On Thursday, December 17th, NetElixir partnered with BWG Strategy for our last webinar of the year. NetElixir’s Founder and CEO, Udayan Bose, presented 2021 Brand Playbook: Holiday Insights, Real Time E-Commerce Sales Data, and Digital Consumer Behavior.

Holiday Data

NetElixir’s Retail Intelligence Lab analyzed the holiday e-commerce sales data from November 1st to December 15th, comparing it to the daily data of the same period in 2019 to see the YoY trends and growth. We wanted to see if and how customers continued shopping post-Cyber 5. 

The strong December e-commerce sales numbers helped to boost the total YoY online sales growth between November 1 until now to upwards of 30%. NetElixir saw “explosive growth” after the Cyber 5 holiday concluded, remarks Bose. This first week of December had more than double the growth compared to the same post-Cyber 5 period from any year since 2016. While 2020’s Cyber 5 was more muted compared to previous years, the first 15 days of December saw exceptionally strong growth compared to last year:

Advertisements early in November prompted shoppers to get a head start on their holiday shopping to ensure timely deliveries. October’s Prime Day event – which boasted Black Friday-like deals – may have resulted in the lower-than-expected Cyber 5 growth. As deals continued or evolved in the post-Cyber 5 December (lasting largely until December 6th), consumers still opted to shop at their own leisure.

Cyber 5 Results

Cyber Monday had the highest conversion rate within the holiday season period under study; however, the day also had a lower visitor and buy rate. Those that did elect to shop on Cyber Monday converted quickly, but many consumers were not even shopping or searching online. Cyber Monday’s growth had a slow start, only picking up speed after 3 PM (local time). 

The draw of Cyber Monday may have been a bit diluted this year, as sales largely did not change from Black Friday to Cyber Monday. #BlackFriday had more buzz on Twitter than #CyberMonday at about 2.5X more message volume. Sales may not have been as lucrative on Cyber Monday, leading shoppers to be tired of repetitive promotions.

New products accounted for a large percentage of the Cyber 5 revenue share, as shown below:

“Brands that failed to share something new lost out – people craved novelty,” Bose explains. 

Emerging E-Commerce Trends for the New Year

We are entering a new era of online retail. Some emerging trends extrapolated from this year’s holiday e-commerce sales data are:

Needs Prevail over Wants: The pandemic has led to a shift in buying preferences towards essential product categories (ex. Food and Grocery, Pet Supplies) and currently relevant product categories (ex. Home Furnishings, Home Decor). This, however, is not fixed, as needs and wants are not concretely defined across all shoppers; each individual has their own considered essential items that they will continue to buy and search for. Marketers should curtail their product messages to showcase the utilitarian aspects of their products.

Shopping Fatigue or Lack of Novelty: There are signs that shopping fatigue may be setting in for many categories (like Apparel, for instance) that experienced a YoY decline in both new shoppers and revenue. However, this may also be due to a lack of novelty in promotions and products. Cyber Monday promotions were just a carry over from Black Friday, showing nothing new. Always-on customers want something new, something fresh, or to see a better deal. Marketers should keep rotating sales or featured products in order to keep customers’ attention.

The Latency Challenge: There were more frequent website visits in a shorter amount of time. Shoppers visited websites more frequently (+13% YoY), within a shorter span of time between first visit and purchase (-7% YoY). However, fewer shoppers purchased in the non-essential categories. For example, latency in the beauty category went down by 19% (204 to 166 minutes) between first website visit and purchase. 

Influence of Non-Retail: Milestone events in the non-retail space impact shopper behavior. Bigger events – such as the United States Presidential election – capture shopper’s attention away from online shopping, as well as drive up media costs. Online sales from December 11-14 grew by 70%+ YoY – which may have been influenced by the FDA’s emergency authorization for the vaccine. This positivity spike bodes well for retail sales, as consumer optimism rises, so does consumer spending beyond strictly essential categories.

Agility: Agility is a key differentiator in defining success stories. This was the most volatile holiday season that we have ever experienced. Massive unpredictability in demand made it very difficult for marketers to anticipate changes, forcing them to optimize on the fly. The NetElixir team alone had to execute over 40,000 tweaks between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday for Lenovo’s Google Ads campaigns in order to keep up with the demand fluctuations. Agile marketers are a necessity moving into 2021. 

Your 2021 Brand Playbook

Consumer preferences are continuing to evolve throughout the course of this pandemic. For a full, customized review of how your brand can be ready for the new year, schedule your complimentary consultation with our experts at https://stage.netelixir.com//2021playbook/. 

Convenience

“We don’t think the importance of convenience will diminish. A fundamental question is does your product simplify someone’s life,” Bose explains. Again, each shopper has a unique perspective on what is useful to simplifying their lives. Examine your buyer personas for how you can best simplify their day-to-day lives.

eMarketer projected 7.4 million new digital buyers in 2020. The coronavirus pandemic dramatically accelerated the digital trend – and these new-to-online shoppers are exhibiting their own unique traits and buying patterns. For instance, their average order value (AOV) is about 12% higher than the pre-pandemic shopper and 1/6th of these new shoppers have made 7+ orders in the last 6 months. This shift to digital is a once in a generation phenomenon. Pandemic shoppers are becoming their own category so marketers need to understand these shoppers’ behavior to fine-tune messaging unique to them in order to win them over. 

Convenience is a matter of the ease of online shopping and delivery, as well as the online shopping experience itself. Ensure an easy and frictionless shopping experience to welcome shoppers, new and experienced alike, to your site.

“If you take care of shoppers, if you speak to them in their language, they’re willing to shop with you,” Bose says. 

New Value

The pandemic shopper is a highly value-conscious shopper, both in terms of monetary value and social value. Gen Z shoppers, especially, consider a brand’s mission when considering a purchase. As Gen Z comes into more purchasing power, brands will no longer be able to stay silent on important social issues.

