The Ultimate List of E-Commerce Stats for Holiday 2016

Thinking through your 2016 holiday e-Commerce strategy? We’ve taken the liberty of pulling helpful, current digital holiday retail data into one source. Enjoy!

According to the National Retail Federation, retail e-Commerce holiday sales grew nearly 4% in 2015.

That growth translates to $101.9 billion generated from online orders during holiday in 2014 alone. It goes without saying that Q4 is huge – but with more than 86% of retailers expecting their online sales to increase during holiday 2015, the stakes for 2015 are as high as ever.

We’ve scoured the interwebs and pulled from hundreds of sources to provide you a ton of helpful data while you think through your 2015 holiday e-Commerce strategy.


Last year, 40% of holiday shopping occurred online.


 

Holiday Online Shopping Behaviors

  • November and December drive 30% more e-Commerce revenue than non-holiday months.
  • 78% of shoppers used the internet for holiday research last year.
  • An estimated, 92% of holiday shoppers will go online to either research or purchase gifts this season.
  • The days from Black Friday through Christmas pull in 50-100% more revenue compared to shopping days throughout the rest of the year.
  • 25% of shoppers said they had done some holiday shopping before Halloween.
  • The most popular time to buy online is weekdays from 12-2pm and on Sunday evenings.
  • 48% of holiday shoppers said they did the majority of their shopping on or before Cyber Monday.
  • According to a recent study, 41% of online shoppers purchased from a new retailer.

Sources: StatistaGoogleShopifyRJ MetricsTopRank


U.S. retail e-Commerce will grow 16.6 % this holiday (up from a 15.3% increase in 2014).


What Your Competition Is Doing In Digital

  • 1 in 3 retailers dedicate 31-50% of their total online marketing budget to holiday efforts.
  • US retail e-Commerce will grow 16.6 % this holiday (up from a 15.3% increase in 2014).
  • 86% of retailers expect their 2016 online holiday sales to increase.
  • 38% of marketers do not use personalization in their marketing efforts.
  • 98% of companies aren’t set up to identify, deliver on, and measure moments of intent in the purchase journey.
  • 49% of e-Commerce marketers will have created and launched a holiday marketing campaign before Halloween.
  • 2/3 of marketers say they’re already planning to hike their spending in social media during Q4.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperEconsultancyGoogleAdobe



How Your Customers Are Using Digital While In Your Store

  • 72% of millennials research online before heading to brick and mortar stores.
  • 49% of shoppers view products in person, then find cheaper prices online.
  • 22% research a product on their smartphone while in store.
  • 27% read online peer reviews of a product while in store.
  • 71% of shoppers who use smartphones for research while in-store say that it’s become an important part of their experience.
  • People who shop both in person and online spend 66% more than those who only go to stores.
  • Shoppers that buy in-store and online have a 30% higher lifetime value than those who shop using only one channel.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online Shopper, Deloitte, Hubspot


93% of shoppers take action for free shipping.


Holiday Shipping and Returns Strategies

  • 93% of shoppers take action for free shipping.
  • Free shipping was deemed the 2nd most important factor for shoppers when purchasing online.
  • 83% of shoppers will wait two more days in order to get free shipping.
  • Delivery speed is the 4th most important factor in the online buying process.
  • 50% of shoppers will choose a slower transit time for free shipping.
  • 7 business days is the average time shoppers are willing to wait.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online Shopper


Email marketing drove 27.3% of orders on Black Friday in 2014.


Black Friday And E-Commerce

  • The average online shopper spends $380 on Black Friday.
  • On Black Friday, mobile sales accounted for 27.9% of total online sales.
  • Email marketing drove 27.3% of orders on Black Friday.
  • Paid search drove 18.5% of orders on Black Friday.
  • Organic search drove 18% of online orders on Black Friday.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperFundivoCustoraWishpond


U.S. Cyber Monday sales generated $2.3 billion in 2014—up 29% from the year before.


