RetailMeNot Report: 55% of Holiday Shoppers Still Have Half of Their Gift Purchases to Make

Dec. 14, 2012 – RetailMeNot.com, the largest online coupon site in the United States, today released another holiday edition of its Shoppers Trend Report (STR), revealing findings from a poll conducted by The Omnibus Company on how much holiday gift shopping consumers have completed so far and factors that influence their purchasing decisions. Conducted between December 3rd and December 10th, 2012 among 1,106 U.S. residents, the survey indicates that 55% of holiday shoppers still have half of their gift purchases to make, 14% of holiday shoppers have yet to complete any of their shopping and males are more likely than females to have not started shopping (17% versus 11%).

Other findings:

• Only 10% of consumers have completed all of their holiday shopping.
• Nearly 1 in 3 holiday shoppers (29%) have already spent more money than expected this holiday season.
• Parents are more likely than those without children to express they have spent more money than they expected so far (37% versus 24%).
• Women are more likely than men to have spent less money than they expected so far (29% versus 21%).
• When it comes to making gift selections, 21% of holiday shoppers say their spouse or significant other is the most difficult to buy for, followed by 13% who report that extended family members are the most difficult.
• Men are more likely than women to express that their spouse or significant other is the most difficult to buy for (24% versus 18%).
• Consumers may not get exactly what they asked for this year, as more than half of respondents said they are more likely to give gifts that are a surprise (52%) versus gifts that people ask for (48%).
• More than 6 in 10 respondents (64%) say they factor shipping and gift-wrapping costs into the budget they have for the items they choose instead of paying extra for these services after buying a present.
• Over half of respondents (53%) feel that it is not worth paying extra to have an item purchased online gift-wrapped.

“Consumers can still make those big purchases both online and in-store for everything from apparel to consumer electronics to sporting goods, but be prepared to see product inventories start to thin out the closer we get to Christmas,” said Trae Bodge, senior editor for The RetailMeNot Insider. “Consumers also need to make sure they pay attention to merchants’ shipping policies as time is running out on the many free shipping deals that guarantee on-time delivery of gifts.”