November 2024 will be a busy season. With five fewer shopping days and national elections, retailers are gearing up for a shopping surge and chaotic Christmas season. This presents new challenges to e-commerce retailers, who will need to manage changing customer dynamics.
As we approach the holiday season, the shopping landscape continues evolving, presenting opportunities and challenges for consumers and business owners. The rise of Christmas e-commerce challenges has transformed how we navigate our purchases, pushing us to adapt our strategies in an increasingly digital world.
Understanding these dynamics is crucial for anyone looking to thrive in 2024’s competitive marketplace, from deal-hunting tactics to utilizing social channels.
This article will explore the key trends shaping the shopping experience this year, offering insights and actionable tips to help consumers and businesses effectively tackle the season’s unique challenges.
Key Christmas E-Commerce Challenges in 2024
With consumer behaviors constantly changing and a shorter shopping season this year, e-commerce companies can anticipate a challenging season ahead of Christmas. Retailers need to prepare for the short retail season to navigate the season successfully.
eMarketer predicts that retailers are in for a record-breaking year, with sales estimated to reach $271.58 billion. This represents a 9.5% increase in spending last year. They forecast a more extended shopping season and an unconventional retail calendar.
Additionally, consumers will be bargain-hunting and looking to social media for gifting ideas and promotions. This gives marketers a three-month window to pull off an entire festive campaign while competing for attention against major events like the presidential elections, which overlap with Christmas shopping.
Let’s take a closer look at the unique challenges e-commerce retailers face in the 2024 season:
Understanding Christmas E-Commerce Challenges in 2024
While economic conditions have improved slightly (through an increase in gross domestic product and a decrease in inflation), consumers are still managing the fallout of previous years’ financial challenges. Experts believe this will result in cautious shoppers prioritizing value for money.
With a shorter period, retailers can expect a competitive season that requires them to fight for customers’ attention and spending. The roll-out and execution of effective e-commerce marketing campaigns will be a significant determining factor for festive season sales.
The Role of Value and Personalization in 2024
The 2024 Christmas shopping season will require brands to prioritize personalization to capture and hold consumers’ attention. Shoppers are still conservative with spending and are interested in finding good deals, promotions, and specials. Combining these elements in their marketing campaigns allows e-commerce brands to maximize sales in this shorter shopping season.
With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), brands can ensure their products are top-of-mind during key moments in a shopper’s buying journey. Visibility will be essential this year, and with less time available for shopping, consumers will need to make decisions with urgency. Having all the required information to make a purchasing decision can be extremely helpful.
How Online Shopping Behavior Has Changed
Mobile shopping is on the rise. In 2021, mobile e-commerce, or m-commerce, was valued at approximately $833 billion and is expected to reach $4,711 billion by 2027. For the 2024 holiday season, m-commerce will account for about 53% of all e-commerce sales.
By understanding the two main factors driving the m-commerce boom, online retailers can target their audience effectively:
The age demographic
Gen Z consumers (18-25) enter the workforce and gain purchasing power as native social media users turn to the platforms on their phones for their shopping. Not only do Gen Z consumers find inspiration for purchases on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, but 15% of Gen Z consumers also use built-in marketplaces to do their shopping. This age group also uses mobile devices to purchase from “traditional” e-commerce sites like Amazon. By offering mobile-friendly or mobile-first sites, m-commerce becomes easier to facilitate, and brands can capitalize on the Gen Z consumer spend.Buy now, pay later (BNPL)
Flexible payment options add another layer of motivation for online Christmas shoppers. Adobe estimates that BNPL purchases contributed $16.6 billion in sales in 2023. This record-breaking statistic, a 14% increase from 2022, is likely to continue playing a significant role in e-commerce purchases this year. Considering conservative spending and a limited shopping window, BNPL and other payment options can drive sales.
E-commerce brands can effectively utilize these strategies to reach consumers and increase their market share.
