Back to school shopping season, the second-largest shopping season of the year, contributes a significant volume to eCommerce brands as well as retailers.
After six unpredictable months of 2021, a new semester is coming, the demand for school supplies and back-to-school products is booming. The National Retail Federation showed that a quarter of back-to-school shoppers had started shopping by early June and predicted a sudden increase by mid-August. Besides, according to a survey made by Deloitte in 2021, per student spends an average of about $612 on their back to school shopping.
Back to school online shopping habits
To build an effective eCommerce strategy, retailers should look at how their customers are shopping in the season.
What shoppers buy
After surveying customers about which products they usually buy and how much they are willing to pay, here are the results:
- School supplies: 95%, with an average amount spent of $112.
- Clothing and accessories: 93%, with an average amount spent of $286.
- Computer and hardware: 63%, with an average amount spent of $299.
- Electronic gadgets: 16%, with an average amount spent of $271.
The study showed that customers purchased essential school supplies and clothing or accessories most. It’s no question these two types of categories take a large share in the total B2S sales.
When shoppers buy
Deloitte’s 2021 study found that consumers intended to shop before the beginning of July ($1.3 billion in sales), with a spike in the last two weeks of July and the first two weeks of August (up to $9.9 billion). In the next two weeks and September, consumers shop less. It’s undeniable that the end of July and the beginning of August is the best time to attract customers.
Where shoppers buy
In terms of generation, customers from all groups of age do their shopping at mass merchants (83%). The number second destination is off-price stores with both Millennials and Gen X. While, department stores are much more preferred by boomers.
Mass merchants were the first choice among more than half of low-income households. Conversely, only one-third of high-income households shop here.
In terms of clothing and accessories categories – a bestseller in the back-to-school shopping season, mass merchants are least attracting consumers.
New back to school online shopping trends
In the wake of the Covid 19, the most sought out products are sanitary masks, disinfectant gels, and less hazardous materials made school accessories.
Consumers tend to research, compare, and purchase in large chains and marketplaces. The available online platforms result in the catalog variety and selection of products, sellers, especially competition in prices. Discounts and rebates encourage consumers to buy more.
Half of the shoppers are anticipated to use either desktop or mobile devices to do shopping online. But shoppers tend to do shopping online on mobile more than on desktop.
The eCommerce guide to back to school shopping
Optimize website
Speed, functionality, and interface are the most requirements by online shoppers in the twenty-first century. Being easy to use is also a must-have standard of the website. Optimize the website to enhance your customers’ experience.
Invest in mobile sites
Since mobile sales outperform desktop sales, it’s safe to say that focusing on a mobile eCommerce design boosts sales for businesses. Having a website is not enough, it’s essential to optimize it. Improve the web presence by having responsive visual elements in UI/UX designs, and ensure that all the product pages are clickable and easily accessible.
Take advantage of automation tools
Speed is an essential part of customers’ experience. Automated activities minimize the times which both customers and businesses spend on every process of business. Take advantage of automation tools to give your customers the best experience and optimize your company’s sales activities.
Create bundle shopping
Developing one-click shopping opportunities that bundle related products for lower prices can attract customers and increase revenue. For instance, a bundle of pens, notebooks, and a handbag or a laptop, a laptop case and backup hard drive, etc.
Back to school online shopping season is a lucrative opportunity for eCommerce brands. Have a good strategy as well as keep adapting lastly, utilize tools and automation to maximize your sales figures. Atom8 BigCommerce automation and Atom8 Shopify automation are our latest tools for eCommerce automation. Check out the sites to have more details.
