With Black Friday just under 100 days away, new research from Emarsys suggests that the majority of consumers in the UK will avoid shopping in stores and instead take advantage of deals online.
Of those that say they will want to take advantage of the deals on Black Friday, which falls on 27 November, just 13% of consumers say they will brave the high street, while 58% will buy from brands solely online.
The indication that consumers will shop predominantly online correlates closely with how the retail industry has evolved since the start of the pandemic, with the e-commerce channel taking record shares of spending.
Sara Richter, CMO at Emarsys, said: “Thanks to Covid-19 and changing consumer shopping behaviour, this Black Friday is set to be unlike any other we’ve ever had. As a result, retailers are going to need to make sure they’re able to capitalise on ecommerce to offset the likely dip in in-store revenue this year.
“There are positives to a predominantly digital Black Friday though. Ecommerce provides the perfect opportunity to gather and analyse customer data so retailers can retarget customers with personalised offers — turning potential one-off customers into loyal and profitable ones.
“However, the planning needs to start now. Retailers must ensure they have their website, apps, and backend technology infrastructure up to scratch, first so there are no glitches on the day, and second so they can capitalise on gathering customer data. Then after Black Friday, they can use this customer data to drive real business outcomes with personalised targeting over Cyber Monday and Christmas.”
When asked what they will be buying on Black Friday this year – online or in store —-45% of consumers said clothing and electronics, while 25% said toys. Beauty products came in at 24%, household appliances at 23% and household furniture at 15%. These stats differ from last year, where fashion items topped the list of most purchased products (amounting to 36% of sales), followed by cosmetics (18% of sales) and then smart tech (14%), according to YouGov.