On the monetary side, thriftiness is a driving factor of younger shoppers. Thriftiness becomes a form of self-expression and a value by which individuals define themselves. Consumers are also increasingly able to compare prices and brands as they can easily jump from tab to tab. The resulting trend sees consumers continuing to seek the greatest value from every purchase.

E-Commerce sales saw a spike on November 23rd, as Black Friday promotions started. However, as those promotions didn’t change, growth declined due to stale deals:

Customers expect novelty and continuous changes in terms of products, promos, and pricing.

Give your customers a reason to keep coming back to your site. Understand what products are getting pandemic lift (i.e., skin care products rose 44% YoY and make-up kit sales declined 36%). Priorities and essential items are changing over the course of the pandemic.

Retailers and marketers should ask themselves what unique value are they sharing with their customers?

Always Connected

“Mobile has really really been a game-changer this year,” Bose explains. 

Mobile has had a huge impact on e-commerce sales, as 55% of all Cyber 5 orders came from a mobile device. Digital is an integral part of our life, as the physical and virtual world have blended. The gap between digital and physical retail experiences will slowly disappear.

The era of the always-on consumer is here. Marketers need to meaningfully and responsibly engage their consumers at every touch point.

Retail Trends

Tomorrow’s retailer has to consider today’s retail trends. Modern shoppers look for brands that offer convenience, promote a healthy lifestyle, create new value, know their customer, and have an integrated digital strategy.

The explosive growth of retail service providers will continue and co-marketing opportunities will emerge. Real-time customer intelligence and actionable insights are more critical today than ever before. Data is a must-have as trends, behaviors, and opportunities change so quickly. 

“2020 has been a year where data became 1,000 times more important,” Bose summarizes.

The post Holiday E-Commerce Sales appeared first on NetElixir.

By understanding the real data around the latest eCommerce trends and online shopping behavior, we can better navigate through this challenging year. As marketers and retailers, we have to follow where, when, and how our customers are shopping and searching online and be there for them at every turn. During this holiday season, customers are looking for an easy and seamless online shopping experience, promotions, and ways to connect more with each other. By providing a helping hand, brands can better support their customers. 

Customers’ Online Shopping Behaviors

Consumer preferences are changing at a rapid pace, based on Bain & Co.’s Elements of Value Pyramid. Customers are prioritizing safety and wellness when they shop.

“Safety has become and continues to be one of the primary drivers [of shopping behavior],” Bose says. “We have seen very specific emotional drivers play a very important role [in the buying process]. For example: reducing anxiety, as well as wellness.” 

Hope and nostalgia have also played an important role throughout the months of the coronavirus pandemic. Bose suggests that hope and safety should be retailers’ main focus, especially during the holiday season, as consumers continue to navigate new shopping situations. Consumers will remember brands that they felt safe with.

As new shopping trends and motivations continually emerge, it is hard to pin down exactly what will be the new normal. However, based on the data collected by NetElixir’s Retail Intelligence Lab so far, we see that 1 out of 8 new-to-online shoppers (i.e., those who made their first regular online purchase during the coronavirus pandemic) continue to make 50% of their purchases exclusively online for the Food and Grocery retail industry. NetElixir first marked this trend around mid-April, as lockdowns eased and people could choose to shop more freely in brick-and-mortar stores. 

Having successfully crossed the first barrier to online shopping, customers are becoming increasingly more comfortable navigating eCommerce sites. Customers are even open to exploring new brands, creating ample opportunities throughout this holiday season.

How ECommerce Trends are Evolving

Current eCommerce trends point to a sustained explosion of online sales. NetElixir’s Retail Intelligence Lab has tracked the YoY changes in online sales across seven categories for now nineteen two-week periods, starting from February 9th, detailed below:

The Food and Grocery retail category is starting to pick up momentum again, after a slight dip throughout the end of summer. Bose forecasts that Food will see a 100%+ YoY growth during the holiday season as more people prepare home-cooked meals instead of eating out. Apparel has also declined YoY from its peak in the first two weeks of September, presumably bolstered by back-to-school sales.  Home Furnishing, Tools and Hardware, and Home Décor continue to see strong YoY increases. Overall, NetElixir forecasts that the remainder of the holiday season will see online sales grow at 30% YoY across retail categories.

Prime Day 2020 helped to jumpstart an early holiday shopping season, but the online spike it generated subsided quickly. Online sales for the Food and Grocery retail industry did, however, see sustained growth, trending upwards from October 18th on, as pictured below:

While this may not be attributed solely and directly to Prime Day, as Food’s spike started a few days after the Prime Day event concluded, monitoring the residual effect of online sales events is important to monitor where else consumers shop.

Likewise, current events influence consumer’s shopping habits. Election Week in the United States did have an impact on eCommerce trends and online sales. The Gifting, Home Decor, and Tools and Hardware retail categories experienced a marginal decrease of less than 10% in eCommerce sales during Election Week compared to the week prior. Apparel, Home Furnishing, Pet Supplies, and Food and Grocery all experience substantial growth during Election Week compared to the week prior. Conversion rates across all retail categories, however, were 5% lower during Election Week than the week prior. 

“There are events of this magnitude – and Election Week was definitely an event which had a pretty massive impact and importance – which has a direct correlation with the eCommerce trends,” Bose summarizes. 

Google Ad investment will increase across businesses, as CPCs themselves are also increasing across all retail categories. As the holidays draws nearer, marketers are advertising more aggressively and earlier to avoid last-minute shipping delays.

Your 2020 Holiday ECommerce Sales Calendar

For the past 13 years, NetElixir has released an eCommerce calendar to help retailers mark important dates they should consider in their marketing strategy. Some key insights from this year’s calendar includes:

• Weeks of November 22nd and November 29th: will account for the two biggest online shopping weeks of 2020;
• Week of December 6th: most retailers will set a cut-off date for guaranteed holiday shipping (delivery by 12/24);
• Week of December 13th: BOPIS commerce will surge and most retailers will lower their digital marketing spend;
• Week of December 20th: while usually a busy week for last-minute deals and buys, it is forecasted to be the quietest week of the 2020 holiday shopping season.

