by Jaya Pandrangi
Good news for retailers: the majority of consumers (83%) are primed to spend as much or more this holiday as they did last year. That’s an average of $1,189 each, according to the PwC 2017 Holiday Outlook.
Now the challenge is to make sure you capture your share of the holiday gains. Intense competition and the need to fulfill consumers’ increasingly diverse shopping preferences will make it tough for some retailers to see a holiday bump. And the cost of capturing those sales could increase pressure on margins.
But there’s still time to make the most of this holiday season. When consumers are ready to spend, that’s the time to focus on execution—making sure your strategy and planning translate into actual sales. Consumers are poised to buy, and you want to make sure they’ll buy from you.
To deliver flawless execution this holiday season, focus on these three areas:
- Amp up your analytics to target your shopper and personalize offerings
Our Holiday Outlook says the majority of consumers (70%) will wait until after Black Friday to finish their shopping. That means there’s an opportunity to reach customers when they’re primed to spend. Most retailers have invested in understanding their customers—who they are, what they typically buy, and how they shop. Using those analytics can help you identify and target specific types of customers. By understanding your shoppers’ typical basket and knowing what he or she has bought in the past, you can anticipate what they’ll buy this year. Then, you can market more effectively and personalize offerings to close the sale during this short window.
- Cheer on your employees
Keeping your people motivated is important all year round, but it’s absolutely vital at the holidays. The overwhelming majority of consumers (88%) told us they’ll shop in stores this holiday, and happy employees help deliver a satisfying experience for customers—which translates to sales. To ease holiday stress for your team, lean on your front-line managers. They can help improve employee engagement, lead by example, and encourage team members to work together. Offer real-time recognition, both formal and informal, to create incentives that motivate workers and reward those who go above and beyond to make the shopping experience magical for customers.
- Expect midseason course corrections
Amid the holiday chaos, it’s easy to get caught up in day-to-day activities But it’s essential to step back and pay attention to the big picture. Use mystery shoppers to spot problem areas. Check your traffic numbers and basket compositions. Review whether shopping journeys are materializing the way you envisioned and whether the incentives are drawing in the shoppers. Review which promotions are paying off (and which aren’t), and so on. Measuring and tracking can help you maximize every opportunity for sales.
Your big-picture learning from this year can feed into your plan for the next holiday season. You’ll have more insight into how well you’re playing to your company’s strengths and whether some activities need to go. That will help you refine your strategy and hone your value proposition. In our work, we use a methodology called Fit for Growth to help retailers focus on capabilities, while being mindful of cost, culture, and how the organization runs. It’s essential to know which capabilities will help win sales, and to reallocate resources to strengthen those capabilities.
To be sure, a number of factors will come into play in terms of how you evolve your value proposition, from technology to the competitive landscape. But that’s only part of the challenge. The other part is making sure you’re delivering on the promise in the most economical way. That will determine whether future holiday bumps will be a sure thing for retailers, in terms of both sales and margins.
About the author:
Jaya Pandrangi is a leader in PwC's Strategy& consulting practice. She helps retail and consumer products landscape align their costs to their strategies and position them for future growth.
