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This blog will look at the winners and losers in the retail space. Who has the right strategy to capture consumer dollars? It also will look for trends in consumer spending and how that will impact the economy.
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Consumers, still smarting from high gasoline prices, may leave the car in the garage a little more this holiday season, and shop online.
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All retailers are expecting sales to slow from last year but a new survey shows that online retailers are likely to feel less of a pinch than their brick-and-mortar counterparts.
More than half of online retailers surveyed expect their holiday sales to rise at least 15 percent from last year, according to a survey conducted by Shopzilla for Shop.org, the digital division of the National Retail Federation. Compare that to the trade group's forecast for retailers overall: a projected 2.2 percent gain from last year.
Last year, 78 percent of all retailers forecast at least 15 percent sales growth. Online sales rose 19 percent between 2006 and 2007, according to Web marketing firm comScore.
"Online retailers are resilient, but not immune, to the challenges of this holiday season," said Scott Silverman, executive director of Shop.org.
The survey polled 60 online retailers from Oct. 1 through 20 about their expectations, and about 2,040 online shoppers From Sept. 29 through Oct. 3.
The good news for consumers is that online retailers are going to reach into the same bag of tricks as traditional retailers to drum up sales and that means: promotions, promotions, promotions.
The most popular online offer is free shipping. More than three-fourths of the online retailers surveyed said they plan to offer free shipping at some point during the holiday season. That's fairly consistent with last year's findings.
But expect these deals to come with more strings attached. One-fifth of those surveyed say they are going to require customers to purchase more goods to be eligible for the free shipping offer, and one-in-ten will cut back on using free shipping without conditions.
Retailers are offsetting the expense of free shipping promotions by renegotiating terms with shipping providers (40%), closely managing company headcount (33%) and reducing other promotions (16%).
Other researchers who track the industry say you can expect more email blasts for limited-time promotions in your inbox. That type of advertising costs a lot less than sending circular flyers or advertising on TV. And, it seems retailers are more aggressive in asking shoppers for their email addresses this year than they have in the past.
Many retailers are looking for ways to improve the shopping experience online as a way to lure more shoppers. Much of the focus has been on making sites easier to navigate (43%). Other new features you may find online include: product video (43%) and customer reviews (33%). For price-sensitive customers, many sites have added enhanced clearance-sale pages (27%) and featured sales pages (31%).
Although one in four shoppers claims he or she will spend more online due to high gas prices — more than double the number which said the same last year — the main reason customers say they choose to buy online is 24-hour shopping convenience. Some 59 percent of those surveyed said that's why they buy online. Other top reasons: not wanting to fight crowds (41%), easy price comparisons (36%), and free shipping (33%).
"As budget-focused consumers begin holiday shopping, many are starting on the Web to look for gift ideas and research products," said Helen Malani, Shopzilla's Online Shopping Expert. "Whether they make those holiday purchases online or in stores, the Internet will have a tremendous influence on holiday sales this year."
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