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Christmas in July is here to stay. As many of us read recently, for example, Sears, JCPenney, and Toys’R’Us have officially kicked off their holiday plans. While that might be a little early for some, no retailer can afford to start too much later than summer to at least prepare for this all-important season. To this end, Shop.org is pleased to present to Members the 2009 edition of the Holiday Strategy & Planning Guide.
This annual guide is based largely on the results of the 2008 eHoliday study, which canvassed merchants and consumers before, during and after the 2008 holiday season. The guide focuses primarily on the lessons learned from one of the most challenging holiday seasons in decades. Given that the general circumstances around Holiday ’09 appear likely to mirror those for Holiday ’08 (tight economy, tight consumer spending, short selling period between Thanksgiving and December 24), there is much to be learned from last year to prepare for the upcoming season.
This guide explores merchandising, marketing, customer service, shipping and fulfillment, gift cards, Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday and more. How did consumers find and choose retailers from whom to buy? Which site features and promotions did consumers find most useful – and which went unused? Which days garnered the highest gross online sales? Which types of customer service must retailers tend to in order to satisfy consumers? What role do online media (Web site, email, social media, etc.) play in promoting in-store promotions and events for multi-channel retailers? How much did consumers spend on average per gift card purchased online? And what one thing did retailers surveyed last year stress needing to do more of this year?
The 2009 Holiday Strategy & Planning Guide kicks off a series of holiday-related resources for Shop.org members over the coming months. Among others, Shop.org Members can register now for the holiday preparation Webinar on August 5 at 1 p.m. Eastern, featuring Dawn Bronkema (Meijer) and Michael Griffin (AdLucent) as panelists covering a number of areas to help retailers think through their holiday preparation plans.
As always, please let us know your feedback on this Guide – it only improves each year with your input AND your participation later this year in the 2009 eHoliday Study (watch for your invitation in September or drop me a line if you’re interested in participating).
All the best to everyone for the coming holiday season!
