Different Types of Christmas Shoppers
Christmas is coming, and almost everyone is thinking about (if not already executing) their shopping plans for the season. It is very interesting to categorize the different types of Christmas shoppers and see for yourself which type you are.
One way to categorize the types of Christmas shoppers is to decide when the shoppers start their mission, which leads us to three main types ofshoppers: the Early Bird, the Average and the Last-minute.
The early bird, as the name indicates, starts shopping weeks before the season starts. The usual mentality of these shoppers is the earlier you start, the less stress you probably experience. This is quite reasonable, as the early bird often has time to draw up a shopping list and go to as many malls possible to complete the list. The early bird is usually the most relaxed of the three types of shoppers.
The average shopper is like a professional runner: he/she only starts when the starting pistol is fired (in this case, when the Christmas displays are out and the music starts.) This type of shopper is usually less meticulous with planning compared to the early bird. While the early bird often has a shopping list carefully planned and ponders on the list over and over again, the average shopper may start his/her mission with only a rough idea of what he/she wants.
The last-minute shopper is either the unfortunate shopper who is too busy for a shopping schedule weeks before the season actually starts, or the ultimate representative of procrastination. This type of shopper often undergoes stress as time runs out. The lack of time also often leads to the lack of planning, which only exacerbates the stress caused by the possibility of buying unnecessary or broken items.
Of the three types of shoppers, men often outnumber women in the last-minute type.According to a survey, 54 percent of the men are last-minute shoppers, while only 36 percent of the women fall into this category.
Another way to categorize the types of Christmas shoppers is to consider their manner of shopping as The Surfer, The Bargain Hunter and The Returner. These latter two types of shoppers emerge in response to the changing economic landscape,accordingto the America’s Research Group.
The surferrefers to shoppers who carry out their mission mostly online. These shoppers may be the early-bird type (though the likelihood seems to be low, judging on how meticulous this type usually is about Christmas shopping), the average or the last-minute shopper. The rationale may be because the shopping mall is too far, or the desired items cannot be found in typical stores. The reason can be a lot more random - shoppers may purchase the items online just because they stumble across them when surfing the Internet.
Both the early-bird shopper and the average shopper can be bargain hunters (the last-minute shopper usually does not have much choice).Bargain huntersare like strategists: they do not simply wait for the big sale; they time their deals and start their hunt when the expected sales start.
Shoppers who make a habit of returning the goods they buy are Thereturners. Occasionally these shoppers fall into trap set by seasoned marketers; they suffer bouts of regret after purchasing the items only to realize later that they do not need the goods after all.
