, a PYMNTS and Kount collaboration, examines consumers’ preferences for digital shopping and the factors that will affect which merchants they shop with this holiday season.