Ecommerce has been steadily increasing, and retailers are pushing to the end.
The Verizon Retail Index has been tracking broadband and mobile shopping patterns updated with data on average daily traffic patterns and peak volumes in the US, providing insight into consumer online and mobile shopping habits. The Index has found that wireline broadband traffic attributed to e-commerce shopping activities has been steadily increasing above average daily volumes posting a 6 percentage point increase by December 15, versus the same day last year when it was flat. The peak traffic has also been higher overall with 10 percentage point increases on both Mon. and Tues. (Dec. 14 and 15), consistent with last year’s pattern.
“With the Christmas countdown getting closer and final ground shipping deadlines for on-time delivery now upon us, online and mobile commerce activity has been soaring,” said Michele Dupré, group vice president of retail, hospitality and distribution for Verizon Enterprise Solutions. “Though overall online traffic volumes remain pretty consistent year-over-year, the peaks in mobile traffic are striking this season with a pattern suggesting that consumer expectations are being set heading into the weekend. People seem to have a pretty good idea what they will be buying once they have more time to shop.”
Further, the data reveals that mobile traffic attributed to m-commerce is posting higher than average volumes all week including 6 percentage points higher on Dec. 15 and 5 percentage points on Dec. 16. The peak volumes are continuing to soar and increased 16 percentage points by mid-week Dec. 16 which is a new trend this year.
“The pressure is now on for consumers who haven’t wrapped up their shopping and for retailers who need to strike the right balance with lucrative offers that will offset the shipping cost increases for on-time delivery by Christmas,” stated Dupré.
“Heading into Super Saturday, we can expect to see strong activity across all channels – online, mobile and in-store – as consumers take advantage of the added conveniences such as extended store hours and same day delivery. And now the question becomes are the logistics locked down that will allow retailers and shippers to deliver on the promises they have made?”
According to Dupré, these findings from the Verizon Retail Index indicate that retailers will need to step up their online and mobile promotions in these last shopping days before Christmas to capture wallet share. In addition, the final ground-shipping deadlines appear to be having a greater impact on ecommerce than “Green Monday”.
The challenge for retailers in the race to the holidays will be to really understand and engage with their customer base and not be complacent with their promotional offers as they compete to sell off seasonal inventory and capture market share.