A December Shopping Surge
As mentioned, this year’s shopping season will be shorter than most. In fact, the last time we saw a season this short was 2019. With Black Friday falling on November 30th, the bulk of the holiday shopping will occur in December.
Brands are encouraged to remain optimistic, as there are a number of key promotional holidays before Christmas; namely Fake Friday, Black Friday, and Cyber Week. Using these days to promote sales, marketing campaigns, and special offers is a great way to make the most of the season.
With creative and innovative marketing strategies, brands can stand out and capitalize on consumer interest.
Succeeding in a Shorter Shopping Season
There are several strategies that online retailers can use to differentiate themselves. With a shorter season, brands will need to:
Stand out beyond discounts: Smart marketing managers will focus on driving their unique selling point in all their communications, and not just focusing on price. In a sea of discounts and sales specials, reiterating your value proposition can be a strong tactic.
Embrace omnichannel marketing: Customers use multiple channels for shopping, and e-commerce retailers are encouraged to adopt this as a strategy. Omnichannel marketing can help brands boost sales during the Christmas season.
Prioritize discovery: As we get closer to the Christmas shopping period, customers will use generic keyword searches to find information on products. This Top-of-Funnel phase typically runs between September and October. As customers grow familiar with your brand, you can switch to seasonal or holiday SEO keywords
Align with shifting consumer trends: Consumers will naturally go where their needs are met. Brands must understand and align with customer needs and expectations. Trends typical of this season include value-driven offers and flexible payment options.
A Shifting Holiday Landscape
2024 is particularly interesting to e-commerce retailers in that Christmas shopping is likely to eclipse the Black Friday hype. This is in part due to the shorter season, and major political events like the national elections, and is largely consistent with changing consumer trends.
This would be consistent with previous years, when consumers have waited out the Black Friday period, to gain better deals. However, the romanticism of Christmas shopping endures, and online shops can still use this sales period.
Changing Holiday Shopping Behaviors
Consumer patterns shift with each season, and e-commerce retailers need to remain flexible to meet their demands. In 2023, customers returned to shopping in person, started the Christmas season earlier, and showed a preference for businesses that guaranteed seamless returns processes.
2024 brings with it new consumer habits and trends. Knowing and understanding these behaviors is key to online retailers building and retaining customer loyalty. Marketers will need a working knowledge of what behaviors are prevalent, what their priorities are, and when and how they will be shopping this season.
Here are a few key insights into the 2024 holiday shopping trends:
Holiday shopping is starting earlier
Taking a global view of seasonal shopping, the overall trend dictates that holiday shopping starts earlier each year. While this particular season is shorter, the overall trend is that holiday shopping begins earlier.
For decades, the holiday season referred exclusively to November and December, but research shows that approximately 54% of consumers actually start preparing for Christmas around October. To meet their needs, online vendors will need to get competitive this season.
With Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) deals heralding the start of the holiday season, online vendors will be competing more fiercely for a larger share of a shrinking market. This isn’t attributed to the fact that consumers are shopping less, but rather the fact that these Thanksgiving deals start before the holidays, and extend beyond the Christmas season. This has a diluting effect on seasonal promotions and customer sentiment.
Concluding Thoughts
As we get closer to the end of the year and consumers ramp up their Christmas shopping, e-commerce retailers will have a short and busy season. With several challenges and opportunities, brands will have to pay careful attention to marketing campaigns. Customers, still feeling the pinch of previous years’ economic downturns, are looking for great value-for-money gifts.
To stand out, e-commerce companies will need to use social media effectively. This is where the bulk of Gen Z, and increasingly millennials, are doing their shopping. TikTok Shop, Shop on Instagram, and Meta’s Commerce Manager on Facebook enable small businesses and brands to sell directly to customers via social media platforms.
E-commerce brands will need to differentiate themselves online. Shoppers can expect a barrage of special offers and discounts, and brands are encouraged to rely on the value they provide and their unique selling proposition to appeal to consumers.
