The global holiday online sales for 2023 are predicted to reach around $1.2 trillion, which is slightly higher than the $1.14 trillion forecasted for 2022. Retailers have been advised to consider timely discounts, friendly return policies and the use of AI to drive personalized service, promotions and commerce experiences. According to the Salesforce Shopping Index, this prediction is based on their analysis of more than 1.5 billion visitors to sites using Salesforce’s Customer 360 suite, including a majority of the top 30 U.S. retailers.
Understandably, shoppers are being cautious with their digital spend this year, which is why AI may prove to be an invaluable tool. Salesforce estimates that predictive and generative AI will have a “significant influence” over $194 billion of global online holiday shopping. Retailers are also likely to tighten their return policies, with 88% of them likely to risk shorter return windows of 30 days or less. However, this could lead to fewer sales, as Salesforce warns that poor return policies could put more than 20% of sales at risk.
Discounts will be offered early this year, peaking during Cyber Week where it is expected that 25% of holiday digital sales will take place. Businesses should note that being ‘always-on’ for holiday shopping is key to success, with AI providing invaluable support in the process.
Originally reported by Martech: https://martech.org/holiday-online-sales-likely-to-remain-flat-yoy/
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