Cyber Monday and E-Commerce

  • U.S. Cyber Monday sales generated $2.3 billion in 2014—up 29% from the year before.
  • 28.5% of Cyber Monday traffic came from mobile devices.
  • In 2014, 13% of online sales on Cyber Monday came from tablets. Those sales had an Average Order Value (AOV) of $121.24.
  • Last year, 9% of online sales on Cyber Monday came from mobile phones. Those sales had an AOV of $99.61.
  • Online spending from desktop users was up 20% from 2013, with desktop users having an AOV of $128.24.
  • Email marketing generated 23.9% of Cyber Monday sales.
  • Transactional emails (order confirmations, abandoned cart reminders, etc.) increased by 48% last year.
  • Organic search resulted in 18.5% of online sales during Holiday 2014.
  • Paid search drove 16% of sales on Cyber Monday.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperCustora, Forbes, comSore, IBM


74% of shoppers say they are influenced by coupons and offers online.


Tactics and Promotions to Consider During Holiday 2016

  • 91% of shoppers say a low price is an important to very important factor in the decision to buy.
  • 47% of online shoppers say they would consider enrolling in a product curation or subscription service.
  • 40% of mobile users look for or redeem mobile coupons when shopping.
  • 74% of shoppers say they are influenced by coupons and offers online.
  • 63% of consumers will be likely to share a link for a holiday contest.
  • 74% of shoppers search online to get ideas for their holiday gift lists.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperDeloitte via HubspotGoogle


Email marketing drove 27% of e-Commerce sales on Black Friday (2014).


Holiday Email Marketing

  • 65% of marketing emails were opened in 2014.
  • 1 in 5 shoppers made a purchase after opening a retailer’s email on their mobile device.
  • Email marketing drove 27% of e-Commerce sales on Black Friday (2014).
  • In 2014, email was cited as the most effective digital marketing channel for customer retention in the United States.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperCustora, eMarketer


Last year, e-Commerce orders coming from social media grew a staggering 202%.


Social Media and Holiday E-Commerce

  • 2,013,943 social media “discussions” on retailer channels happened on Black Friday in 2014.
  • Last year, e-Commerce orders coming from social media grew a staggering 202%.
  • 20% of online shoppers say that FaceBook helps influence their decisions.
  • 10% of online shoppers say that Pinterest helps influence their decision to buy.
  • Only 1.7% of E-Commerce orders on Black Friday through Cyber Monday came from social media (including FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest).
  • 19% of marketers are using social this holiday season to generate qualified leads.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperIDC StudyShopifyAdobe


80% of e-Commerce visitors watched product review and ratings.


 

Video and E-Commerce Purchasing

Of people who watched online videos to help with holiday purchase decisions:

  • 80% watched product review and ratings.
  • 68% preferred product videos from “people like me.”
  • 45% preferred videos from experts.

18% of online shoppers start off on a retailers web site to begin searching.


 

Online Search Behaviors

  • To date in 2015, organic search is driving 23% of e-Commerce purchases.
  • 18% of online shoppers start off on a retailers website to begin searching.
  • 28% of online product searches take place on Amazon.com.
  • In 2014, 33% of online orders came from a mobile device rather than a desktop.
  • Mobile accounts for 50.3% of all e-Commerce traffic (eclipsing desktop).
  • 1 in 5 e-retailers spent 50% of their marketing budget on paid search.
  • Marketers spent 49% of their paid search dollars on mobile platforms during the 2014 holiday season.
  • More than 70% of brands are allocating more than half their digital marketing budget to search and social this season.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperShopify, Shop.org


80.9% of people who shop on tablets end up buying.


Behavior By Device: Mobile, Tablet and Desktop

  • Last year, 53% of those who shopped online used smartphones or tablets (up from 41% in 2013).
  • There are an estimated 166.3 million total US mobile shoppers in 2015.
  • 1 in 4 orders during 2014 holiday season were from mobile shoppers.
  • 11% of online shoppers prefer to buy on tablet or smartphone.
  • 80.9% of people who shop on tablets end up buying.
  • 44% of online shoppers prefer to buy on a desktop or laptop computer.
  • 38% say they will not return to a retailer’s website if it’s not mobile optimized.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online ShopperPixelMEDIAGoogle, eMarketer


50% of shoppers abandoned carts that did not give an estimate on delivery.


 

How E-Commerce Site Performance Affects Purchasing

  • Mobile-optimized sites saw revenue grow 168% from March to May last year.
  • 50% of shoppers abandoned carts that did not give an estimate on delivery.
  • 58% abandon the cart after seeing shipping charges.

Sources: UPS Pulse Of Online Shopper, FierceRetail