For retailers, the post-holiday winter months can be a drag, but with the right data and preparation, Valentine’s Day can infuse sales — in-store, but also increasingly online nowadays — with some much-needed energy.
How did consumers say “be mine” this year? Our Valentine’s Day trends report analyzes millions of searches performed across dozens of major retail sites in preparation for Cupid’s big day.
Beyond the basic V-Day wisdom, however, where should retailers hoping to capitalize on the most recent ecommerce trends begin? Luckily, we’ve compiled a new report that analyzes data from millions of product searches conducted on sites like Walmart, Target, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Kmart, and Sears in the two weeks that led up to Valentine’s Day 2017 to give sellers specific insights into their online customers’ lovestruck shopping habits.
Some key highlights:
- Hey, big (e-)spender: “Engagement rings” was the third-most searched-for product, indicating that shoppers are getting increasingly comfortable with purchasing big-ticket items online. (“Wedding rings” and “diamond rings” also made appearances, at Nos. 22 and 26 respectively.)
- But there’s nothing like the classics — bouquets (in particular “vday stemroses,” a term that came in second only to “flowers”) still dominate search terms leading up to the big day, with chocolate (Hershey Kisses especially) and women’s lingerie not far behind.
- While an NRF study shows that Valentine’s Day shoppers are mostly men, women are feeling generous these days, too: men’s watches, men’s underwear, and fragrances all took spots in the top 15 search terms.
- Cater to the procrastinator. Online retailers looking to adapt to growing Valentine’s Day shopping patterns would do well to both implement Click-and-Collect programs on their sites to make in-store pickups readily available to those last-minute shoppers, and ensure their relevant inventory is well-stocked online and in-store in preparation for those quick-fulfillment purchases.
- On Valentine’s Day, there’s no such thing as too matchy-matchy: retailers should be employing Cross Sell tools to nudge shoppers toward underwear sets rather than settle for one piece alone.
Get the full report, complete with the holiday’s winning brands and full search rankings, here.
