E-commerce and retail companies are ramping up for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and holiday sales. The strategies are set and we’ve got a roundup of sales predictions and punditry to share. Fasten your seatbelts.
Adobe Digital Insights predicts 2016 online sales will be up 11% and shoppers will be out earlier than ever. 55% of US and UK retailers say Amazon will drive the majority of their holiday sales this year according to research by ChannelAdvisor and Morar Consulting. The National Retail Federation expects US consumers to spend an average of $935.58 with overall holiday sales to rise 3.6% and online sales up 7% to 10%.
What’s Walmart’s holiday sales strategy? Value, price rollbacks and features, along with Santa’s helpers at checkout. UPS expects to be busy as well, shipping more than 700 million packages during the holidays, up 16.7% from 2015. Bestblackfriday.com, says Friday’s Black Friday sales may drop by 10% in-store to$9.2 billion though online sales may reach $3 billion, up 13%.
According to JDA Software Group, 75% of consumers prefer to shop early and as many as 45% may skip either Black Friday or Cyber Monday in-store shopping. AL.com reports shoppers may save up to 38% on Black Friday sales and free delivery will be common at large retailers. Consumers may see leaked ads from big retailers during the first week of November says Phil Dengler, co-founder of BestBlackFriday.com.
Online sales will surpass $1 billion nearly every day this holiday season, Adobe predicts
The 2016 holiday season will be drawn out as shoppers start buying online early and continue shopping even after Christmas Day, according to Adobe Digital Insights’ “2016 Digital Insights Shopping Predictions” report, which was released today.
For example, 31% of U.S. consumers say they will start their holiday shopping before Nov. 1, up five percentage points from a year ago, according to Adobe’s survey of more than 1,000 U.S. consumers.
Come November, consumers are expected to shop online throughout the season. The report predicts that 57 of the 61 days in November and December will surpass $1 billion, including a streak of 53 consecutive $1 billion plus days. By comparison, the existing longest streak of consecutive $1 billion days occurred during last year’s holiday shopping season. Via internetretailer.com
Amazon drives the bulk of holiday sales for many e-retailers
Amazon will be a key selling channel for many online retailers during the holidays.
A survey of 200 online retailers in the United States and the United Kingdom by e-commerce vendor ChannelAdvisor Corp. and brand consulting firm Morar Consulting finds that 55% of online retailers surveyed say they expect Amazon to generate the most sales for their businesses compared with other online channels during the 2016 holiday season. Retailers say Amazon outpaces eBay, which 19% of respondents say will lead online sales, and their own e-commerce sites—14% say their own sites will be their top web sales channel during the holidays.
Survey respondents were e-commerce executives from retailers that brought in more than $25 million in sales in the past 12 months. The survey sample was drawn from a random selection of businesses by Morar. Via internetretailer.com
Holiday Headquarters: 2016 Holiday Shopping Trends from NRF
American consumers plan to spend an average $935.58 during the holiday shopping season this year, according to NRF’s survey conducted by Prosper Insights. Nearly six in 10 plan to buy for themselves, spending an average $139.61, up 4 percent from last year and marking the second-highest level of personal spending in the survey’s 13-year history.
Holiday sales expected to increase 3.6 percent
NRF expects retail sales in November and December (excluding autos, gas and restaurants) to increase a solid 3.6 percent to $655.8 billion. Online sales are forecast to increase between 7 and 10 percent over last year to as much as $117 billion. Retailers are expected to hire between 640,000 and 690,000 seasonal workers this holiday season, in line with last year’s 675,300 holiday positions. View forecast details. Via nrf.com
Walmart outlines holiday plans
Walmart will head into the holidays emphasizing value, aggressively rolling back prices, and bulking up online offerings and features.
Walmart receives up to five times as many orders for same-day pickup during the holidays compared to the average week, according to the company. To help, additional staff will be added to this area including dedicated pickup managers in all stores, a first.
The retailer will also deploy an “army of holiday helpers” to assist at checkout. Via fierceretail.com
UPS expects holiday package volume to grow more than 16%
E-commerce orders kept United Parcel Service Inc. busy in the third quarter and are expected to hit record levels this holiday season.
