More than 80% of Black Friday Week Shoppers Plan to Buy Tech, Says CTA

By STS News Desk On Nov 11, 2019

More than 80% of Black Friday Week Shoppers Plan to Buy Tech, Says CTA

Number of Voice and Mobile Shoppers Jump

Among the half (49%) of the US population that plans to shop during Black Friday Week (Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday), 82% of those shoppers plan to buy tech devices and accessories, ranging from wireless earbuds to streaming service subscriptions, according to new data released today by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA).

The 2019 Pre-Black Friday Week Survey also finds that among the US adults who plan to buy tech, the top planned purchases are wireless earbuds/headphones (57%), mobile device cases (46%), video game discs (42%), portable battery chargers (42%), streaming and download services such as Netflix or Spotify (41%), and smartphones (41%).

“Despite a shorter shopping season, there will be a healthy appetite for tech. Wireless earbuds and streaming content will make a very strong showing over the course of Black Friday Week,” said Rohrbaugh, director of market research, CTA. “Content subscriptions and services are quickly becoming a go-to gift, especially as a wide range of streaming video, audio and gaming options come on the market this holiday season.”

Tech shoppers will use a combination of shopping channels over Black Friday Week and while most will do some shopping in brick-and-mortar stores, more consumers will shop for tech online, mobile and via voice compared to last year.

Almost all US adult shoppers plan to shop in-person at brick-and-mortar stores (97%), with most planning to shop at a mass merchant such as Walmart or Target.
More US adult shoppers plan to shop online (83%) using a desktop or laptop computer, up two percentage points over last year.
The number of consumers planning to shop using a mobile device (81%), such as a smartphone or tablet, is up five percentage points over 2018.
The biggest jump will occur with the number of Black Friday Week shoppers who say they plan to shop for tech via voice (48%) – up nine percentage points – using digital assistants such as Siri or Amazon Alexa, to find and research holiday deals.

“We are going to see retailers start sales earlier in November and more online shoppers this season to make up for less time between Black Friday Week and the month of December,” said Rohrbaugh. “The number of consumers who will take advantage of the convenience of voice and mobile shopping methods, either in combination with in-store promotions or by themselves, are on the rise. More consumers own devices with voice capabilities and a number of brands are experimenting with this shopping channel to drive sales.”