The 5 Holiday Shoppers And The SMS Strategies To Win Them Over

No two shoppers are the same. While some make impulse decisions based on emotions, others take a while to decide where and how to spend their money. Then there are those that just leave everything for the last minute and wing it.

The eCommerce landscape continues to evolve and the diversity of shopping journeys from research to purchase seem to be more complex, and ever more unique to the individual.

Regardless, what’s certain is that shopper types do still exist and defining who comes to your store is crucial for every retailer as they all have different inklings and respond to different cues. In this guide we’ve tried to simplify things and give you our suggestions how to appeal to each of them personally via SMS. 

Shopping is almost like a ritual for early birds and it consists of numerous steps, spread out evenly throughout the pre-holiday season. Early birds like to start planning their shopping well in advance and while some are still trying to find the answer to “What will I buy for the holidays”, these shoppers have already planned everything down to the last detail.

Early birds like to take their time and come prepared with detailed lists. They do their due diligence and shop consciously, uninspired by the usual marketing tricks like urgency, scarcity and fear of missing out (FOMO).

What’s valuable to an early bird shopper is that they’d shop with ease, and will be the first to buy a product, without having to worry if their size, style or favorite color will be available. They may miss out on massive discounts, but having the advantage of the best selection and unlimited product availability is а substantial enough benefit for them.

Early birds also value their time, which makes them the perfect online shopper. Time is money. They’d do anything to avoid the crowds and long checkout times, which is why they’d be happy to opt in for the online equivalent. By starting their shopping earlier, they’ll be able to kick back and enjoy quality time with their family and friends while others are still frantically surfing the web for some last-minute gifts. 

Make sure you appeal to your early bird shoppers as soon as they hit your website. A pop-up, promising timely updates and access to the newest inventory, will get under their skin for sure.

A Conversational welcome message can be your way to assist them with their shopping research. Ask them questions they’ve probably already asked themselves, and help them out by pointing them to the right products. Things like “what are you here for”, “who are you shopping for” etc… will immediately get them into a shopping state of mind.

Early bird shoppers might even go as far as adding things to their cart but leaving it to go do some more research elsewhere. Remember – they have enough time and can afford an extra day or two of investigation. That’s why you need to make sure you send them an abandoned cart reminder, but not too soon, the notification should come a few hours after to remind them their cart is still waiting for them. You can add a small discount just to ease their spirit. 

Contrary to your early bird shoppers, deal seekers love a good bargain and can spend days and weeks hunting for one. While it might not be the only thing that gets them, a good discount is what will surely drive them to act. Roughly every one in five people classifies as a deal-seeker, making this group a very important target audience for your brand.

Being price conscious, this type of shopper usually consolidates all of their shopping around major sales events like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Valentine’s Day, 4th of July and other known, sales-driven holidays. While that might be the usual case, bargain hunters should not be confused with practical shoppers, who never stray away from their shopping list, where everything is calculated down to the last penny. Deal Seekers will buy all year round if some good bargains come their way. That’s because self-gifting and unexpected surprises are just as important to them.

Driven by sales and savings, deal seekers are often more prone to do everything online, as the internet is a one-stop-shop for all of their bargain hunting. What’s more, deal seekers are heavy mobile shoppers as well, because the average user already spends over 4 hours a day on their phone – they might as well be surfing for good deals!

Led by their desire to save a buck or two, deal seekers are open to getting their special promotions anywhere. They want to be the first to hear about them, which is a great reason to get them to subscribe to your SMS program. Promise them you’ll send them a text message every time you run a big sale and they’ll hop right in. Invite them to your loyalty program which guarantees even better deals, and they’ll rush to join in.

You can easily lure out bargain-hunters with special holiday deals that emphasize how much they will be saving and the exclusivity of the discount. Bundle deals, volume discounts are a great way to appeal to the deal seeker, who is always after getting good value for their money.

Clearance and flash sales are another route that will lead deal seekers straight to your online store. Having a limited amount of time (or access to limited inventory) to get a hold of the deals, they’ll act fast and without much hesitation.

Deal seekers sometimes are brand loyalists too, and only wait around for their favorite brands to launch their sales. If you have a group of people who only shop your biggest sales, reach out to them separately. Get them to shop your great deals but also nurture their loyalty by giving them a head-start. 

“I can do it next weekend” is procrastinators’ lifelong motto. Thrill-seekers by nature, this type of shoppers usually like to take their sweet time and wait until they have single-digit days left before the holiday to do their gift shopping.

Always doing things at the very last second, this shopping group relies heavily on their phones to guide them on their final purchases for the holidays, as well as online stores and expedited shipping options for their eleventh-hour orders. They represent a great 50% chunk of the world’s consumers, making them a massively important target group for your eCommerce business. 

With procrastinating shoppers, you have two routes to choose from. One option is to try and lure them out with some really enticing deals that they just can’t afford to miss, and drive them to finalize their shopping early on. With an all-time-high number of people shopping online, doing everything in your power to avoid adding to the shipping backlog could only benefit you.

Make sure you reach out to potential procrastinators with a timely SMS, reminding them of the upcoming holidays, urging them to complete their shopping now in order to avoid costly delivery, delays and other worries. Try to be more of a friend and less of a marketer with this group, and avoid strong FOMO-driving CTAs. Instead, emphasize convenience and be clear about what you can offer your last-minute shoppers. Use words like “quick”, “easy”, “speedy”, “save time and energy”, “we’ve got you covered” etc…

Despite all efforts, though, keep in mind that there will always be customers who insist on not getting their packages in time for Christmas and bottlenecks will continue to exist. In any case, you still need to take care of your last-minute buyers and be their saving grace.

