New data shows key trends, including the role of customer service, among U.S. consumers’ shopping decisions ahead of the holiday shopping season
GoTo, the all-in-one business communications and IT support platform, released new findings around consumer shopping habits and preferences for the 2022 holiday season. At a time when the majority of consumers are concerned with rising inflation and economic uncertainty, GoTo’s study shows that 3 out of 4 Americans still plan to spend with small businesses. An impressive 41% are even willing to pay more to shop small than they would at a larger retailer.
In GoTo’s recent survey of 1,175 U.S. consumers, the company found that Americans are willing to prioritize shopping small despite 61% saying they were more concerned about their finances than a year ago. Among the key findings, the survey revealed that over half of consumers (54%) say they make an effort to shop locally at small businesses over large retailers and 28% say they shopped more at small businesses in the last year. The survey also showed that reliable customer support has the largest impact (46%) on consumers’ decision to shop small.
“At a time when people are watching how and where they spend their money, it is encouraging to see this overwhelming support for small businesses. At GoTo, we are dedicated to supporting these growing businesses and the essential connections they need with their customers,” said Jamie Domenici, GoTo’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Small businesses can build on this opportunity by ensuring they have the technology and resources needed to reach their customers however they want to connect.”
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“At a time when people are watching how and where they spend their money, it is encouraging to see this overwhelming support for small businesses.” Jamie Domenici, GoTo’s Chief Marketing Officer
3 Ways Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (SMBs) Can Win This Holiday Season:
Ultimately, staying close to customers and understanding their needs is critical to operating a successful business. Here are three things all SMBs can keep in mind as they prepare for the upcoming shopping season and beyond:
- Make Customer Connections Essential – It’s been estimated that it costs five times more on average to acquire a new customer than to retain a current one. SMBs can come out ahead this year by making decisions with customer retention at the center. Customer service must be delightful and accessible from anywhere, including mobile. No matter how your customer wants to connect, you need them to have tools in place to reach them wherever they are.
- Do More with Less – There are more technologies than ever before designed to accommodate flexibility and help master asynchronous communication and remote support. A critical step SMBs must take to recession-proof their business is the decision to consolidate their solutions stack and utilize a unified platform with support and communications. This not only saves time, but also allows businesses to expand their customer base with a small team, improve connections, and provide the automation capabilities needed to meet customer demands.
- Protect and Connect Your Employees to Better Support Your Customers – In times of uncertainty, employees can be anxious about their future at the company, their own economic situation, and how the company will fare in the long term. Focusing on keeping employees plugged in and empowered will ultimately save SMBs invaluable time and money that they can’t afford to lose and create a more engaged workforce to support customer needs.
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