Download your 2020 Holiday ECommerce Sales Calendar now at https://stage.netelixir.com//holidays/. 

Overall, NetElixir forecasts a 30% YoY aggregate growth for eCommerce sales throughout the rest of the holiday season. We forecast 45% growth in November and 20% growth in December YoY, as consumers try to get the bulk of their holiday shopping done early.

Q&A with the Vice President of Marketing at GovX

GovX is an online-only retailer, who caters exclusively to people who are currently serving or who have served in the United States Armed Forces and law enforcement, including firefighters, first responders, and other government service agencies. GovX works with over 400 brands to provide a military discount to GovX’s members. 

While Veterans Day is normally a kickoff for larger holiday events that wrap up the year for GovX, this year has obviously been different. Pelander explains that the company has been digging into holiday planning for the past month to capitalize on the early shopping season.

“This whole year has been uncertain,” Pelander says. “I think, partly, what has helped the planning for the holidays now has been more due to this year’s worth of adjustments, changes in strategy, all leading up to this point.”

GovX shifted their December budget into November and late October for aggressive paid search and social advertising to capture early shoppers sooner rather than later. New customer acquisition has still been the focus of GovX’s strategy in first generating awareness of GovX’s mission amongst veterans and first responders, and then encouraging those members to shop through the site.

“A big focus for us this year has been on new customer growth, so not just getting a new member for the sake of a new member, but we want them to make their first purchase with us within the first 30 days of their membership,” Pelander explains.

By partnering with NetElixir, GovX has been able to shift their budget and spending to target and engage new members more effectively. We have helped them expand into YouTube marketing, as GovX has focused on pressing forward to make the most of the eCommerce boom that the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated.

How has GovX Pivoted their Marketing Strategy?

Pelander explains that through strong conversion rates, the company has been able to drive up more ad spend because consumers are converting more quickly during the pandemic months than before. As long as the conversion rates continue to hold strong, GovX will continue to advertise aggressively to maximize new memberships and sales. What’s important, Pelander notes, is pushing the right promotion at the right time and to the right person. GovX’s members continue to buy for themselves even in the midst of the holidays, as they will buy from a brand they like at the right price.

GovX’s holiday messaging kicked in right around Prime Day so as not to specifically compete with the sales event, but to coincide with the flow of online traffic the event created. This holiday season started in mid-October for the brand, as they offer week-long sales that typically lasted only a day in prior years, such as extending the Veterans Day sale and Cyber 5 promotions.

What has helped GovX maintain growth throughout these past few months is their agility and drive to keep being aggressive in a time when they could reap those benefits and other companies have hesitated. Their new customer focus has become GovX’s mindset to set the tone for the first 30 days that can propel new members to become loyal customers. Pelander says the scale of data from 2020 is so immense that fully analyzing the eCommerce trends and online shopping patterns that have emerged for the company over the course of the year will help create new strategies moving forward.

“It’s been a great year for learning,” Pelander concludes.

For a Deep Dive into Other ECommerce Trends

If you have any questions about the data provided or the eCommerce sales calendar, please contact us at university@netelixir.com.

Read more:

• Get Results with Progressive Web Apps
• October 2020 Retail ECommerce YoY Insights
• Strategic Views on Peak 2020 with UPS

The post Real-Time Data on Holiday ECommerce Trends appeared first on NetElixir.

Black Friday deals are looming as retailers extend promotions to capture early shoppers and lessen the strain on last-minute shipping. Keeping track of eCommerce trends and online shopping behaviors will help agile marketers capture an opportunity that comes their way.

We see some of the follow trends for October 2020 compared to October 2019:

• Food and Grocery eCommerce is growing at a rate unseen in a few months. While not hitting early March and April numbers from the start of the coronavirus pandemic, people appear to be preparing early for the holidays through triple digit increase in conversion rates, compared to last year.
• Orders by new shoppers are continually growing Y/Y across retail categories. Ensure a smooth transition for these new shoppers with a frictionless checkout experience. Engage new customers with surveys and on social media to understand their shopping experience with your brand.
• Mobile continues to play an increasingly important role in the online shopping experience. Consider offering mobile only deals to encourage impulse buys. Ensure your website has a mobile first approach to create a user-friendly experience.

The year-over-year changes from October 2019 to October 2020 are as follows:

Food and Grocery Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions jumped 126%
• Transactions soared 70%.
• Average order value (AOV) rose 4%.
• Percentage of mobile orders rose 41%.
• Orders by new shoppers increased 74%.

Apparel Industry Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions decreased 31%
• Transactions jumped 91%.
• AOV increased 3%.
• Percentage of mobile orders increased  ust 1%.
• Orders by new shoppers skyrocketed 128%.

Gifting Industry Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions increased 39%
• Transactions rose 36%.
• AOV increased just 2%.
• Percentage of mobile orders dropped 4%.
• Orders by new shoppers rose 29%.

Home Furnishing Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions increased 7%
• Transactions skyrocketed 63%.
• AOV dropped 3%.
• Percentage of mobile orders soared 172%.
• Orders by new shoppers jumped 64%.

Pet Supplies Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions increased 2%
• Transactions increased 34%.
• AOV dropped by 6%.
• Percentage of mobile orders rose 12%.
• Orders by new shoppers jumped 60%.

Tools and Hardware Ecommerce Trends

• Website conversions fell 17%
• Transactions jumped 45%.
• AOV increased just 6%.
• Percentage of mobile orders jumped 29%.
• Orders by new shoppers increased 31%.

