Online Holiday Sales to Increase Between 11% and 14%

Online retailers can expect huge gains in the upcoming holiday shopping season, according to market research firm Forrester Research.

Despite price hikes resulting from the new tariffs imposed by the government, and its brewing trade war with China, the company said online retail sales for the months of November and December will increase by 12.7% to $138 billion.

It added that electronics, clothing, and accessories will continue to be a crowd favorite and shall represent 40% of total online spending.

CRM solutions provider, Salesforce, has its own forecast for the holidays that is relatively close to Forrester’s. The company estimated eCommerce revenues to grow by 13% to $136 billion.

In addition, Salesforce says online retailers will benefit from knowing the multiple touchpoints that consumers plan to use in their shopping journey during the holidays.

“We define these off-property touchpoints as the “edge of shopping.” A survey of 10,000 global consumers reveals that on average, shoppers use eight different channels to engage with brands across the shopping journey. This holiday, we expect to see more shopping move to the edge, particularly with younger shoppers who are 3.5x more likely than older generations to purchase on these emerging digital intermediaries.” – Salesforce Blog Consumers’ spending concerns

Consumers Concerned About Price Rises

The National Retail Federation is also optimistic about the growth opportunity that the holidays would bring online businesses. According to its forecast, eCommerce sales will jump by 11% to $162.6 billion, or 14% to $166.9 billion from $146 billion last year.

The trade group stressed, though, that nearly 79% of consumers it surveyed last month are concerned that the new tariffs might lead to pricier goods.

“There has clearly been a slowdown brought on by considerable uncertainty around issues including trade, interest rates, global risk factors and political rhetoric. Consumers are in good financial shape and retailers expect a strong holiday season. However, confidence could be eroded by continued deterioration of these and other variables.” – Matthew Shay, CEO, National Retail Federation

As retailers constantly look for ways to lessen the impact of price hikes on shoppers, it’s less likely that buyers would be affected on a grand-scale this holiday season.

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