Retail marketers are being advised that hybrid shopping is here to stay, with research released today showing that 60 percent more Australians will shop on their mobile this festive season and 30 percent fewer Australians will shop in store, compared to 2021. The data comes from InMobi’s ‘2022 Holiday Shopping: What Brands and Retailers Need to Know’ research report that also shows 49 percent of Australians have already made concrete shopping plans, a three-fold increase on 2021.
Buying is expected to peak in November during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales for 58 percent of shoppers, while 18 percent will buy before ‘free shipping day’ on the 15th of December, and 28 percent will buy in the two weeks before Christmas.
The report finds that mobiles are second only to TV when it comes to product discovery by consumers. However, when it comes to exploring and researching products, mobile is the dominant channel, with 56 percent of Australian shoppers preferring mobile over in-store visits (31 percent).
“As shoppers continue to turn to mobiles as their primary channel for purchase, brands must think carefully about how they can leverage the rich signals available to drive contextual advertising at scale,” said Richard O’Sullivan, Vice President and General Manager for Australia and New Zealand, Inmobi.
While shoppers are being described as cautiously optimistic about their festive season shopping, just 26 percent of Australians intend to increase their spending compared to last year’s holiday season budgets. Some 46 percent plan to spend about the same as in 2021.
E-gadgets, jewellery and apparel, and accessories are the categories most likely to be purchased via mobile devices, while groceries, home appliances, and home décor or furnishings will be most often purchased in store.
Convenience (64 percent), availability of shopper reviews (62 percent), loyalty programs (59 percent) as well as easy returns and exchanges (57 percent) have been identified as the main reasons why mobile apps and websites are gaining significant momentum as a purchase medium.
Bargain hunters are again the main category for Australian shoppers at 51 percent of all shoppers, a decline year on year as 44 percent fewer Australians will rely on offers alone to make their purchase decisions. 48 percent of bargain hunters plan to spend $1,000, the same as in 2021.
The number of Australian shoppers who are category shoppers increased 3.5x from 2021, with almost half of these shoppers, who have decided on categories but not the products or brands, planning to spend more than the $1,000 they spent in 2021.
Brand lover shoppers have also increased 3.5x year on year, and 38 percent of respondents plan to spend more than the $1,500 they spent in 2021.
