Sleigh bells are jingling, and the 2022 holiday season is swinging into full gear. With retail sales in the US alone expected to hit $1.3 billion dollars, you might be wondering how your business can make the most of what promises to be the year’s busiest shopping season.
You might also, rightfully, have a few concerns.
As fears of global recession loom large, you might be facing supply chain or labor issues. You might be worrying if you’ll be able to serve the surge of December shoppers – or if you’ll have to quickly pivot if market conditions stop the traditional end-of-year rush.
In order to make sure your business is prepared to not only survive but thrive into 2023, here are some of the most important 2022 Q4 marketing trends you need to know:
1. Holiday Shopping Will Start Earlier than Ever 
Does it feel lately like everyone is bringing out their Winter Wonderland decorations before the Halloween candy leaves the shelves? That will undoubtedly be the case in 2022 – as the holiday season is starting earlier than ever.
Especially coming off the heels of 2021, when many holiday shoppers placed gift orders only to discover their packages would never arrive on time due to shipping delays, today’s consumers are ready to buy early. Plus, as shopping budgets get tighter, customers want to make sure they get good deals before any last-minute price hikes.
Even Amazon decided to take advantage of the early holiday shopping spree with their 2022 Prime Day in October, a move that got Walmart to kick off October price rollbacks too.
What this means is that the traditional Black Friday / Thanksgiving / Cyber Monday retail boom will now be just the midpoint of a long holiday shopping season. Make sure your business plans promotions and sales accordingly.
2. Social Media Will Inspire More Holiday Purchases
A trend expected to just continue and grow from last year is consumer reliance on social media to inform what will top holiday wish lists. Last year, a whopping 87% of Generation Z shoppers were reported to use social media as a source of holiday shopping inspiration, with platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube leading the social media marketing holiday boom.
In addition to creating engaging short videos and gorgeous images, savvy online marketers will also be relying on community-based tools to influence shoppers to buy. For example, you might want to advertise in a niche online newsletter, one that has maybe only a few thousand subscribers, but is highly targeted around a specific interest and / or constituted of previous buyers.
3. Holiday Spending Will be More Intentional 
As consumers worry about increasing prices, inflation, and the rising cost of living, they will often think twice before parting with any hard-earned cash, even during the holidays.
Gone are the days of last-minute add-ons and indulgences – consumers are expected to be focused on essentials and mindful of the impact and need for each purchase. They will also be price hunting and more willing to compromise with brands that offer better deals.
This means businesses will need to be proactive in creating and communicating offers and promotions that are able to give more value at less cost.
4. Convenience Matters
With ecommerce continuing to grow more than two years after the COVID pandemic lockdowns, consumers have come to prioritize and expect convenience when shopping.
Even brick and mortar retailers are investing in self-service tech in order to cut down on long wait lines (as well as mitigate labor shortages). The ability to buy online and pick-up in-store shortly afterward is regarded as a given now by many consumers, so businesses need to be prepared.
Do you wish you could take a page from Santa’s business plan and hire a team of enchanted elves to make sure you’re prepared for the holiday season? While our powers might not literally be magic, our team here at JXT Group is known for our ability to get clients results, even in the most competitive online markets requiring cutting-edge knowledge of the latest digital advertising tools.
Find out more by giving us call us today at 718-690-7302. Or, you can quickly fill out our online inquiry form and we’ll be ready to help make your holidays merry and bright – and profitable!