Procrastinating shoppers will respond even more positively to same-day fulfillment options like buy online, pick in store, same-day delivery, or alternative present options like gift cards, subscription boxes etc…

Regardless of which route you decide to take, after-sales care is very important to keep these shoppers coming back to your store. Already stressed out because they might end up empty-handed, procrastinators need to know if any issues come up regarding their order. Sending apt Order and Shipping updates via SMS is of crucial significance. Such transactional messages are the equivalent of getting a receipt after purchasing from a B&M store and it gives customers comfort. Having your SMS Chat enabled is an additional touchpoint they’ll appreciate, in case they need to reach out with a question.

Procrastinating shoppers are also a great source of raving reviews and user-generated content. Thankful that they found your store and were able to get their gifts in time, they’ll be much more likely to leave a review and talk about their 5-star experience with your brand. Few days after, in the limbo days between Christmas and New Year, reach out to customers with an SMS Review Request and generate some valuable social proof. Review requests via text messages enjoy a 66% higher engagement rate than other channels, so success is almost guaranteed! 

And then there are those people who like to spend their Sunday morning in bed, on their phone, jumping from site to site to see what’s new and cool. Shopping could easily classify as a hobby or a way to kill time while waiting in line at the doctors office. These buyers rarely know what they’re looking for but are open to get whatever catches their eye. They are savvy website users, self-sufficient, and don’t need you to hold their hand while they’re scrolling.

Still, there are some factors that can affect them and nudge them to shop. 

To turn browsers into shoppers you need to catch their attention right away but in a clever way. And while a pop-up form is a great option for early birds, browsers require a different on-site attention-grabber. They don’t like to be interrupted while they’re scrolling through your website, so embedding a footer form or a floating button is a much better option. Both will remain static and can accompany them as they’re hopping from product to product, but won’t get in the way as it is strategically placed on the bottom of the page.

If this doesn’t work, you can stop them on their way out the door with an exit pop-up. This type of pop-up enjoys the highest engagement rate and is a proven method to get wandering customers back to your site.

In case you don’t wish to make any website updates, an SMS Browse Abandonment Flow is another great option for getting wandering shoppers back to your store. It will remind them of the last item they were viewing and can inspire them to return with the right deal, image and CTA. You can time it, so you give your browsing customers enough time to deliberate, but not too long so they don’t run off to a competitor or lose focus.

Browsers are also visual shoppers – they respond well to creative and bold images, slogans and CTAs. They are the ideal candidate for your MMS campaign, which is beautified with a branded image, its contents – tailored to the shopper, and can take them straight back to your website with just a tap. FOMO and urgency can take your MMS to the next level and really get your browsers all fired up and ready to shop.

Browsing shoppers don’t just keep it down to going through different websites. They often check out brands’ social media channels for more exclusive picks and ideas. Take this opportunity to turn your social media followers into SMS subscribers with a simple keyword campaign or a social opt-in. When the time comes to shop, browsers don’t mind browsing around for just the right product, and with SMS so direct and immediate, it will help save some valuable time and unnecessary, well, browsing. 

 

Lucky are the brands who can say they have a significant base of loyal customers. The loyal customer is a particularly important shopper profile subset due to their potential for profitability. It’s no secret that while a significantly smaller percentage of the overall customer pool, loyalists bring up to 60% of a brand’s annual revenue and can spend 30% more than your other site visitors.

Loyalty is a two-way street, though, and your loyal customers know that and expect it from you. They won’t think of going to a competitor if they are satisfied with your service and always the first to know about your greatest deals and new product drops. Showing an effort to get to know them, provide them with the best experience and overall – treat them like the important people they are, will create an incentive to continue being in affiliation with your brand. 

The very first thing you can do to win your customers’ loyalty in the first place is to attempt to get to know them better, which starts at the moment they become an SMS subscriber. Send them a welcome message, which doesn’t just serve as a notification that they’ve successfully enrolled in your SMS program, but is also a conversation starter. Again, a Conversational SMS flow will show them you’re really determined to offer the best experience and product suggestions. This is bound to win them over as it saves them time and money, but also gives them the same personalized treatment that is sometimes overlooked by online-only brands.

Brand loyalists will appreciate it any time you reach out to them with an exclusive pass to your upcoming sale or newest collection. Make sure to create an SMS Campaign Calendar or better yet, use ours, and never ever miss an occasion to reach out to your VIP group. Make it a habit to check the Campaign Calendar available in your SMSBump account, for the most important eCommerce events, inside you’ll also find a creative SMS template to go with each of them.

To keep those loyal customers coming back (and bringing friends over), make sure you run a loyalty and referral program. Get them to join with just a tap through the Yotpo <> SMSBump integration. Reward them every time they refer a new customer or make a new purchase: bonus loyalty points, gifts with purchase, exclusive BOGO deals, early access to some limited-stock items, samples, and more. Your rewards can have many faces but they serve one purpose – to make loyalists feel appreciated for a long, long time.

And finally, you don’t want to let loyal customers churn, so don’t skip on having a winback flow running in the background. This way, in case they haven't shopped in a while, you can send a text message, to remind them of your brand and persuade them to return. A winback flow can shorten the distance between purchases and ultimately lower the churn rate for your store.