We Researched 100 Retailers’ Digital Engagement Strategies – Here’s What You Need to Know for Holiday 2018

The 2017 holiday season is complete and the numbers are in. On Cyber Monday, the U.S. saw a record breaking $2B in purchases being made on mobile devices according to Adobe and in the U.K., Campaign reported that more than 30% of purchases happened on mobile. One thing is clear — mobile is the new normal for shoppers and retailers alike.

For the fifth consecutive year, our data science team studied the mobile engagement trends surrounding 100 retailers during the busiest retail period of the year. To get the complete results and a set of recommendations that you can use to help shape your year-round strategy read the full report. Here are a few highlights:

1) Brands Are Sending More Notifications Than Ever — And Consumers Don’t Seem to Mind

Across the board brands were sending notifications earlier and more often, signaling the shift from Cyber Week to something more closely resembling Cyber Month — and even beyond. Amazon sent its first holiday related notification 50 days in advance this year. Overall send volumes were up 27% over 2016.

And consumers reacted positively to the increase, our research showed that average engagement rates were 17% higher than last year. When done well, notifications can be a valuable part of the customer journey for both shoppers and brands.

 

2) Holiday Sales = Skyrocketing App Install Rates

For brick-and-mortar retailers (those with a physical store) mobile plays a key role in in-store research. In order to scope out the best deals and promotions, consumers downloaded apps at a higher rate during the cyber shopping period. New app installs for brick-and-mortar retailers peaked on Black Friday, while online-only brands saw steady rates of installs throughout November but peaked a couple days before Thanksgiving.

3) Do You Know What Singles’ Day Is? You Should.

Less than 10 years ago Alibaba took the Chinese holiday Singles’ Day — a celebration of being single — and created what has become the single biggest online shopping day across the world. It now beats Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined by a longshot. Interestingly, in the first 30 seconds of the holiday, Alibaba reported that 97% of sales were made on a mobile device.

Our research recognized a major spike in engagement rates on November 11th for online-only retailers despite the fact that notification send volumes remained flat. This suggests that consumers have adopted Singles’ Day more rapidly than retailers and this is definitely a holiday to keep in mind for next year.

Download The Full Report For More Info!

The above data points and trends are just a preview of what’s included in our full Digital Marketing Playbook for Holiday 2018. Read the full report for lots more data, trends and actionable recommendations that can be put to use for the next holiday season. It’s never too early to start planning!