What People Buy For Halloween

In yesterday’s post, we detailed how much spending was predicted for this Halloween and what activities people planned on participating in. Today, we’ll take a deeper look at the items people plan on spending and when they will start their Halloween purchasing.

• $2.6 billion is expected to be spent on costumes – this year there will be more spent on adult costumes than kids costumes. Roughly 43% of people will buy a costumer this year

 • More than $2 billion will be spent on candy – the average household is predicted to spend $22 on Halloween candy

• The other major spending category for Halloween spending is decorations.  On average, people celebrating Halloween will spend over $20 on Halloween decorations.  With nearly 70% of Halloween revelers buying decorations – total spending will hit $1.9 billion

• Approx. a quarter of people plan to spend less on Halloween because of economic conditions

• 28% of people will start shopping Halloween before Oct. 1^st and over 40% will shop in the first two weeks of October

What Does This Mean To You?

As we showed yesterday, Halloween has become the number 2 consumer spending holiday/event.
With this much cash being spent, there are many ways you can get your fair share, and if you’re not in a business that traditionally gets Halloween business – there are still things you can do to monetize the holiday.
Yesterday we talked about ways of getting visibility from sponsorships to in-store events.
Sweepstakes are another thing you can do to create loyal customers.  With one in four people looking to spend less on Halloween, Giving away Halloween prize packs with candy and costumes could
be a draw.  Halloween has become more of an adult holiday, so giving away things that  make Halloween parties great could also make an effective promotion.  Halloween offers your business lots
ways to draw attention to itself. For more ideas on how to effectively implement them, please contact:  Al Fiala
amfiala@gmail.com

Source: National Retail Federation

Spending That Could Lure Out The Great Pumpkin

I don’t think I’ve ever missed the annual showing of  the Great Pumpkin – Linus Van Pelt sprinkles in several bits of wisdom throughout the show – From never jump into a pile of leaves with a wet sucker to that’s nothing compared to the fury of a woman who has been cheated out of trick-or-treats.
Recently a report was released on how much spending is anticipated on Halloween this year – these results may be enough to lure The Great Pumpkin to many different pumpkin patches.

• Halloween is now the number 2 ranked consumer spending holiday

 • Total spending on Halloween is expected to reach nearly $7 billion

• Consumers will spend an average of over $75 per household on Halloween

• Nearly 160 million Americans are expected to take part in some kind of
Halloween activity

• Over 70% of people are expected to hand out candy, 44% will carve a   pumpkin,44% will also dressin costume, 32% will take a child trick or treating and 31% will through a party

• Our four legged friends are increasing joining in the Halloween fun by being dressed in costume. Roughly 15% of pets are being costumed – not sure how many are going as World War Flying Aces

What Does This Mean To You?

You don’t have to be a Dentist or a costume shop to join in the Halloween profits.  You can always leverage the holiday with special offers but I’m not sure how much traction you may get. Think about some more active ways you can get involved.  There are always community Halloween events from the not so scary hayrides to charity haunted houses that always get great crowds.  They events are typically scrambling for business to sponsor them and they could provide you with great visibility.  You can also generate in store traffic with trick or treating events – these can be especially effective if you are located in a plaza or mall.  Costume contest for kids can also provide key engagement points between your business and potential customers.  The one thing to remember is that Halloween can be a great lead in for the winter holiday season.  Take the opportunity to create top of mind awareness and consumer recognition before the holiday crush begins.  For more information on how to grow your business and see tangible results with unique opportunities, please contact:
Al Fiala
amfiala@gmail.com

Source: National Retail Federation

MCommerce Continues to See Great Gains

It’s hard to believe another holiday season is rapidly approaching.
Thanksgiving is right around the corner and all indications point to mobile being a critical piece to this year’s holiday revenue pie.  A new study has been released that details how much money will come from ecommerce and mobile’s revenue impact in the coming years.

• This holiday season, ecommerce  is estimated to account for over $60 billion in revenue

• Year over year, ecommerce sales are projected to increase by  15% this holiday season

• In 2014, mobile sales are expected to total over $56 billion

• That’s a 36% growth rate from 2013 and 20% of ecommerce sales are expected to come from mobile

• By 2017, mobile commerce is project to top $133 billion.  That’s a jump of  over 170% from this year.  By then, mobile is expected to account for more than one in four ecommerce dollars

What Does This Mean To You?

Mobile sales are skyrocketing and these estimates are probably on the conservative side.  While sales over the next five years are important.  You should be focusing on what you can do to leverage mobile for this holiday season.  Has your business fully adopted mobile as a marketing tool?
With so many consumers relying on their devices for so many different things, not utilizing mobile is a critical mistake.  In fact, you could be handing sales to your competition.
The other thing that will make mobile extremely important this holiday season is where Thanksgiving falls this year.  It’s very late.  This means that shoppers will be packing more things into a smaller time window. The number one reason why consumers use mobile devices is because of speed and convenience.
There are several mobile tactics you can start to develop today that will make you a preferred virtual or physical shopping destination.
Incorporate mobile into your loyalty programs and start Black Friday early – not earlier shopping hours, but start your sales earlier on the calendar. This will help you get your share of sales first and possibly get a bigger slice.  But make it available only to those who have signed up for your mobile loyalty program.  This will benefit you long after the holidays are just a memory because you’ll improve your database.  For more mobile-centric t tactics, please contact:
Al Fiala
amfiala@gmail.com

Source: eMarketer; Department of Commerce