US Shoppers, Sales Unhappy during Black Friday: How Retailers Can Improve for December
With only 17 shopping days to go before Christmas, retailers are racing to get as much holiday and year-end sales as possible – but to be successful the focus should be on their shoppers’ happiness.
Black Friday, unfortunately, didn’t fare as well as predicted for brick and mortar stores. According to an article published by Reuters, data from analytics firm RetailNext indicated that net sales at brick-and-mortar stores fell five percent over the two days (Thanksgiving and Black Friday), while the number of transactions fell nearly eight percent.
And it’s no coincidence that HappyOrNot’s shopper satisfaction data shows the same downward overall trend on this year’s Black Friday as in 2015. While the hourly satisfaction was more balanced throughout the day, the initial seven percent dip at 11am was unable to be recovered.
It would appear as though venturing out to fight crowds on Black Friday may be losing its appeal, so it’s important for retailers to make the best of every opportunity for increasing sales. And it’s not too late to pick up the slack during these last key trading weeks.
HappyOrNot released data just one week ago identifying that shopper dissatisfaction has consecutively shown the same downward trend during key holiday shopping days – “Super Saturday” and December 23rd – and predicts the same situation for 2016. However, they have provided tips for retailers how to boost shopper happiness and increase sales.
How to increase sales with happier shoppers
- Plan adequate work-shifts, especially during the peak traffic hours of 2 – 5pm
- Ensure sufficient product stock is available and easily accessible for shoppers
- Place added focus on staff motivation and support, as positive staff attitudes reflect positively on consumers
Read the full article HappyOrNot’s Message to Retailers: Boost Your Holiday Sales with Happier Shoppers here.
About HappyOrNot
HappyOrNot® is the global leader in instant customer and employee satisfaction reporting. Our innovative feedback collecting smileys and intelligent data analytics reporting service help our clients to improve their customer experience, relationships, and employee engagement. We serve over 2,500 companies across 98 countries and have collected and reported on over a quarter billion feedbacks.