For a deeper dive into how Prime Day, Election Day, and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic impacted eCommerce and online shopping behavior, join NetElixir’s latest webinar on the Road to Recovery: Real-Time Data on eCommerce Trends + Updated Holiday Season Forecast. You’ll gain insights into:

• Charting a successful path to recovery, starting with a successful 2020 holiday season
• Latest online shopper behavior and patterns across seven retail categories and actionable insights for your marketing mix
• The updated holiday season forecast for November-December with NetElixir’s 2020 Holiday ECommerce Sales Calendar

During the webinar, we will be releasing our 2020 Holiday eCommerce Sales Calendar, which highlights the key online sales days and underlying forces that may have an impact on sales this year. Register now at https://stage.netelixir.com//webinar/. 

Further Reading into Holiday Insights

• B2B ECommerce Search Marketing Case Study
• Get Results with Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)
• 6 Reasons to Have a Blog for Your Business
• 2020 Holiday Season ECommerce Forecast

The post October 2020 Retail ECommerce YoY Insights appeared first on NetElixir.

NetElixir’s Founder and CEO Udayan Bose will be joined by GovX’s Vice President of Marketing Aaron Pelander to discuss new customer acquisition, the latest eCommerce trends, and fine-tuning the end of the year marketing strategy. 

GovX is the ultimate eCommerce designation for active duty, reserve, and retired members of the U.S. Armed Forces and related government agencies to provide them with extra online savings in return for their brave service to their country. Learn about GovX’s commitment to helping veterans and first responders get the best online deals, especially during the coronavirus pandemic, from our live Q&A with Aaron Pelander.

Pelander has led the marketing team at GovX for the past six years, where he communicates the value of GovX to those who can benefit from it. He works closely with all areas and channels of the GovX business to ensure that the member experience is world-class and rewarding. 

Pelander previously joined NetElixir’s webinar on June 18th, Lessons from Mid-Sized Retailers, where he spoke on his consumers completing purchases more quickly and buying more ‘want’ products rather than strictly essential products. At the onset of the pandemic, Pelander noted that GovX never pulled back on their spending, which helped the brand win more new customers. Join our live Q&A with Pelander on Wednesday to learn how GovX continued to evolve and fine-tune their marketing strategy to engage their new customers and how Q3 compared to his earlier expectations discussed in June.

Real-Time ECommerce Trends

NetElixir’s live webinar presentation will give you latest insights into the following:

• Letting the data dictate direction, as the path to a successful recovery starts with a successful holiday season
• A special insight share that will measure the impact that Election Day had online sales
• Real-time analysis of daily online sales metrics across seven retail categories (Women’s Apparel, Home Decor, Tools & Hardware, Food & Gourmet, Gifting, Pet Supply, and Home Furnishings)
• The continued impact that the coronavirus has had on online shopper behavior, conversion rates, and eCommerce sales
• Significant trends identified across retail categories

Register now for this live webinar.

Understanding the latest trends in how your customers are shopping and searching online will help you meet them at all stages of the purchase journey.

Updated Holiday Forecast for November and December

Receive a complimentary 2020 Holiday ECommerce Sales Calendar with the anticipated biggest online shopping days, shipping cutoff dates, and an analysis of gifting days vs me buy days. Learn the expected Y/Y changes day to day compared to the 2019 holiday shopping season and how the Cyber 5 weekend may turn into Cyber 10. NetElixir forecasts that the aggregate eCommerce sales for November and December 2020 will increase by 30% Y/Y, compared to 2019.

For a more in-depth analysis, join our live webinar next week, on Wednesday, November 11th at 2 PM ET. Register here: https://stage.netelixir.com//webinar/. 

Browse Our Past Webinars:

• Case Study with Cole Parmer: Harness the Power of Customer Data to Make B2B Search Marketing Work
• Pre-Holiday Consumer Trends and Retail Data Insights 
• A Different Holiday: Opportunities and Challenges in a COVID World

The post Live Webinar this Veterans Day appeared first on NetElixir.

Halloween 2020 – as every other holiday throughout this year has been – will be its own unique event. The parties may take a different aesthetic and location, but the spirit will be much the same; a consumer survey from NRF shows that:

• 58% of respondents still plan to celebrate Halloween
• 96% still plan to buy candy, 75% still plan to buy decorations, 65% still plan to buy costumes, and 40% still plan to buy greeting cards
• The top three celebration plans are: hand out candy, decorate the house, and dress up

Halloween Haunts 

The Gifting, Home Décor, and Pet Supplies retail categories should perform well this Halloween. An average of 18% of respondents in the survey above noted that they plan to dress up their pets for Halloween. Greeting cards and candy baskets could be a fun gift for consumers to share with loved ones if they can’t party in person – and cards are the only category projected to sell more this year compared to last year, according to a Bloomberg report. 

According to HubSpot, user-generated content is seen as more impactful than influencer-generated content and 79% of people say user-generated content highly influences their purchasing decisions. Consider hosting contests on social media for consumers to show off their pet’s costume, their own costume, their bowls of candy, home décor, and any other spooky product they bought from you. Don’t let Halloween be just one day of celebration, as this year deserves extra attention.

Google search results for Halloween costumes this year shows that Cobra Kai, Dungeon Master, and the Mandalorian are among the top most searched for costumes. Kids are searching for Supergirl and Hocus Pocus, while those with pets are looking for cat taco and pumpkin costumes. Promote popular costumes on your website, but remember to keep your product listing up-to-date with any stock outs.

While displaying your products and reaching your target audience is important, it is equally beneficial to showcase shipping estimates. If your store offers BOPIS or curbside options, be sure to clearly mark that in your advertising, especially as we get closer to Halloween night to capture last minute treats.

Halloween may be scary, but your eCommerce revenue goals should not be. 

More Holiday Insights

• Prime Day’s Impact on Non-Amazon Website Sales
• 6 Reasons to Have a Blog for Your Business 
• NetElixir’s 2020 Holiday Season ECommerce Forecast

The post Halloween 2020: Less Tricks and More Treats appeared first on NetElixir.

NetElixir found that Prime Day had an impact on eCommerce sites beyond the Amazon marketplace. Lingering Prime Day sales could continue to boost online traffic and sales, as the initial two day sales event had a rub-off effect across the digital landscape. 

