Pitney Bowes Research Shows Half of Americans Plan to Shop Online Earlier for Holiday Gifts
September 23 2014 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
Sixty-three Percent of Shoppers Want to Make
Sure They Receive Packages on Time This Year
According to a recent survey conducted by Pitney Bowes Inc.
(NYSE:PBI), half of Americans (49 percent) plan to shop online
earlier for gifts this holiday season. The main reason for this
decision is to make sure they receive their packages on time (63
percent).
“Last year, holiday shipping challenges stemmed from a perfect
storm of record-breaking weather combined with over-promises to
deliver orders on time and a last-minute shipping surge,” said
Christoph Stehmann, president, Ecommerce and Shipping Solutions,
Pitney Bowes. “To help capture holiday sales this year and meet
customer expectations, retailers should prepare well in advance for
the unexpected, and provide real-time visibility on shipping
packages and reliable delivery estimates.”
Overall, 70 percent of Americans consider shipping options to be
an important factor in the shopping experience compared to 66
percent in 2013. Also, one-third (33 percent) of respondents said
they plan to pay more attention to shipping this year compared to
last year.
In addition, three in four Americans (77 percent) said that they
track their packages that are being shipped to them versus 68
percent in 2013. One-third (33 percent) track their packages once
or twice. Another 21 percent track packages three to five times,
and 23 percent track it six or more times.
When it comes to free shipping versus fast shipping, 82 percent
of Americans find free shipping where the product arrives in five
to seven days more attractive, while 17 percent prefer fast
shipping where the product arrives in one to two business days for
a fee. As a result, retailers should consider offering free
shipping as a delivery option well in advance of the holidays since
this could mean that many Americans will be shopping even earlier
this year.
On average, Americans who find fast shipping more attractive
than free shipping would be willing to pay $8.50 for the package to
arrive within two business days. Relatively few (19 percent) would
be willing to pay more than $10 for fast shipping.
Methodology: The second annual Pitney Bowes Holiday Shipping
Survey was conducted by ORC International and polled approximately
1,000 U.S. adults on their attitudes toward shopping and shipping
leading up to the holidays. The survey was conducted via telephone
in the U.S. using ORC’s Telephone CARAVAN® Omnibus in August
2014.
About Pitney Bowes
Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size
and large firms that help them connect with customers to build
loyalty and grow revenue. Many of the company’s solutions are
delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply
both public and proprietary data to two-way customer
communications. Pitney Bowes includes direct mail, transactional
mail and call center communications in its solution mix along with
digital channel messaging for the Web, email and mobile
applications. Pitney Bowes: Every connection is a new opportunity™.
www.pb.com.
Pitney Bowes Inc.Karen King, 203-351-6189karen.king@pb.com
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