More consumers plan to head to the web than to stores for shopping over the long holiday weekend

The big kick-off to the holiday sales season is rapidly approaching, and it looks like online stores will slightly edge out physical stores as the shopping destination of choice for consumers as they begin ticking gifts off their lists, according to a new survey from Deloitte LLP.

The survey of 1,200 shoppers Oct. 31-Nov. 4 finds that 89% of shoppers plan to hit stores and 91% plan to shop online over the long Thanksgiving weekend through Cyber Monday.

On Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, 50% of respondents plan to shop online. And nearly three-quarters (73%) of those polled plan to shop online Cyber Monday, which is also poised to take nearly half (47%) of all online spending that occurs Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, according to Deloitte.

2018 Online Peak Seasons Report

An online retailer’s peak season is the year’s high point of traffic and sales, and typically the merchant’s most important season, because it accounts for a disproportionate amount of yearly revenue. But not all retailers identify the November-December winter holiday sales period as their peak season. Consumer spending habits follow the calendar year cycle, and […]

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And shoppers won’t be patient with slow loading sites. 51% of shoppers say they’ll go to another retailer if a site has a technical issue. Additionally, 41% of shoppers say they will comparison shop on their mobile devices in stores, and 27% say they would be willing to check out while using their mobile device in a store to avoid long lines at the register.

The survey also finds:

• Holiday shoppers say they will spend an average of $420 during Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, and 88% of shoppers expect to spend more or the same during the holiday season than they originally intended to.
• Top destinations for in-store shopping include mass merchants (45%), department stores (43%) and electronics/office supply stores (33%).
• 81% of weekend shoppers plan to head online or to the stores on Black Friday.
• On Thanksgiving Day, 26% of weekend shoppers plan to head to the stores, and a higher 29% will shop online.

“The signs are in retailers’ favor heading into the weekend, with traffic spread over multiple shopping days and both online and in-store channels,” says Rod Sides, vice chairman, Deloitte LLP and U.S. retail and distribution leader. “Cyber Monday is set to attract shoppers both in-store and online, and capture the most dollars spent over the weekend.”