What Did You Buy On Prime Day?

 Prime Day is a communal event, as friends and coworkers share the best finds. As a hotly anticipated sales event, Prime Day 2020 did not disappoint.

NetElixir found a 61% lift in revenue per day on the Amazon platform within our dataset, compared to regular shopping days throughout the week. While we had bullishly predicted a 90% increase in YoY online sales during Prime Day, the sales event showed a positive start to the holiday shopping season. 

Prime Day encourages splurges on large orders and this year saw a 14% higher average order value (AOV) for purchases compared to the days leading up to the sales event. During this hectic holiday season, consumers are inclined to wait for a sale as they are more conscious about their holiday budgets. With time for more browsing and research, shoppers are on the lookout for the best deals and promotions, leading them to search related products and deals across search engines and social sites. This research prompted a dramatic rise in non-Amazon website traffic and sales. 

NetElixir found that 53% of user traffic came on the first day of Prime Day (October 13th), while 57% of the revenue came on the second day (October 14th) within our dataset. Consumers seemed to spend the first day researching the best deals and products out there, while following through with purchasing on the second day. Day two of Prime Day saw 12% lesser clicks and a 7% higher conversion rate compared to day one. Additionally, majority of the high-value products were purchased on day two, leading to a 44% higher AOV compared to day one.

While Amazon may want to encourage impulse purchases, consumers are a bit more hesitant this year. Expect consumers to continue to research carefully prior to purchasing throughout the holiday season. Retailers should make promotions and sales information prevalent on their website for easy user navigation. 

Across the board, while not releasing their own numbers, Amazon announced that Prime Day generated more than $3.5B for third-party sellers, as this year the retail giant focused more on supporting small businesses. Those billions led to a 60% increase from last year’s sales for small and mid-sized businesses selling on Amazon’s platform – in line with NetElixir’s own research.

The Residual Impact of Prime Day on eCommerce Websites 

While those retailers who participated in Prime Day were able to boost their sales and brand awareness, many retailers saw success beyond the scope of the Amazon marketplace itself. NetElixir had advised retailers to continue promotions across search and social media channels to leverage the surge in online traffic during the two day sales event.

Prime Day triggered a site-wide growth across eCommerce websites that were not linked to Amazon marketplace. During the two days of Prime compared to non-sales days, websites saw the following increase in site performance metrics:

• Website sessions increased by 19%
• Site orders jumped 39%
• ECommerce revenue rose 42%
• Website conversion rates increased by 17%

Over the course of the two days of Prime, shoppers searched for brand and product information across other channels as they conducted thorough research prior to purchasing. Prime Day searches gained 23% more interactions across search engines and social media than non-sales days.

By creating a cohesive digital presence around Prime Day – advertising on non-Amazon channels, showcasing product deals on social media, and leveraging key words like “Prime” and “best deals” – retailers were able to tap into the surge in online traffic and demand generated by the sales event. By showcasing products related to what was on sale during Prime Day, retailers had opportunities to gain market share.

Consumers were already online; retailers didn’t necessarily have to sell on Amazon to reach Prime customers. A strong digital presence will be the key to success this holiday season, as well as timely marketing campaigns around expected surges in online traffic as giant retailers push their eCommerce channels more and more.

The post Prime Day’s Impact on Non-Amazon Site Sales appeared first on NetElixir.

Since February 9th, NetElixir’s Retail Analytics Lab has been analyzing and aggregating ecommerce data across seven retail categories: Apparel, Food and Grocery, Gifting, Home Furnishings, Home Decor, Pet Supplies, and Tools and Hardware. We split our data into sixteen, 14-day periods to track the year over year changes in online shopping behavior as we try to determine the impact that the coronavirus has had on ecommerce sales.

Impact of Coronavirus Pandemic on Ecommerce Trends

As marketers and retailers think about their 2020 holiday season strategy that will shortly be in effect, having access to the latest trends is crucial to optimizing on the fly to capture new customers and opportunities.

McKinsey found that ecommerce in the United States grew 10 years in just a three month span. As of Q1, 2020, ecommerce growth was at 33%, up from 16% in 2019 – an increase that Bose calls “absolutely abnormal.” While we will most likely not seeing growth skyrocket to 33% again for the time being, the percentage of ecommerce sales will never go back to just 16%. Currently, we see ecommerce growth settling at around 22% of total United States retail sales.

Online sales continue to grow at an explosive rate, detailed in the chart below:

The Apparel retail category had a slow start, but with the nice timing of the stimulus checks in mid-April and the anticipation of spring, Apparel’s ecommerce sales picked back up dramatically. Since the middle of April, Apparel’s sales have grown steadily year over year as more and more consumers invested in their wardrobe again.

The Food and Grocery retail category saw tremendous spikes from March to June, but has since calmed down to hold steady at an average of 35-40% year over year growth.

The Home Furnishings retail category is on an explosive growth track since the middle of April and leveraged out around the end of August. 

As the habit of panic buying seemed to calm down around the first week of May and people have adjusted more to the new normal, NetElixir has context to believe that online sales will continue to grow at a rate of 40-50% year over year. Overall, the pace of ecommerce is continually substantial.

With the explosive rate of online growth and high conversion rates, now is the time to invest in ads. CPCs are still trending downwards, evidenced by the chart:

Your marketing dollar can be stretched further as each click costs less and conversions are high. Nimble marketers can gain valuable market share by investing in capturing these new digital shoppers. 

New Online Shoppers

 eMarketer expects 7.4 million new digital buyers in 2020. But where are these buyers coming from? NetElixir’s Retail Analytics Lab isolated where the new shoppers within our select data set are shopping from, detailed below:

For both the Home Furnishings and Tools and Hardware retail categories, we saw the majority of new online shoppers come from the Southern region of America. Understanding where new shoppers hail from could open more markets for retailers to concentrate on this holiday season. 

