How to Reach Last-Minute Shoppers this Holiday Season

How to Reach Last-Minute Shoppers this Holiday Season

Mobile shopping might have given shoppers the opportunity to shop early for the holiday season, but this technological innovation hasn’t changed consumers’ old habit of procrastination.

It’s never too late to launch your online campaign for last-minute shoppers. According to Google, holiday shoppers redouble their online search to find stores open nearby once it’s already too late to ship.

Here are the top 3 approaches to reach out to last-minute shoppers this holiday season:

1. Target Relevant Keywords

Let’s take a look at the search words used by holiday shoppers as compiled by Google itself.

Use of Broad Search Words

While majority of consumers have something specific in mind when they use Google search, more than 40% of searchers still use broad terms like "living room furniture” or "women's athletic clothing".

Use of “Where to buy” Search Words

In the last 2 years, mobile searches for the keywords “where to buy” have grown more than 85%. Examples of these searchers include “where to buy gift boxes”, “where to buy cards” and “where to buy ugly Christmas sweater”.

On Christmas Eve of 2016, mobile searches for “where to buy Hatchimals”, “where to buy NES classic”, “where to buy Cards Against Humanity” and “where to buy coal” rose. The “where to buy” searches specifically peaked from Dec. 18 to Dec. 23 after the shipping cutoff.

Use of “[Fill in the blank] brands” Search Words

While shoppers have something in mind to buy, they’re open to different brands. During the 2016 holiday season, mobile searches for “[fill in the blank] brands” increased. Examples of these keywords include “makeup brands” (up by 150%), best purse brands” (up by 140%) and “men’s watch brands” (up by 70%).

Use of “Store hours” Search Words

Mobile searches for “store hours” also peaked on Christmas Day 2016, with top searches including “what grocery stores are open on Christmas”, “what stores are open near me on Christmas,” and “what stores are open right now.”

“[fill in the blank] to avoid” and “is [fill in the blank] worth it” Search Words

Consumers don’t only want to know about particular items, they also want to know what specific items or products to avoid. According to Google, mobile searches for “[fill in the blank] to avoid” have increased by 150% over the past two years, while mobile searches for “is [fill in the blank] worth it” have increased by more than 80% in the past two years.

The keywords provided by Google are just general guidelines of what holiday shoppers want. In choosing the best keywords for your online campaign, it’s important to make the keywords relevant to local searchers. Based on a Google study, 4 in 5 consumers conduct their online search with their location and proximity in mind.

2. Target Mobile Phone Users

Google has offered marketers the following relevant numbers about mobile-first shoppers:

• 82% of smartphone users say they use their phones to search for the purchases they’re about to make in a store.

• 65% of smartphone users say when searching for a certain item, they consider the most relevant result regardless of the brand.

• 90% of smartphone users say they’ve no specific brand in mind when searching for an item online.

• 1 in 3 smartphone users say they’ve purchased from a brand other than the one they intended to buy as a result of the information provided at the time they needed it.

• 51% or more than half of smartphone users say they’ve found a new product or brand when conducting a search on their phones.

A Google study showed that 76% of consumers who conducted a local search on their smartphone visited a local store within a day and 28% of those searches resulted in a purchase.

3. Use Omni-Channel Approach

A 2015 to 2017 study by YouTube – video sharing platform owned by Google – showed that “shop with me” videos have grown in popularity, with watchtime rising more than 10 times in the last 2 years on mobile alone. By watching these “shop with me” videos by random YouTubers, consumers tapped the opinion of others in deciding whether to visit your store or not.

The YouTube study also found that “store tour” videos have soared in popularity, with watchtime growing by over 10 times the past 2 years. With “store tour” videos, your customers can virtually explore your store prior to physically visiting the store.

Shoppers nowadays aren’t satisfied with text or still images alone. Consumers now want to know more about the product beyond the typical product specifications. This explains the amount of time spent watching those unboxing videos of mobile phones on YouTube. Consumers want to see videos about your products or your store. Videos may be time-consuming to make, but these compliment well with your other online campaign.

4. Use Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Ad Campaign

The best way to save time and find last-minute holiday shoppers is through PPC campaign, in particular, Google AdWords as Google enjoys the biggest market share in terms of mobile searches.

These Google PPC numbers tell the story:

• Ads that appear in the top results on mobile search generate up to three times the engagement from shoppers.
• Mobile ads result in 160% more additional store visits. Mobile ads, according to Google Incrementality Study, result in doubling the number of store visits compared to desktop/tablet ads. The study found that for every 2 new store visits from desktop/tablet ads, mobile ads at the same level of ad spend result in at least 5 store visits.
• Another study from Google found that those who click on a Google ad prior to visiting a store are over 25% more likely to buy something and likely to spend over 10% more while visiting the store.
• Studies have shown that unaided brand awareness can be increased by 46% by simply showing up in mobile search ad results.

“Ultimately, showing up gets your brand in the game to be chosen, not just seen,” Google said. “By being there, your brand has the chance to address consumer needs in the moment, help move someone along their decision journey ….”

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