Ipsos Study Finds Holiday Shopping Puts U.S.
Consumers in a Better Mood
Two-Thirds (68%) More Shoppers Described Mood as “Happy” After
Holiday Shopping Trip Compared to Before
Public Release Date: Monday, November 30, 2015, 6:00 AM EST
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Ipsos Study Finds Holiday Shopping Puts U.S.
Consumers in a Better Mood
Two-Thirds (68%) More Shoppers Described Mood as “Happy” After Holiday
Shopping Trip Compared to Before
New York, NY – As savvy U.S. shoppers demonstrated their on- and off-line prowess,
searching for deals, and mapping out their routes at home before heading out to shop this
Thanksgiving weekend, two things happened. For one, they spent less overall – a whopping
$1 billion less, according to retailing research firm ShopperTrak. In addition, their moods
improved.
Ipsos Mobile followed a representative national sample of shoppers before and after
Thanksgiving to understand Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping intentions, as well as
the actual outcome. One of the many strengths of mobile research is that it can happen in the
moment, or close to the moment of people’s experience. This can help overcome limitations
of memory recall, and also, provide immediate feedback on factors like what mood the
shopper is in at the time.
Comparing responses from shoppers before and after their holiday shopping trips, 68% more
described their mood as “happy” after they completed their shopping trips than before (37%
vs. 22%). A number of factors may explain this: retailers meeting or exceeding service, item
and savings expectations; the enjoyment of spending time with friends and family while
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shopping; completing their shopping tasks; or simply having a few more dollars left in their
pockets than the same time last year.
One reason shoppers may be happier is because of who they were shopping for: themselves.
Fully 57% of shoppers said they were buying something they wanted for themselves and,
among those, 61% were also buying for someone else, enjoying the benefits of both giving
and receiving.
Another reason may be the degree to which they allowed themselves to make impulse
purchases. Even though only 9% of shoppers said they were not shopping for anything or
anyone specific, two-thirds made an unplanned purchase in at least one product category.
The biggest beneficiaries of impulse purchasing included Apparel, Electronics,
Toys/Games/Dolls, Food/Beverages and Entertainment. Meanwhile, staple holiday
departments such as Apparel and Electronics showed large declines between intention and
actual buying, suggesting a possible mismatch between pre-shop expectations and offerings
in the stores.
"Shoppers left their homes with intentions to spend big, planning to visit 3.7 stores, spend
$446 and 3.8 hours shopping, on average,” says Philip McGee, President, Global Shopper and
Retail, Ipsos. “But with 73% of Thanksgiving and Black Friday shoppers also shopping
online, there's one more reason to be happy: more time for food, family and football."
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For more information on this news release, please contact:
Elen Alexov
Director, Marketing Services, North America
Ipsos
(778) 373-5136
[email protected]
News Releases are available at: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news/
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