Mobile is driving more sales than ever before. In 2019, mobile sales accounted for 43% of all sales; in 2020, mobile sales now account for 48% of all sales. Retailers need to focus on ensuring their mobile site is optimized and user friendly, as NetElixir predicts that mobile sales could drive over half of all ecommerce holiday sales. 

2020 Holiday Predictions

1. 23-25% of all retail sales in Q4 will happen online. (Up from 16% in Q4, 2019). 
2. Incremental ECommerce Sales Projection for Q4 in the US (vs. Q4, 2019) is about $50B-$80B.
3. Holiday Shopping will start as early as in October first week. (That’s just 2 weeks away!)
4. Inventory stockouts will pose the biggest challenge this holiday season.
5. There is a possibility that instead of Cyber 5, we have Cyber 10 this year as retailers may stretch out the holiday season to reach more digital buyers and gain more online visibility.
6. Retailers will be lowering their sales promotions and focusing more on tapping into the demand surge by expanding their online visibility.
7. Over 5% of all holiday online revenue will be driven by new online shoppers (those who had not purchased anything online prior to the pandemic).
8. Enterprise and Large Businesses (>$250 MM revenue) will be increasing their digital marketing spend by upwards of 20% year over year to take advantage of the shift from stores to online.
9. Amazon’s share will increase from 43% of the total United States ecommerce to 45% this holiday season. The biggest driver for their holiday growth will be “faster shipping”. Amazon’s Prime Day 2020 will kick off a longer holiday season.
10. Buy Online Pick-up in Store (BOPIS) will be an important driver of ecommerce sales after December 10. BOPIS (includes curbside pickup) revenue will increase year over year by 50%+.

Even More Holiday Insights

What’s your #BiggestHolidayChallenge? Subscribe to NetElixir’s Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/NetElixirInc for weekly video installments as our holiday experts address your biggest holiday challenges. In short, digestible videos, we’ll share the latest data and insights to help guide your holiday season strategy. Tune in starting tomorrow as we answer What will the coronavirus-influenced holiday season look like?

• 2020 Holiday Data: Consumer Trends & Digital Marketing Strategies
• Strategic Views on Planning for Peak 2020 with UPS
• A Different Holiday: Opportunities and Challenges in a Covid World
• September 2020 Update on How the Coronavirus Continues to Impact Retail Ecommerce

The post Pre-Holiday Retail ECommerce Trends appeared first on NetElixir.

Overall, 73% of all respondents from NetElixir’s survey have an average to high level of comfort buying from a new brand — these potential customers just need the right opportunity to find your business. As these consumers are shopping almost equally on mobile (37.2% of respondents primarily shop on mobile) and desktop (37.9%), creating a seamless online experience across all devices is crucial to capturing these new shoppers. A very user-friendly online experience will ease in those new-to-online shoppers who are still learning about the digital world.

 ECommerce businesses have an enormous potential to attract new customers, which encourages a promising start to the holiday season and a chance for retailers strategically grow their digital presence. This holiday, entice shoppers to try something new by expanding your digital footprint and placing targeted ads where your audience is searching and shopping.

For more insights polled directly from consumers, download NetElixir’s new ebook. Along the Road to Recovery: How the Coronavirus Pandemic Reshaped ECommerce Trends and Online Shopping Behavior details four months of ecommerce data and strategic perspectives from academic and industry thought leaders to guide retailers to a better holiday season strategy. 

Learning Who Your Holiday Shopper Is

The pandemic holiday shopper is going to be different than any other holiday shopper before. Because there is so much uncertainty surrounding the holiday season and how customers will shop, Google notes that the retailer who responds the most quickly will probably be the most successful. The 2020 holiday retailer needs to be nimble and adaptable, while constantly learning more about how, where, and why their customers are shopping and searching. NetElixir’s proprietary customer analytics platform, LXRInsights, humanizes every click by giving real-time data on how users are interacting with your website. This holiday season, the most popular products and categories people are shopping for, as well as when and where they are shopping, are changing dramatically from prior years.

McKinsey’s customer sentiment reports show a higher and lasting intent to shop online, even after the pandemic subsides, especially among millennials. Digital shopping will be a huge factor of the new normal. 

Consumers are focused on getting the most value for what they spend and prioritizing essential goods. Initial consumerism resurgence in early August centered on self-pampering luxury items and sales, finds UPS Longitudes. While this trend is not sustainable, the category of self love will probably feature prominently in the holiday season as customers seek to treat themselves and their loved ones to comfort items. 

Product availability and shipping information drives what consumers buy, severing loyalty ties (though brand loyalty isn’t completely dead if it’s cultivated right). Ensure your website is updated regularly; if you have a strong social media presence, use stories for quick updates to keep customers informed about new deliveries, what’s out of stock, and shipping issues. Showing some behind-the-scenes of inventory and packaging can go a long way in humanizing your business this holiday season, while keeping customers in the loop. 

However, each retailer and marketer needs to understand who their own unique customers are, as well as their behaviors and preferences. Catering to and helping your customers will help you better navigate this holiday season.

FURTHER READING ON HOLIDAY INSIGHTS

• Google’s Digital Insights to Uncover Clues for Q4 Readiness
• The Holiday Season Starts Now
• Executive Panel Discussion: Holiday Season Insights Learned Over the Course of the Pandemic
• Getting Ready for the Near Future of Advertising with Microsoft
• A Different Holiday: Challenges and Opportunities in a Covid World

The post What Does Your Holiday Shopper Expect? appeared first on NetElixir.

Last week, on September 10th, NetElixir and Lenovo celebrated our 10 years of growth partnership through a special webinar presentation on A Different Holiday: Opportunities and Challenges in a Covid World. We were joined by Ajit Sivadasad, the founding executive of Lenovo’s global online strategy.

NetElixir + Lenovo

Lenovo was founded in 1984 with a vision to become the world’s greatest personal technology company and to create smart technology for all. Today, Lenovo is the number one PC company in the world with almost 25% market share. Lenovo is also the number one Data Center Group in the world in terms of performance. 

