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18-35 year-olds set to spend big this holiday season online, reports Outbrain
Outbrain’s Holiday Marketing Guide has found that convenience and availability are the two biggest factors driving people online for purchases.
Outbrain surveyed more than 8,000 consumers worldwide, to help marketers better understand how consumers will shop this year for the holiday season, the responses were collected through an online questionnaire, between July 2021 and August 2021, and each market (including Australia) had a minimal sample of 1,000 respondents.
The survey found that 71% of people who mostly shop online are shopping weekly. The key to attracting these frequent shoppers is in virtual doorsteps or by giving a brand clear messaging and an easy-to-navigate online store.
While people are more likely to shop online than in store, it’s rare that they’re committed to shopping solely online or solely in-store. Instead, most people engage in a mix of both. That means advertisers and marketers can’t neglect one for the other this holiday season.
“It’s not just about optimising traffic into a store and driving acquisition,” said Kaimera’s chief strategy officer, Stewart Gurney. “The reality is, people haven’t changed a lot over the last 100 years. We still think in very similar ways, and we rely on certain triggers outside of the purchase moment to help us buy.”
In-store shopping has an undeniable appeal in that consumers can experience the product they want to buy before purchasing. The ability to see, touch, feel and taste products was the biggest benefit our respondents saw in in-store shopping; 35% of them chose it as one of the top three benefits.
“Our supermarket consumer skews a bit older, between the late 20s to 45, but our digital online audience skews a little bit younger,” said former MasterChef star and food entrepreneur, Marion Grasby.
“We try to build both of those audiences at the same time because they’re both important to us. They work together as a very effective ecosystem,” added the Marion’s Kitchen founder.
Pedestrian CEO Matt Rowley thinks today’s youth audience in particular are feeling the effects of prolonged lockdowns acutely:
“Young people gear their lives around discretionary spend,” he said. “In their list of things to spend money on, they like to enjoy themselves the most. That’s been turned off for three months, so there’s incredible pent up demand.”
Outbrain’s findings revealed consumers between 18-35 years old are more likely to increase their budgets this holiday season compared with other age ranges. In fact, 39% of them are expected to increase their budget this holiday season. If you combine that with the fact that 73% of people who shop online daily are within this age group, there’s incredible advertising potential for 18 – 35 year-olds.
“Everything’s been turned up to 11 because people have got the time to spend,” Rowley added. “It’s just never been easier or better for people to go online shopping, since you don’t have to worry about someone looking over your shoulder at the office. It’s a really combustible mix.”
Outbrains research found that people are generally watching videos, reading reviews or engaging with product recommendations prior to making a purchase. It found 59% of respondents thought it was important to watch a video before making a purchase and 67% of people who read reviews will shop across both in store and online.
This proves that while most research is taking place on the internet, people are bringing that knowledge with them in store to close the purchase. Brands have to create informative and entertaining experiences online for people who are researching their products beforehand and won’t rely on in-store salespeople to help.
Companies also have to ensure they’re introducing themselves to the consumer before buying -with 69% of Australians preferring to have information about a brand before making a purchase.
The pivots seen during the pandemic prove that companies are ready to make these changes. The market was flooded with at-home wine tastings, make-at-home meal kits, and virtual mixology sessions. Companies with strengths within their in-store offerings can successfully pivot to online, and that it is possible to recreate these experiences digitally.
“Traditional retailers are getting much better at online sales, simplifying their checkouts, becoming mobile, and making their ecommerce websites mobile friendly,” said Outbrain’s Ayal Steiner. “It’s getting a lot more competitive than it ever has been.”
Olivia Kruimel is the managing editor at Mumbrella. She has more than 15 years of experience in journalism, communications and marketing. Her journalism career began at Fairfax Media (now part of Nine) and includes various B2B publications such as B&T, Travel Today and ALB. As a marketer Olivia has worked for Standard Chartered and various global law firms.
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