An overview of our thinking around what to expect as we head into the business end of the year.

1. PREPARING
FOR THE 2020
HOLIDAY SEASON
10 tips and trends
to help you plan ahead

2. BRANDS BRACING FOR A
COVID-19 “CHRISTMAS
LIKE NO OTHER”
85%
of retailers think
that online sales
will increase this
holiday season
compared to last
1
55%
of retailers are investing
more in ecommerce
website upgrades this
holiday season than
last year
54%
of retailers are
investing more in
social commerce
than last year

3. 2 THE AVERAGE UK HOUSEHOLD
SPENDS 33% MORE PER
MONTH IN THE LEAD UP TO
THE HOLIDAY SEASON
2019 2020
17% Bought mostly last minute
32% Bought 1 – 2 months ahead
17% Bought 2 – 3 months ahead
10% Will be less last minute –
focused on last shipping dates and
not the high street rush
45% Spend more focused on Mega
Sales dates
40% Economic uncertainty will weigh heavy

4. GEN X AND BOOMERS HAVE
EMBRACED ONLINE SHOPPING AND
NOW DOMINATE GLOBAL MOBILE
AND ECOMMERCE GROWTH
3
GEN Z
Ages 8 - 23
MILLENIALS
Ages 24 - 39
GEN X
Ages 40 - 55
BOOMERS
Ages 56 - 74
44%
45%
42%
34%
Percentage of shoppers
who say they expect to shop
online more frequently this
holiday season
Make up 80%
of total online
shoppers

5. CONSUMERS WANT ANSWERS4
48% OF SHOPPERS SAY
BRANDS AND RETAILERS
RESPONDING TO REVIEWS
IMPROVES THEIR ODDS OF
BUYING THE PRODUCT
IT’S VITAL BRANDS
OFFER A SEAMLESS
ONLINE SHOPPING
EXPERIENCES
MAKING IT EASY FOR
CUSTOMERS TO FIND
WHAT THEY SEEK TO
MAXIMISE REVENUE
OPPORTUNITIES
IN THE ABSENCE OF IN-
STORE PROFESSIONAL
ADVICE, PRODUCT
RESEARCH, SOCIAL
PROOF THROUGH
REVIEWS, PHOTOS AND
Q&A WILL BE MORE
IMPORTANT THAN EVER
THIS HOLIDAY PERIOD

6. RETAILERS AND SOCIAL MEDIA WILL CONTINUE
TO INTERTWINE THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
ALLOWING CONSUMERS TO RESEARCH,
EVALUATE AND CONVERT WITHOUT
LEAVING THE PLATFORMS
5
SHOPPABLE
INSTAGRAM POSTS
AND STORIES HAVE
REALLY GAINED
TRACTION IN THE
LAST YEAR, WITH 41%
OF ECOMMERCE
BRANDS USING THIS
FEATURE
61%
expect higher
engagement and/or
purchasing through
social media
channels

7. PRIME DAY WILL MARK THE
OFFICIAL BEGINNING OF THE
HOLIDAY SHOPPING PERIOD
6
Last year 70% of
shoppers bought at
least one holiday gift
during this period
With this year’s Prime
Day delayed until
October (TBC), it is a
key opportunity to
kick start holiday
shopping
Prime Day 2019
(July 15th -16th) saw
a 27% increase in
order count over
the typical day
90% of brands and
retailers say they’re
ready to spend as
much or more on
Prime Day this year
than in previous
years

8. 7 PREPARE FOR MORE
RETURNS THAN USUAL
CUSTOMERS WILL LIKELY BUY MORE THAN THEY NEED
SINCE THEY CAN'T TRY THINGS ON IN-STORE OR SEE
THE PRODUCT IN REAL LIFE – MAKE SURE TO
HIGHLIGHT THE FOLLOWING:
• Scope – what is returnable
• Returnable – Timespan & Condition
• Exchange – Options for returning
payment: direct to bank, store
credits, replacement etc.
• Customer Effort– required to
request a return
• Credit Process Speed
75%
CLOTHING &
ACCESSORIES
13%
BEAUTY &
PERSONAL
PRODUCTS
33%
ELECTRONICS
AVERAGE RETURN RATES:

9. THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF
CUSTOMERS AND EMPLOYEES IS
PARAMOUNT
8
• CUSTOMERS WILL EXPECT STORES
TO FOCUS ON SAFETY, RETAILERS
NEED TO CLEARLY COMMUNICATE
THE MEASURES BEING TAKEN TO
PROTECT HEALTH AND SAFETY OF
CUSTOMERS AND EMPLOYEES
• INCORPORATE AND PROMOTE
LOWER-CONTACT BUYING OPTIONS
SUCH AS CLICK AND COLLECT
trust check-out staff to
correctly disinfect payment
terminals after every use
expect to see technology
solutions put in place
would accept a delay of 30
seconds at checkout if it
meant a thorough clean
between each transaction
38%
53%
89%

10. BUILD IN A HIGH DEGREE
OF AGILITY TO MAXIMISE
EFFECTIVE SPEND
9
• TRACKING
• AUDIENCE • PLACEMENT
• PLATFORM • BUDGET CAMPAIGN
STREAMLINING

11. 10
BE PREPARED
– START EARLY
BEGIN LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS EARLY,
ENSURING THE NECESSARY TOOLS FOR
MEASUREMENT AND OPTIMISATION ARE IN PLACE
INCLUDING AUDIENCE STRATEGIES TO CONNECT
WITH MOBILE-FIRST SHOPPERS

12. THANK YOU
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