Last year was the biggest year for online spend, especially during the holiday period. 

This year, consumers are even more eager for the holidays. In fact, according to recent research, in the EMEA alone, 21% of people began their Christmas shopping as early as June. 

That's more than half a year early!

So, with shoppers making their way through the Christmas to-do list earlier than ever before, how can brands aim to attract these early starters?

Let's find out!

Inside the mind of early shoppers 

In order to ascertain how brands can attract early Christmas shoppers, it's important to first understand why so many of us are choosing to shop earlier. 

The answer to this is twofold. 

With our last experience of the holiday season being completely informed by the restrictions and parameters of the pandemic, many consumers are eager to spend time with their loved ones this year and are keen to make up for lost time this holiday season. 

But consumers are also wary of further restrictions. 

Especially with talk of potential further lockdowns down the road, consumers feel that the future of shopping, particularly traditional in-store shopping experiences, is not secure. As a result, more and more of us are trying to get our gift shopping out of the way as soon as possible, to make sure we get everything before any potential setbacks. 

So, how can brands attract these early shoppers?

1.    Start campaigns early

Our first tip is quite simple - to meet early shoppers, start your campaigns early. 

This means creating Christmas-specific content, keywords and ads to attract these early shoppers. 

This also means tapping into the early shopper's excitement for a family-filled Christmas by creating festive-looking campaigns. 

But perhaps the most important thing for brands to consider here is the holiday season sale.

With many consumers left financially worse off after the pandemic, holiday sales open up the early Christmas joy to more people, allowing more people to shop and attracting more customers. 

2.    Small brand? No problem.

Small brands aren't out of the race to attract early shoppers. 

On the contrary, in the wake of the pandemic, more and more of us are considering where we purchase from just as much as, if not more than, what we purchase. 

Consumers are eager to support small and local businesses, and the two are often conflated.

So, whether you are a small business or medium or large, by targeting campaigns to locals whilst emphasising the fact that you are a local business, through celebrating local culture or using local slang in campaigns, you can attract early Christmas shoppers and truly stand out from your competition. 

3.    Seamlessness

Finally, what all brands need to try to do is create a seamless shopping experience for the consumer. 

Gone are the days where consumers spend time perusing multiple stores for the perfect Christmas gift.

Nowadays, consumers want the option of exploring a stores range online and then going in-store to check out the products that caught their eye.

With consumers doing most of their research online, brands need to create a seamless experience that attracts early shoppers this year.

To learn more about How to Attract Xmas Shoppers, get in contact today.