Amazon takes aim at retailers' weaknesses

In what promises to be the most digital holiday season ever, Amazon has issued an appeal to shoppers who want to avoid busy parking lots, crowded stores and long checkout lines.



Amazon’s appeal to shoppers was made in conjunction with the release of the online retailers 2014 Holiday Toy List and compounds traditional retailers’ already challenging effort to generate traffic to stores during the holiday season.



Amazon said this year it is offering more deals than ever before on the toys and games customers want with deals every day. In addition, for the first time, the annual Holiday Toy List includes commentary from Amazon product experts and toy enthusiasts on the latest toy trends. For example, customers can browse a variety of products categorized in new ways such as Mom Picks, Wood & Recycled, Active Playtime, Retro, S.T.E.M., Classic Brands, Innovation and In The Movies. Gift finder functionality enables shoppers to use intuitive search filters to sort by category, brand, age, gender, price range and discount.



“There are more than a million toys and games to choose from on Amazon, and our passionate team of in-house editors are working hard to make it super easy for customers to discover the most wished-for gifts of the holiday season at great prices,” said Eva Lorenz, category leader of toys and games for Amazon.com. “You also can’t beat the convenience of shopping from anywhere, at any time – avoid busy parking lots, crowded stores and long checkout lines and spend more quality time with your family and friends by shopping on Amazon.”



This year, convenience is expected to take a leap forward with even more shoppers engaging with Amazon via mobile devices. Last year, the retailer said more than half of Amazon.com customers shopped using a mobile device. However, since then Amazon has added new functionality to its mobile app to include voice and vision searching capabilities. Customers can search with their smartphone camera or use the new microphone icon and add a new favorite to their child’s wish list in seconds, according to the company.



Amazon’s Holiday Toy List is viewable at http://www.amazon.com/gp/holidaytoylist