Mothers Key to Holiday Shopping Campaigns : eMarketer

Are mothers the key demographic to reach to ensure a successful holiday shopping season for retailers? They might be. According to an October 2013 survey of mothers in the US and Canada conducted by Adroit Digital, mothers held a disproportionate amount of responsibility for gift-buying duties. The poll found that more than seven in 10 moms said they would be responsible for at least three-quarters of gift purchases in their household this year.

Mothers were also making a fair share of their holiday purchases online. Almost one-third of respondents said they planned on doing at least 60% of their holiday shopping online. And more than seven in 10 expected to make at least 40% of purchases through digital channels.

Both Black Friday and Cyber Monday play key roles in the online holiday shopping plans of mothers. Just over one-third of those polled planned to do at least half of their seasonal buying on the web on one of these two days. Younger mothers, in particular, expressed an affinity for online shopping on one of these days; 43% of those ages 18 to 24 said they would make at least half of their online purchases on either Black Friday or Cyber Monday.

Mothers, like many other holiday shoppers, are also turning to their mobile devices when shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. The survey found that 25% of mothers polled expected to use mobile devices at least half of the time they were shopping at a physical store location during the holiday season. Understandably, the use of smartphones was more prominent among younger mothers than older ones. Thirty-one percent of those ages 18 to 24 expected to be on their phones at least half the time, compared with only 14% of those 55 or older.

Deal-hunting was a popular use for mobile devices among mothers employing them at brick-and-mortar stores—56% said they would use their mobile devices to track down discounts or coupons, while 50% planned to do price comparisons.

With mothers taking on the lion’s share of online holiday shopping responsibilities, marketers need to take efforts to stay on their radar during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Offering discounts and other deals are also a good way to remain relevant to mothers using their mobile devices during the path to purchase.

Source: eMarketer
Image courtesy:www.dreamstime.com