Report: Millennials drive earliest, most digital shopping season ever

As the holiday shopping season “unofficially” gets underway, millennials are expected to lead the charge.



This early movement is also putting the season on pace to have the highest e-commerce sales revenue yet, according to the “2016 Holiday Initiative Summary Report,” from Criteo. The study reveals consumer holiday shopping behaviors, the role and impact of digital advertising, and e-commerce trends that retailers are urged to leverage in the upcoming months.



For example, during 2015, the millennial generation lead the early shopper category, as more than one-fifth (21%) had already begun holiday shopping research before Nov. 1 of last year, compared to only 18% of Gen X’ers. Additionally, over a third (38%) of millennials had already purchased holiday gifts before Black Friday, the study said.



The report is encouraging retailers to leverage these trends and target this customer base with more mobile and e-commerce capabilities, if they want to improve further gains this year. For example, 37% of millennials research products on a smart phone versus 18% that use tablets, making the small screen the place to be for holiday shopping, the report said.



Meanwhile, 70% are open to considering new retail app usage during the holidays, and 53% will continue to purchase from these new apps throughout the rest of the year — a move that will provide the biggest long-term payoff potential of any generation, data revealed.



"With consumers across the U.S. beginning their holiday shopping earlier than ever, the e-commerce landscape has the potential to reach record-breaking sales revenue this year,” said Elie Kanaan, executive VP, marketing at Criteo. “Those that strategically target millennials will not only succeed during the holiday season, but will also reap benefits far beyond the new year."



There is no doubt that mobile will get a boost this holiday season, but retailers must launch their strategies in a mindful way. What should stay top of mind? Companies must ensure a frictionless mobile experience from “find” to “buy.”



For example, 26% of shoppers considered purchasing through an app or mobile site, but did not convert to purchase during the holiday season due to high costs, and difficult navigation or functionality. Further, half of shoppers (50%) are tired of push notifications, and 47% are “over” texts from brands during the holidays, the report said.



"The holiday season represents the pinnacle of e-commerce, with extremely high stakes, but also tremendous opportunity,” Kanaan added.