Younger Americans Are Turning To Social Media For Holiday Shopping

It is clear that the holiday season will be a record-breaking one, as it has already kicked off. The National Retail Federation (NRF), data shows that Americans expect to spend an average of $942.6 to $960.4 trillion this holiday season. This is six to eight percent more than last year.

Record 59% of 2022 Cyber Monday buyers used their smartphone, an increase from 52% in 2021.

Drew Wilkinson from SimpleTexting, Head of Marketing, stated that “even though people might be tired by being indoors during the pandemic,” they cannot beat the ease of shopping online.

Social Shopping: Shop for Fashion

Social media is becoming more popular than ever as Americans use it to shop from their smartphones. A Statista.com survey found that 34% of shoppers of all ages were turning to social media – and the findings were in line with Forrester’s Retail Topic Insight Survey, 2022, which found that social media as a shopping option has only seen a slight uptick this year.

However, not all people are sold on social media. Forrester reports that 62% online adults have not purchased anything through social media.

But it’s likely to be a matter demographic.

Social media platforms like Instagram, YouTube and YouTube are becoming more popular with younger Americans. Deloitte found that 66% of Gen Z, and 56% among millennials planned to use social media this holiday season for shopping.

It is notable that shopping habits are shifting due to the accessibility of mobile devices. Consumers don’t need to sit in front of computers to shop online.

Wilkinson said that holiday shopping has become synonymous with mobile shopping. Consumers have the option to shop from their own homes and businesses are taking advantage of this convenience. We are seeing higher rates of impulse shopping because of increased time on phones, improved ad targeting, SMS marketing and buy-now/pay-later options.

SimpleTexting discovered that one-fourth of Americans are more inclined to buy an impulse product if the site offers “buy now and pay later.” One in five Americans also found it more common to purchase online within hours of seeing an advertisement, even if they were on social media.

However, more than half – 53% – also said they’d cancel an online purchase before it shipped. This study further revealed the social media platforms on which Americans make the most impulse purchases. YouTube came in at 30%. Instagram was next with 27%.

Social Commerce: The Rise of Social Commerce

Even those not actually shopping on social media can still use the platform to find gift ideas.

Greg Sterling (social media analyst, Near Media), co-founder said: “Social media can be a great awareness medium for brands or marketers.” “It can have an impact on purchases, regardless of whether these sites receive credit.”

Sterling said that many online shoppers still look for gift ideas on Amazon and Google, but prefer social media, where the discovery process is more random.

He suggested that while the vast majority of online users use social media, young people are more likely to use it for holiday shopping. “Some users younger than 40 have abandoned Google for TikTok when they purchase certain types of products. However, this is not an all-or-nothing thing. Many people use multiple sites to find inspiration for their shopping and do research.

There is also the matter of social commerce.

Sterling stated, “While Meta is pulling back, TikTok keeps moving forward.” We should also see direct purchasing on social media sites grow in the US, even though it is not as widespread. Most adults will eventually use social media in their active shopping.