In your typical calendar year, November marks one of the biggest holidays, aka Thanksgiving, alongside the epic shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday. However, 2020 clearly isn’t your average year. RetailMeNot has put together a guide to shopping the holiday season this year and ways to save.
Quick Holiday Stats
Hark! Holiday shoppers still plan to spend.
Before we get into my predictions, let me present some hot-off-the-presses stats. We recently conducted a survey of more than 2,000 shoppers, and though wallets are tighter this season, people still plan to purchase:
- Three in five consumers said they plan to spend the same or more this holiday season.
- Thirty-one percent will shop earlier this year to avoid inventory issues or shipping delays.
- Thirty-six percent say they will spread out their purchases over a greater period.
- Three in four shoppers prefer online shopping this holiday season, but only 18 percent plan to complete their shopping online only.
- Ninety-two percent of shoppers agreed that a deal or discount will influence their holiday purchases.
- Eighty-eight percent do not plan to shop doorbuster sales in-store on Thanksgiving.
- Thirty-one percent will concentrate shopping around savings events, such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
- The top online-purchaser concerns are receiving items on-time, inventory being out of stock and the ability to try on or see an item before purchase.
All this to say that holiday sales like Black Friday and Cyber Monday still hold importance for shoppers. It’s just that these savings events and the way we shop them will look different this year.
Key Changes in The Holiday Shopping Scene
Let’s not skirt around the truth. The pandemic hit retail hard. Even with operations resuming in various locations, stores are having to take safety precautions and change the way they operate. Here are the main shifts I’ve noted:
Holiday deals are launching earlier than ever.
October is set to be the kickoff for holiday sales this year. Amazon is expected to host Prime Day in October, and Target announced it will launch holiday sales during the same month. Pundits expect Prime Day, which usually comes in July, to push other stores into offering their best holiday deals earlier.
As for us at RetailMeNot, we’re hosting our second-annual Cash Back Day in early November (November 5 through November 6) but with even more of an emphasis on helping you prepare and get ahead of your holiday shopping with deals and savings galore. Also, for a full 48 hours this year, we’ll bring you even more exciting money-saving opportunities with product-specific deals and limited-duration flash deals.
Major stores are closing on Thanksgiving.
Walmart led the charge in terms of stores set to close their doors on Thanksgiving. For more than 30 years, Walmart kicked off Black Friday sales early, allowing customers to save more on Thanksgiving Day. But this year, the megastore announced they would close doors to all their 4,750 stores in the U.S. Other major stores followed suit, including Best Buy, Target, Kohl’s, The Home Depot and Dick’s Sporting Goods. See a list of all the major stores closing on Thanksgiving.
Virtual product testing is taking off.
One of the key things shoppers miss in stores is getting to touch and test products. And some stores are getting innovative to solve for this. Walmart, for example, developed Walmart Wonder Lab, an online tool that lets kids virtually unbox, test and play with toys. Likewise, beauty brands are tapping into virtual ways to try and test cosmetics as well.
Open-air shopping suites, outlet malls and outdoor markets are growing in use.
Keeping people safe and away from crowds is the goal behind closing down stores during major holidays. However, holiday shopping without the traditional in-store experience won’t suit all consumers. Parking lot popups and sidewalk stalls are set to increase with the emergence of “drive-by shopping,” and many brands and stores are making adjustments to incorporate outdoor markets where customers can safely shop for holiday sales. In fact, RetailMeNot is also noticing more engagement and usage with deals from factory outlet retailers, which makes sense given outdoor outlet malls provide a safer way to shop and distance.
One mall in Costa Mesa, California, converted its parking lot to accommodate an open-air suite featuring items from more than 200 brands, including Alexander McQueen, Valentino and Fendi.
More 2020 Holiday Shopping Predictions
But that’s not all! Based on trends thus far this year, here are more forecasts for the 2020 holiday shopping season:
A return to classic gifts, home essentials and DIY
Concerts, movies and holiday events won’t be the same this year if social distancing prevails. We will see fewer experiences gifted and instead more traditional gifts, DIY and physical presents. Think toys (check out our hot holiday toy predictions!) and electronics, consoles and household fixtures, flowers and cards. With people spending more time at home, we think home essentials like fridges, blenders, smart home products and TVs will be top shopped.
More online and mobile shopping—including online doorbusters and queues
Online shopping isn’t a new trend, but it’s set to peak this year as more people stay indoors, and stores operate at lower levels. Admittedly, for years now, Black Friday has been moving more online, so this trend isn’t surprising—it’s just escalated by the pandemic. This year, we expect retailers to get creative and host online doorbusters, potentially with flash sales and online queues to try and mimic the in-store experience.
Another perk of online shopping is that you can score easy savings in the form of cash back, promo codes, discount gift cards and more. Plus, you can do it all from your phone!
