Tips For Marketing To The Three Types Of Christmas Shoppers

There are three different types of shoppers in any given eCommerce situation, but perhaps particularly during the festive period.

Each one of these shoppers looks at their purchasing in a separate way, and each has a unique perspective on how and why they buy things.

This can sound like a dilemma for businesses who need to market their Christmas goods to as many people as possible, but as long as you know what these three types of shoppers are, you can market to them directly and even bring in more sales than you might have if you had stuck to one tried and tested (but limiting) marketing model.

Slow And Steady

The slow and steady shopper is an incredibly important part of the sales machine. These are the people who will buy a few Christmas gifts every now and then as they go, perhaps starting as early as September or October, and finishing a week or so before the holiday begins. Black Friday doesn’t mean a lot to the slow and steady shopper who will buy things regardless (almost) of the cost because they are spreading their spending out over several months rather than trying to get everything done from one pay packet and savings. You need to be able to ‘speak’ to the slow and steady shopper for the entire Christmas period – and even before it starts because they are the people who will buy the most and spend the most on their Christmas gifts.

The Early Bird

We all know that one person who buys all of their Christmas shopping well in advance – months, in fact. They might be extremely organized people, or they might just dislike the holiday crowds or the fact that they might not be able to purchase the item they want because it won’t be ready in time for Christmas. Whatever their reason, shopping early means difficulties when it comes to advertising and marketing because you won’t know when to start (and you don’t want to alienate other potential customers by offering up Christmas goodies too early).

This group may only be small, but they are powerful and spend a considerable amount in one transaction. There are a few ways to engage with these shoppers when it comes to your marketing. The best is to talk about that one extra gift, perhaps a gift to themselves, that they might still like to get. Play on their happy feelings that they have got all their shopping done, and then introduce that one item that would be the perfect final addition to their purchases, something just for them like an EVP recorder for ghost hunting because that’s what they’ve always wanted. Since they bought everything else so early, their budgets should be able to stretch to one more must-have quite nicely.

Last Minute

The final type of shopper is the one that leaves everything until the last minute – it could even be Christmas Eve, just before the stores close for the holidays. These people are busy and don’t like the stress that Christmas can bring, but they make themselves more stressed by leaving everything to the last minute! These shoppers will be in a rush, and they will be worried about getting the right gift. Therefore, your marketing strategy for the last-minute shopper should be about gifts that make people happy. Gifts that don’t shout out that they were bought at the very last moment.

The store – online or physical – needs to be in a position to advertise that they can help the shopper find that perfect gift. There should be signs pointing to the best gift for her, for him, for kids, and for parents. They will need to be given instructions and directions on what to buy for whom otherwise they will feel overwhelmed, and if that happens, they will leave their cart abandoned and not checkout, perhaps coming back later, perhaps not. Capturing them when they are with you, in whatever format, is all-important.