Be Ready! New Patterns for Peak Shopping Days

You noticed it, right? That traditional lull in shoppers, between Thanksgiving Weekend and the 10th of December.  

That is just one of the predictable patterns within the Holiday shopping season. Next up: the surge this weekend, and then of course, next weekend, the last one before Christmas. That's when the shopping malls ask many stores to be open till midnight, right?

But, sure enough, especially this year, these "traditional" patterns are subject to another trend, the "digital disruption".

• First, accept that the shoppers will certainly be busy doing their thing; it just may not be in your stores yet.
• Instead, more folks will rely on the web for their window shopping, browsing, price comparisons, etc.
• When they do show up in your stores, they are on a mission! Not browsing; just buying. 

This Year's Peak In-Store Shopping Days

So, when will in-store shopping peak? Not on the traditional last weekend before Christmas. Instead, watch for it to peak on Monday the 22nd and Tuesday the 23rd, and of course Wednesday, Christmas Eve. 

Why? Two main reasons:

1. The "traditional" reason: those are the days when most men (and women who shop like men) actually do their buying.
2. The "digital disruption" reason: the deadlines for buying online and having guaranteed delivery by Christmas will have passed. At that point, the customers will show up, and depend on stores to come through!

Those retailers who are anticipating these changes will be better able to effectively schedule their staff. You can likely schedule in anticipation of the Monday-Tuesday crunch.

• And therefore, having "paced" yourself and your staff, you will be well positioned to deliver great customer service on those crucial, crunch time shopping days and evenings.

What better way to keep the Ho! Ho! Ho! in the Holiday Season?