More people utilizing BOPIS and curbside—and more stores offering shipping flexibility
In response to the pandemic, more and more retailers and grocery stores are offering “Buy Online Pick Up in Store” (aka BOPIS or BOPUS) and curbside programs. These services will be in high demand during the holidays. I also wonder if some retailers will offer exclusive deals to shoppers who select BOPIS or curbside at checkout.
Weeks or months of shopping and saving through fall and winter vs. a single day
For a few years, we’ve noted Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Cyber Week merging into one shopping-palooza, and this year, those events will further combine. Stores will launch deals throughout October, November and December. The Home Depot says it will offer Black Friday levels of discounts for two months starting in early November.
More layaway and buy now, pay later services
With budgets tight, we expect more stores to offer holiday layaway as well as more people using online buy now, pay later services like Afterpay, Klarna, Affirm and QuadPay. Social distancing measures and lockdowns have normalized online shopping and made consumers more confident when doing so, and thus these services are seeing surges in use.
How to Shop Smart This Black Friday and Thanksgiving 2020
Black Friday 2020 will be online, which is, perhaps, the key takeaway this season. Most stores advise customers to stay indoors and take advantage of existing online ordering and shipping systems, which is much safer than crowding the local store. We won’t be seeing any large crowds in the upcoming Black Friday sales because stores will offer deals online and early. Here are some tips to help you find the best deals:
1. Start monitoring deals now.
Prime Day will likely still kickstart the holiday season in early October—unless a competitor swoops in earlier. With Walmart closing on Thanksgiving and several other stores launching early holiday sales—along with RetailMeNot’s Cash Back Day—there’s no need to wait for the last minute. The best time to start shopping for deals is now, and many stores already have discounted prices and holiday sales ready for launch.
Plus, it’s smart to shop earlier based on what we saw with out-of-stock items in the spring, lack of pickup windows and delivery delays.
2. Track deals by category.
This year has seen heightened shopping activity around home decor, loungewear, crafts, self-care, cooking appliances, puzzles and video games. You can start tracking prices on these popular items by category to get the best deals. Several resources organize the deals, so you can shop for TVs, games, phones and smartwatches, home furniture and so forth.
3. Do your research, and rely on RetailMeNot for the real deals.
Not all deals are equal, and sometimes you’ll find yourself shopping a sale that isn’t actually a real sale. Always price compare and shop around. Plus, follow your RetailMeNot editors right here. We’ll be posting all season in real-time with savings tips and the best deals on the hottest products.
4. Stay flexible.
At the end of the day, we’re all in this unpredictable year together. So it’s important to stay nimble toward the changing retail landscape and sales calendars. We’ll keep you posted, though, as we have a direct line to your favorite brands.
5. Look for for retailers offering exclusive deals or early access to loyalty members and app users.
This is something Amazon is known for doing with Prime members, and I’m noting it with more retailers. For example, The Home Depot mobile app users will have exclusive access to view deals in November before they go live online. Target Circle is another newer program that incentivizes members with early insight into deals. And something tells us Walmart might treat its new Walmart+ subscribers to offers galore.
Where Can I Shop Holiday Sales Early?
Many popular stores have already announced early dates for their holiday sales. Some of the best places to shop early include:
Amazon Prime Day
Prime Day 2020 will take place in October as opposed to July, and you can expect deals on all kinds of Amazon products (Kindle, Echo, Alexa, etc.) as well as toys, TVs, appliances and smart home products. We also are interested to see if Amazon launches any brand-new products.
Cash Back Day by RetailMeNot
It pays to get ahead! This Cash Back Day on November 5 and 6, RetailMeNot will pay to jumpstart your holiday shopping early so you can get your gifts on time. Extending our holiday sale to two days vs. one day gives you even more opportunities to save and take advantage of our best cash back while buying gifts and treats for yourself.
Macy’s
The store announced it will launch Black Friday sales immediately after Halloween. This comes off the back of their terrific end-of-summer sales and clearance fall deals. You can expect discounts on clothes, shoes, home goods and furnishings.
Target
Target announced it would kickstart holiday 2020 deals in October to cut down traffic to their store. It’s historically offered fantastic kitchenware, electronics and toys deals, so it’s exciting to see what they have planned for 2020. Check out Target’s Black Friday deals from last year to get prepped.
The Home Depot
The home improvement chain unveiled its plans for the 2020 holiday shopping season, saying Black Friday will stretch nearly two months (starting in November and running through December) rather than a single day. There’s also a focus on DIY with free shipping on over 1 million items. Fresh trees can even be shipped directly to your doorstep from with no shipping fee!
Walmart
Outside of its plans to stay closed on Thanksgiving, Walmart hasn’t hinted at holiday or Black Friday sales yet. But if history repeats itself, you better believe Walmart will come out swinging to compete with Amazon, Target, etc. In the meantime, take a look at Walmart’s 2019 Black Friday sales.
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