Seasonal trends to help you plan for your peak

17 September 2024

Whatever time of year you expect a seasonal boom of orders, preparation is key - and you can never start too early!

Here are some big seasonal trends to be aware of, ideas to help you get sales-ready, and how Royal Mail can support you.

Consumers are starting early!

The early bird catches the worm – or in this case, the early shopper!

During the most wonderful time of the year, people aren’t waiting until December to do their shopping. Long gone are the days when people would hold out for the Boxing Day sales. In fact, people don’t even want to wait until Black Friday (which in 2024 falls on 29th November) now!

By analysing the readership data of UK consumers, research shows Black Friday-related articles saw uplifts in sales (106%) and order value (96%) in the first two weeks of November,¹ and readership around Christmas shopping picked up steam on the 5th November.² This suggests that consumers start seriously planning and purchasing their Christmas gifts nearly two months before the big day.

And of the 29% of customers that start shopping before November even starts, 22% did so in order to avoid delivery delays, and 17% to avoid out-of-stock risks.³

So, if keen consumers are doing their research and buying earlier and earlier, will you be ready in time?

Cost is still a concern

But the main reason consumers are starting their seasonal shopping earlier is financial: 55% of those pre-November shoppers said spreading the cost was the main factor.⁴

This cost-conscious behaviour is also seen in summer. When it came to buying clothes in summer 2023, total spending increased by 4% vs the spring. But the number of transactions increased by 8% vs spring⁵ - meaning people were spending less per item to make their money go further.

By analysing the readership data of UK consumers, research shows Black Friday-related articles saw uplifts in sales (106%) and order value (96%) in the first two weeks of November,¹ and readership around Christmas shopping picked up steam on the 5th November.² This suggests that consumers start seriously planning and purchasing their Christmas gifts nearly two months before the big day.

This could be for a number of reasons – some shoppers may have been waiting for the summer sales before they bought. Or some didn’t mind buying cheaper shorter-lasting clothes if they were only to be worn on a trip to sunny Spain!

This behaviour can likely be attributed to high levels of inflation and the cost-of-living crisis, which have made getting value for money a top priority for UK consumers.⁶

Because of this, shoppers remain cautious on discretionary purchasing, and this uncertainty has caused a ‘spending hesitancy’⁷: meaning less spontaneous splurging and more information gathering. Many are also setting budgets and keeping an eye out for promotions. In fact, around 36% of consumers say they’re buying more discounted items, while 33% say they’re spending more time looking for bargains.⁸

Exploring options and reading reviews

As they gather information and hunt around for those bargains, more people are using search engines to ask questions like ‘where is best to,’ ‘ideas for’, ‘compare’ and ‘review’ during peak periods like Christmas.⁹ 48% of consumers expressed intent to invest “significant” time into exploring their options before making a purchase.¹⁰

Researching by reading reviews is becoming more popular too. 76% of consumers always check reviews before committing to an online purchase¹¹ and have started placing even more value in them as way of validating a potential buy.¹² In the UK, review websites ranked as the most trusted source of honest opinions about a company or product.¹³

79% of consumers interact with brands by consuming content or sharing feedback, and they evaluate whether a brand is trustworthy during those exchanges. If trust is established, 67% of consumers would stay loyal.¹⁴ So the capacity to respond to reviews with authenticity is key!

What can you do to get ready for peak?

When business is booming, you’ll need a logistics partner who is ready to support with extra orders, deliveries and returns.

85% of UK shoppers surveyed said that online retailers failed to meet their expectations at least once in the past year, citing increased pricing, late deliveries and excessive shipping costs as their primary frustrations.¹⁵ But if your logistics infrastructure can cope with the increased traffic that peak season brings, you’ll reduce delivery delays and customer enquiries.

It’s good to ensure your digital storefront is also ready for an increase in traffic too. A website which can handle a spike in users will swerve any risks of exceeding its bandwidth and crashing. You’ll also need to make sure that your checkout process is robust on mobile, as slow loading could cause shoppers to abandon cart.

Staying on top of peak demands and upholding reliability is a quick way to build confidence and a reputation as a trustworthy brand.¹⁶

What can Royal Mail do for you?

When it comes to capacity at peak to support a surge in orders, nobody delivers more than Royal Mail. In addition to our already huge network, our shiny new Midlands Hub means we can process an additional 1 million parcels every day! We’ve got more hands than anyone else to deliver all those extra parcels too, thanks to our 80,000+ posties and the extra festive sorters we bring on board at Christmas. And online shoppers rank us as the UK’s most trusted carrier¹⁷: great for building your brand loyalty!

Plus, with Royal Mail, you can offer customers next day delivery 7 days a week with our Tracked 24 and Special Delivery Guaranteed Next Day services - helping you to exceed expectations during peak periods.

Let us help alleviate the pressure that comes during hectic seasonality with more great services, more choice, more convenience and more sustainable solutions.

“About 60% of our traffic is occasion-related … guaranteed deliveries by 1pm have been incredibly successful for us – and orders can be placed until 10pm and still arrive the next day!” – Philip Crowther, Business Development Director at Prestige Flowers

At peak seasons, preparation is key – and finding partners who can meet demand is integral to customer satisfaction, especially in a world of choosy consumers.

To partner with us this peak, get in touch here.