Deliveries between Thanksgiving and Dec. 31 are projected to top 700 million, a 16.7% jump compared to about 600 million last year, UPS said. “The dramatic growth of online shopping and subsequent returns is expected to lift UPS package levels to a record high during this upcoming holiday period,” Kathleen Gutmann, senior vice president of worldwide sales and solutions, said Thursday during a call on UPS’s third quarter earnings. “Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve 2016, there are two additional operating days and we expect to complete over 700 million deliveries worldwide, about 100 million more than last year.”
Coyote Logistics, a transportation and shipping services provider that UPS bought in August 2015, will support UPS domestic operations throughout the holidays, Gutmann said. UPS will also rely on the automation and expansion programs at its regional sorting hubs, including temporary facilities, that it has been building up to handle the heavy volumes, she said. Via internetretailer.com
Black Friday 2016: Predictions, store hours, free shipping offers; Walmart, Target, Toys R Us deals
According to bestblackfriday.com, in-store Black Friday will account for $9.2 billion in sales this year, a drop of about 10 percent from last year. That decline will be made up in online sales, which are expected to top $3 billion on Black Friday this year, a 13 percent increase from last year.
On average, Black Friday shoppers will save about 38 percent during the day’s sales, with Target expected to offer the biggest discounts – 35 to 40 percent – out of the big-box retailers. Via AL.com
Is Black Friday finally over?
Reports of its death have been greatly exaggerated, but 2016 may be the tipping point for Black Friday as online events erode the day’s significance.
Early shopping is siphoning sales from Black Friday, thanks to promotions such as Amazon Prime Day. Close to 75 percent of shoppers now prefer to buy gifts before the start of the season and 47 percent plan to skip Black Friday or Cyber Monday this year, according to a new survey from JDA Software Group.
Among the survey respondents who mostly shopped in-store for Black Friday deals in 2015, 34 percent plan to change their behavior in 2016. Twenty percent plan to shop equally online and in-store and 31 percent will instead shop primarily online. Via fierceretail.com
Black Friday 2016 Predictions: What Does Walmart, Target, Toys R Us Plan to Offer This Year?
With the festive season around the corner, the Black Friday 2016 predictions about offers, store hours, and free shipping deals of Walmart, Target, and Toys R Us have surfaced. This year the Black Friday falls on November 25, one day after Thanksgiving, which is just a month away. Below we have jotted down all the latest rumors and predictions about the big day.
AL reported that all the major retailers are expected to provide great discounts, which will help them save about 38 percent when equated with the regular expenses. According to the reports, Target might offer around 35 to 40 percent discount on its products to mark this years’ Black Friday.
When it comes to free delivery, Cetureon reported that Target is rumored to offer free shipping service with no pre-condition of minimum order. Also, Walmart’s free shipping charges are expected to start from $50 whereas customers with Prime or Shipping Pass membership will not have to pay any fee. Via mobilenapps.com
Black Friday 2016 Ads Release Dates: Walmart, Best Buy And Target Holiday Deals Leaks Expected In Early November
Last fall, Walmart, Target and Best Buy were among some of the earliest retailers to begin their Black Friday deals and sales – some of them before official ads were even released. While we expect these retailers to begin some form of holiday deals and sales around November 1st, the official Black Friday 2016 sales ads will likely release after the first week of November. Still, Dengler predicts, Black Friday leaked ads will likely come earlier this year than last year due to an earlier Thanksgiving date.
“Black Friday comes a bit earlier this year than last year,” Dengler told iDigitalTimes. “In 2015, Black Friday fell on November 27. For 2016, Black Friday will fall on November 25. While it is only a difference of two days, every single day matters when stores are attempting to promote their holiday sales. Additionally, a few of the important ad leak dates from last year are falling on Sundays this year. While we have seen ads leak on Sunday, that is usually the quietest day when it comes to new news.” Via idigitaltimes.com
Busy Black Friday and holiday sales season ahead
We hope you enjoyed today’s update. 2016 Black Friday and holiday sales look promising in-store and online and we’ll keep you current on results right through the end of the year. Enjoy your weekend and get ready for a busy shopping and selling season.