What matters more than price to holiday shoppers?

Consumers are budget-conscious during the holidays, but value another product factor even more.

According to the 2019 State of Consumer Loyalty study from online marketing platform Yotpo, 41% of more than 4,000 surveyed consumers are more likely to buy a holiday gift from a brand they love. Another 17% say price is important but brand matters more, while 15% cited a brand’s loyalty program. Only about one-quarter (24%) say brand doesn’t matter.

Examining consumer brand views beyond the holiday season, the survey found that 89% of respondents consider themselves as (64%) or more (25%) brand-loyal in 2019 than in 2018. Only 19% of respondents said they were more brand-loyal in the 2018 edition of the annual survey.

Most (61%) respondents are loyal to one to five brands, while 26% are loyal to six to 10 brands and 6% are loyal to 11 to 20 brands. Asked to define their brand loyalty, consumers polled overwhelmingly characterized it as repeat purchasing (68%), followed by "love" for the brand (39%), and finally, preference despite price (38%). Product (78%) is a factor inspiring brand loyalty for more respondents than price (63%).

Consumers that are loyal to a brand are more than willing to refer that brand (59%) to their friends and family. They are also willing to spend more with that brand (36%). But before considering themselves loyal, shoppers need to buy from the same company. Thirty-six percent of respondents must buy from a brand five or more times before they consider themselves loyal, followed by three times (33%), four times (17%), and two times (13%).

In other holiday-related findings, far more respondents say customer reviews are a helpful factor in researching or shopping for gifts online (80%) than customer photos (56%) or customer videos (30%).