Ten years ago on the day of our live webinar presentation – September 10th – NetElixir started to manage Lenovo’s paid search campaign in North America. Since then, NetElixir has increased Lenovo’s paid search revenue thirteen-fold, expanding the paid search revenue contribution from 8% in 2010 to 17% in 2020:

Udayan Bose, Founder and CEO of NetElixir, says of the growth partnership: “It is a fascinating journey and we consider ourselves very, very privileged that we got this opportunity to not only partner with Lenovo as an extensive of their team, but to have this unique view from literally almost the best possible vantage situation, where we could see as to how the different strategies and a very powerful and compelling vision was able to drive the company and get it to the level that it currently is: the number one PC manufacture and one of the most recruited brands in the world at this time.”

All of us at NetElixir and our Lenovo team are very grateful for this milestone and look forward to many more years of partnership ahead.

Impact of COVID-19 on Online ECommerce: A Turning Point

There is no one method of success during these unprecedented times; as Ajit Sivadasan says, what works for one person or company will not work for everyone. However, based on Sivadasan’s experience over these past six months where he knows a little more than at the beginning of the pandemic, he is sharing stats and insights into what will change after the pandemic and what could stay the same. 

The coronavirus pandemic is quickly accelerating the disruptions of traditional business models. Some of the broader trends Sivadasan narrowed in on were more connected health, demographic shift, content, the connected individual, pay to use, transportation and home ownership, education, experiential commerce, and redefining retail, as detailed below:

Sivadasan furthers, “We are on the verge of a generational shift which is, in many ways, from an online standpoint, going to accelerate adoption.” 

Individuals are connected now more than ever, despite social distances. Digital communication and virtual events help keep us in touch. These digital connections will have significant implications on advertising, targeting, and online selling as everyone can be reached virtually anywhere and anytime. Content form and content consumption is changing as well, as content becomes more of a social and brand currency that can be shared and changed. Video production alone is overwhelming – in 2019, 500 hours of videos were uploaded to YouTube every minute.

“The numbers in terms of how content is used and is being created is staggering,” Sivadasan says.

Consumer sentiment is changing, as people seem more inclined to adopt a pay to use means rather than strict ownership. In the future, we could see more reliance on streaming services and bundling options, allowing people to pay for what they use rather than outright buy the whole thing. People expect everything to be available to them, especially in the growing digital age. 

We are quickly undergoing a redefinition of retail that could move to more experiential retail. Sivadasan notes that we are already evolving in the retail space, as physical retail is changing to be more experiential rather than overtly salesy. 

The coronavirus pandemic awakened this disruption across business models around the world and accelerated the digital transformation by a few years. As good as these new innovations can be, however, the pandemic is ushering in a slew of challenges.

Macroeconomic Trends of the Coronavirus Pandemic

For consumers living during the coronavirus pandemic, they are most concerned with their own financial security and navigating the new work- and learn-from-home landscapes. We are seeing new categories of online shoppers, which in turn redefines customer behaviors and expectations. 

Everything is digital or online these days.

What does that mean for small- and medium-sized businesses? While SMBs are in survival mode, as Sivadasan puts it, and preserving their cash flow, they have to shift their outlook to innovation and partnership. This is a crucial time to be online, to transform aspects of business to curbside or delivery, to offer new digital and online services to consumers to keep them connected and loyal. “Leverage your environment to be more virtual-friendly to [your] consumers,” Sivadsan advises.

We are seeing a consumerization of enterprise and B2B businesses. Lenovo is seeing more of a demand from individuals and businesses asking to ship products directly to their remote employees rather than divvying out products themselves. Businesses are focused on sustaining their operations remotely. As the supply chain fluctuates and demand turns from businesses to individuals, Sivadasan says that companies need to begin “optimizing for a quantity of one.” This shift from optimization for the masses requires different business model, a reevaluation of cost, and more customer-centric means.

Store traffic has decreased 40%, which will be exasperated by many stores deciding to shift their Black Friday events to solely online. Work-from-home equipment has seen a 42% increase in demand. Across the board, consumer electronics ecommerce has grown 58%, becoming more popular than commercial products. Lenovo themselves have seen a dramatic increase in consumer products such as laptops, monitor displays, gaming products, and accessories like headphones. 

Sivadasn says, “We are seeing a significant demand [in consumer electronics] because people are trying to be connected and trying to be productive.”

As macroeconomic trends continually favor ecommerce, online retail is assuredly here to stay. 

The Seismic Shift from Retail to Etail

“Innovation is happening in terms of the digital tie between physical retail and online retail.” – Ajit Sivadasan, founding executive of Lenovo’s global online strategy

A 55% increase in July online spending could offset some of the deficient in the retail space overall, as long as ecommerce sales continue to grow and more brands invest in their  ecommerce experience. Some 25% of North American stores are turning into fulfillment centers to cater more to ecommerce demands. 

By some estimates, the coronavirus pandemic accelerated the digital agenda by three to five years, affecting businesses and customers alike.

As noted above, native digitals are much more comfortable staying in the digital space, with 73% likely to continue shopping online. However, we will also see a much bigger participation from the Baby Boomers are they gradually becoming more comfortable navigating the online space. Sivadasan explains, “Even the ones who were reluctant to use online in a big way are going to shift online.”

These statistics are not surprising; Lenovo’s website traffic is up 70% and many other brands are seeing huge increases in their online conversions. However, the challenge is in creating an online experience that is comfortable for both experienced and new users. Online entities will have to make both their mobile and desktop experience more user-friendly to those who are not familiar with digital access to make it easier for all shoppers to have the experience they would like to have.

Mobile usage has been increasingly dramatically as is, but Sivadasan forecasts that there will be a substantial increase in mobile checkouts. 

What Does This Mean for the 2020 Holiday Season?

This holiday season, consumer sentiment will most likely shift to value and essentials. Solution selling will most likely be the stocking stuffer this holiday season. Sivadasan explains, “There is an opportunity to think about not selling discreet products, but to think about selling experiences, and by extension selling solutions.” People will be careful of how they spend and will most likely focus on essentials. 

