The IT Nerd

Salesforce has announced initial predictions of the key trends that will emerge this upcoming holiday season. In the midst of rising inflation and low consumer sentiment, insight into predicted consumer behaviour will be more important than ever for retailers of all sizes.

Salesforce 2022 Holiday Predictions:

1. Retailers will test NFT drops
   • 46% of shoppers said they would consider purchasing non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a digital asset that represents something unique or scarce stored on a blockchain. This could be a virtual version of a real item or a digital collectible.
   • Younger shoppers particularly are drawn to “digital twins” — a digital version of a physical good. Gen Z is four times more likely than Gen X to buy a physical good if it is paired with a digital twin this holiday.
2. Physical stores will drive growth across all channels
   • Last year, stores had a significant impact on digital sales, with store associates expanding their roles to become fulfillment experts, service agents, social influencers, and digital stylists.
   • 60% of digital orders are now influenced by the store – whether demand is generated or fulfilled. This year, with stores fully operational once again, we’ll see consumers gravitate to the physical store in even greater numbers.
3. Shoppers will gravitate toward sustainable options
   • Over the last two years, new expectations have increased in importance to consumers – trust and impact. Salesforce has found that 88% percent of consumers now expect brands and retailers to clearly state their values. And shockingly, 64% will stop doing business with a company if corporate values don’t align with their own.
   • This is especially true when it comes to the environment. According to Salesforce research, 83% of shoppers will seek out sustainable brands and products this holiday.
4. Loyalty shifts to value
   • As inflation rises, consumer loyalty is shifting, this time to experience and value. In fact, according to Salesforce research, half of all shoppers will switch brands this holiday due to pricing.
   • This means that 2.5 billion shoppers worldwide could ditch their brand for a lower-priced competitor. Some product categories – luxury brands, grocery, and department stores – are more susceptible to waning loyalty due to price sensitivity (either high prices or significant increases in prices).
5. Shoppers will buy even earlier to avoid future price hikes
   • This year, the main motivating factor driving early purchases will be inflation. According to Salesforce research, 42% more shoppers worldwide and 37% more in the U.S. plan to start buying gifts earlier – the No. 1 behavioral change this holiday due to inflation.
   • While Salesforce predicts that the ASP (average selling price) will increase monthly between 8% and 12% for the remainder of 2022, there is a silver lining for holiday shoppers – the return of discounting.

You can see Salesforce’s 2022 Holiday Predictions and explore more details in the holiday predictions blog here

This entry was posted on June 29, 2022 at 8:30 am and is filed under Commentary. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.