The Way We Shop Now

As letters to Santa are heading to the North Pole with wishes for the latest video game and favourite action figure, what about the rest of us? What do you want as a gift this holiday season and how are you planning to get it?

According to a recent survey by Google, as of last month (October 5), 71 per cent of consumers had started researching and making plans for holiday gifts and 49 per cent had already made purchases.

Surveyed respondents replied that their reasons for starting early was to get ahead of the rush and their belief that they will get better prices if they shop early instead of waiting until the last minute.



Over 40 per cent had researched and then will purchase online, while 51 per cent of shoppers research online, but still head into the store to buy that gift, preferably in a big box retailer. For smartphone users, those apps are coming in handy to compare prices for 50 per cent of users.

The Google Holiday survey also found that shoppers prefer these three options to encourage spending: sales or discounts, free shipping, and purchase incentives. Coupons were the fourth option, but show that most shoppers want the most direct process to getting the deal.

The number one day to shop online is Tuesday. But for those who like to procrastinate, the survey also found that 64 per cent of us will be shopping in the post-holiday season.