These 5 holiday shopping predictions are not new but very important to keep in mind, the biggest and smartest retailers already knew these shifts were coming because they felt the impact and could see the changes in their business.

By embracing these trends and planning for them, you’ll be best prepared to have an extremely profitable holiday season

1. Holiday shopping will start earlier.

Traditionally, the holiday shopping season starts the day after Thanksgiving on Black Friday.

With the growth of the internet in the early 1990s and 2000s, Cyber Monday grew into its own event.

With more and more retailers competing for the same number of customers, the promotion window has moved back even earlier, weeks or even a full month before Black Friday.

According to Statistica, only 22 percent of consumers said they would wait until Thanksgiving to start their holiday shopping, meaning 78 percent of people intend to shop much earlier.

October has become “the new Thanksgiving” and it’s not too soon to begin your promotions if you have a solid customer base and an appealing “early bird” offer.

In fact, you should continue running special offers and your marketing campaigns right through the holiday season and up until the end of the year.

Start early and promote often.

2. Free shipping may impact your holiday sales.

People expect free shipping. In fact, not offering free shipping or hiding high shipping costs until too late in the checkout process is the main reason why most people abandon their cart.

As you compete with other retailers, you need to match what they’re offering and free shipping is simply the starting point. Your holiday sales will be affected.

5. Personalized shopping experiences will matter.

Consumers are increasingly looking for a unique and compelling shopping experience.

The pandemic created a whole new way to shop. Even though stores have now reopened, there’s no reason why your next customer can’t be down the street or in another state.

4. Shoppers will embrace mobile shopping more than ever.

As people become more and more accustomed to using their smartphones for everything, desktop computers have quickly become the second choice.

The primary way most people shop will be through their phones.

5. Online shopping will be an even bigger factor.

Even with physical stores fully open now and operating at regular hours, online shopping is not going away.

In fact, e-commerce is expected to continue to grow, as 85 percent of consumers plan to do at least some of their holiday shopping online, according to NPD.

This same study also cited that the number of people who plan to shop exclusively in brick-and-mortar stores has dropped to 14 percent today, down from 20 percent in 2019.

What caused this decline? It is the ease, speed, and convenience of online shopping.

In summary, although the economic outlook remains uncertain and challenging, you can look ahead to best prepare your business.