Brand loyalty has shifted and people are more comfortable with trying different and new things. They have the ability and chance to visit any store online. “Advertising is the only limit,” Sivadsan says.

This holiday season, there is expected to be a 18% growth in ecommerce holiday revenue for 2020. 

The holiday season will start earlier this year. Black Friday events usually drive foot traffic to brick-and-mortar stores to kickoff the holiday season; with many brands holding virtual Black Friday sales instead, there’s no need to pick just one day to launch the holiday season. The 2020 holidays will begin earlier, last longer, shift to online, and could see contention between demand and supply. 

Brands have to adapt and evolve to the new normal. By emphasizing value over price, they will innovate the solution-selling aspect consumers are looking for. As digitization ramps up, there will be new solutions to share and new customer demographic who will need more education and less promotional content. As loyalty is shifting, brands will have to do more than what they did pre-pandemic to keep their existing customers. 

Lastly, Sivadasan notes that accelerated purpose will help brands evolve with the new normal. The pandemic pushed many aspects of life into a new perspective and it is increasingly more important for brands to stand for something. Brands should have a clear sense of purpose and commitment beyond just selling products. “Purpose will be the center stage in many cases,” Sivadasan concludes. 

Further Reading on Holiday Insights

• Google’s Digital Insights to Uncover Clues for Q4 Readiness
• The Holiday Season Starts Now
• Executive Panel Discussion: Holiday Season Insights Learned Over the Course of the Pandemic
• Getting Ready for the Near Future of Advertising with Microsoft

The post A Different Holiday appeared first on NetElixir.

Food and Grocery Retail Category

• Website conversions rose 7%.
• Transactions increased 3%.
• The average order value (AOV) rose 6%.
• Percentage of mobile orders jumped 57%.

As New Jersey recently became one of the last states to allow indoor dining to resume at a limited capacity, people across the states have resumed eating more meals outside their homes. While the restaurant business is not running at the same pace it was prior to the pandemic, the option for a variety in meals has prompted less of a demand for online food and grocery orders. While the Food and Grocery retail category still saw growth throughout August 2020, it is nowhere near as explosive as it was at the onset of the pandemic. 

However, as the holiday season quickly approaches – and is celebrated through a variety of shared meals and baked goods – food and grocery retailers should get an early start in promoting their products and delivery services. They can capitalize on the longer consumer journey by delving into recipe and food blogs to help inspire consumers to try new meals.

Apparel Retail Category

• Website conversions jumped 29%.
• Transactions rose 29%.
• AOV showed almost no change, rising just 1%.
• Percentage of mobile orders increased just 1%.

July 2020 was an overall stronger month for the Apparel retail category than August 2020 in terms of growth; however, clothing sales are still on the rise after a tumultuous start at the beginning of the pandemic. Between back-to-school and the end of summer sales, as well as opportunities for consumers to frequent restaurants, malls, and other social venues, retailers have more of an occasion to showcase their products. Several stores already started their Labor Day Sales, to help kick off a new holiday season.

Inventory information regarding sizing and color options should be readily available on your website so shoppers know what to expect when browsing your site. 

Gifting Retail Category

• Website conversions increased 21%.
• Transactions jumped 40%.
• AOV increased just 3%.
• Percentage of mobile orders rose 19%.

The Gifting retail category has had a breakthrough over the course of the coronavirus pandemic, offering a fun and unique way for people to stay in touch with each other and share moments of love and compassion. Amid the uncertainty of the holiday season, the role of gifting will continue to play a prominent role in how consumers communicate with loved ones. 

A streamlined mobile store and gifting options organized by occasion will help casual searchers and new to online shoppers easily navigate your website to find the perfect gift.

Home Furnishing Retail Category

• Website conversions increased 12%.
• Transactions skyrocketed 83%.
• AOV decreased by 3%.
• Percentage of mobile orders dropped 5%.

The Home Furnishing retail category has been experiencing phenomenal growth over the past few months and ends summer with a strong number of conversions and transactions.

Labor Day is a great opportunity for Home Furnishing retailers to attract new customers with deals on furniture. With the holidays anticipated to be largely homebound this season, people may want to redecorate their homes as they host celebrations. As these shoppers will most likely plan ahead of the early holiday season, it is important for retailers to get a jumpstart on sharing design inspiration and reaching new customers. 

Pet Supplies Retail Category

• Website conversions rose 7%.
• Transactions increased 39%.
• AOV decreased by 3%.
• Percentage of mobile orders increased 8%.

The upcoming holiday season is a special time for our pets as well as for us – and it’s a special time we can share with our pets. As the coronavirus pandemic prompted a dramatic increase in the number of fostered animals, this holiday season is a unique time for new pet parents. Optimized content on caring for new pets and basic products can go a long way to help Pet Supplies retailers find these new pet parents who are searching for tips and beginner supplies to make their pet happy and comfortable. 

Tools and Hardware Retail Category

• Website conversions decreased by 1%.
• Transactions jumped 65%.
• AOV rose 14%.
• Percentage of mobile orders rose 13%.

The coronavirus pandemic kickstarted an interest or renewal in various hobbies as people had more time to cultivate their garden, spruce up their home, design model kits and cosplays, and more. These new facets could play an important role in the upcoming holiday season. As mobile orders rose year over year between August 2019 and August 2020, retailers of the Tools and Hardware category could benefit from offering mobile sales to capture impulse buyers. Time limited deals off a nice incentive to get consumers clicking, so research the best time of day when your shoppers are converting to capture their attention.

Further Reading into Holiday Insights

• Ensure Your E-Commerce Site is Ready for the Holiday Influx
• Google’s Digital Insights to Uncover Clues for Q4 Readiness
• Forget ‘Content is King’ – Content is Actually Queen

The post August 2020 Retail Ecommerce Trends appeared first on NetElixir.