Survey: Retailers expect online holiday sales to increase; 41% to offer free shipping

Research Triangle Park, N.C. -- Forty-one percent of online retailers plan to offer free shipping and returns as a strategy to increase holiday sales this year, according to a new survey by Channel Advisors, and free shipping also ranked as the most successful service feature for generating a higher level of customer satisfaction. The Multichannel E-Commerce Study also reveals that 86% of surveyed retailers expect to increase their year-over-year online holiday sales in 2014.



The report notes that Thanksgiving falls during the last week of November again this year, and Cyber Monday will be in December.



“This compresses the amount of time that consumers have to shop for their friends and family, and changes the game for online retailers trying to capture the wallets of as many shoppers as possible,” said Scot Wingo, ChannelAdvisor CEO.



The survey confirms that confirms that retailers are planning to begin their holiday promotions early and to focus on customer service features to help increase sales.”



Other key findings from the Multichannel E-Commerce Study include:



• Retailers expect a successful holiday season: More than a quarter of surveyed retailers (27%) expect an 11% to 15% increase in online holiday sales this year compared with 2013, and nearly half (46%) expect an increase between 1% and 10%. No retailers reported an expected decrease in holiday sales this year.



• Holiday promotions are starting early: Nearly half of surveyed retailers (42%) planned to begin their holiday push in September, and 20% planned to begin their holiday push in August or sooner. Almost a quarter (23%) of retailers planned to start their holiday marketing push earlier this year compared with previous years.



• Retailers are embracing trends, including digital marketing: More than a quarter of surveyed retailers (27%) plan to increase their overall digital marketing and advertising budgets as a strategy to increase holiday sales this year. A quarter of surveyed retailers plan to launch new digital marketing initiatives to increase holiday sales this year.



• Offering discounts for select products was a strategy that 27% of surveyed retailers said they would use to increase holiday sales in 2014.



• Customer service features are important for driving sales: Almost half of the retailers surveyed (41%) plan to offer free shipping and returns as a strategy to increase holiday sales this year. One-third of retailers surveyed plan to stock more quantity.



• Retailers named free shipping as the most successful service feature for generating a higher level of customer satisfaction. Most retailers (67%) said they have seen increased sales from offering these customer service features.



• ChannelAdvisor commissioned Redshift Research to conduct the Multichannel E-Commerce Study, which surveyed more than 200 online retailers in the U.S. and U.K. that averaged $3-$5 million in revenue in 2013.