Black Friday and Cyber ​​Monday left out? A new way to start the US holiday shopping season

It is learned that the timing of holiday shopping for American consumers is changing compared with the past few years. According to a new survey by Shopkick, 43% of consumers surveyed plan to shop on Black Friday this year, a year-on-year decrease of 18%. 27% of consumers plan to shop on Cyber ​​Monday, a year-on-year decrease of 40%.

Meanwhile, 40% of respondents will start holiday shopping before Thanksgiving, an increase of 15% from 2021; 27% of respondents plan to start shopping before Halloween, an increase of 18% from last year.

The survey showed that younger generations are more likely to shop specifically during the Black Friday Cyber ​​Monday holiday period, with 56% of Gen Z respondents and 50% of Millennial respondents planning to shop on Black Friday, compared to 44% of Gen X and Baby Boomers and 36% of the Silent Generation.

The majority (71%) of consumers surveyed said they will shop both in-store and online. Of those who shop online, 98% said Amazon will be their preferred shopping platform. In addition to Amazon, younger generations (43% of Gen Z and 35% of Millennials) plan to shop on Etsy, while the silent generation will prefer eBay (23%).

The survey also sheds light on U.S. consumers’ holiday spending plans, including:

63% of respondents said inflation and the recession have affected how they shop for the holidays. To save money, 49% plan to buy deals and promotions, 37% plan to limit the number of people they give gifts to, and 36% plan to shop online more frequently to save money on gas.

Thirty-five percent of respondents plan to spend less on holiday shopping, as 65% feel less financially secure. Only 11% plan to spend more, including 41% of Gen Z.

Respondents said sales and promotions influence them most when it comes to starting their holiday shopping (77%). They are most concerned about shopping at retailers that offer discounts and promotions (55%).

91% of respondents said free shipping was the most important reason for holiday online shopping. Other online shopping incentives included fast shipping (59%), flexible and extended return policies (42%), buy now, pay later (19%) and BOPIS (15%).

To be more sustainable, 41% of respondents plan to shop less in stores to reduce gas emissions, 31% plan to bring their own shopping bags into stores, and 20% plan to reuse last year’s gift wrap.

New data from NetElixir suggests there may be different trends for holiday sales days. According to NetElixir, the next few days of the holiday shopping season are expected to have the highest year-over-year online sales growth (expected to grow more than 20% year-over-year each day): November 20, November 21, November 24 (Thanksgiving), November 25 (Black Friday), November 28 (Cyber ​​Monday), December 4, December 5, December 11, December 12, and December 18-22.

Shopkick conducted the survey of more than 14,400 U.S. consumers between September 3 and 6, 2022.

Editor✎ Ashley/

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