In 2021 US shoppers were set to spend $28.1 billion on Mother’s Day, up $1.4 billion from 2020, according to the National Retail Federation. It’s a number that has almost doubled since 2010, according to Statista.
Last year’s optimism and spending centered around customers spoiling their mums once more as vaccinations allowed greater freedom of movement. This year, with even greater freedoms now in place post-pandemic, we are likely to continue to see customers spending heavily once again on the special female figures in their lives on May 8, whether they be mums, stepmoms or grandmas. And why not? These are the people who are responsible for bringing us into the big wide world after all.
So what to buy? Flowers topped the list in 2021, with 68% of US consumers buying flowers for their mum. But there was also record spending on gifts of jewelry and electronics. And with consumers spending an average of $220.48 each on Mother’s Day there’s a big spend for retailers to play for.
In another survey nearly half (44%) of shoppers said they were on the hunt for a gift that was unique or a little different for Mother’s Day, so how can you help your customers decide what to buy and help them choose a gift that their mums will love?
Real-time social proof messaging can make the process a little easier. It helps customers to quickly identify bestsellers, popular and trending items and so can help with their buying decisions. It’s also based on the real-time buying behavior of other customers like them and will quickly surface the hottest gifts for Mother’s Day, whether they are buying traditional gifts or something a little different from the norm.
Customers can also see what other customers thought of such products, allowing them to see whether the gift might suit their mum, when social proof messaging is integrated with your review data, something that Taggstar offers through its partnership with Bazaarvoice.
Social proof messaging is a powerful tool. And it delivers results. Hotel Chocolat is another natural choice for Mother’s Day gifts, who doesn’t like chocolate after all – even if our waistlines might say otherwise? In the US Hotel Chocolat’s digital model drove an increase of 119% in its active customer database in 2021, according to the company’s latest interims.
Hotel Chocolat has used Taggstar’s real-time social proof messaging to help customers in their buying purchases, better equipping their customers with the extra information they need to buy gifts for events such as Mother’s Day.
And it’s worked well after the brand saw a 4.4% conversion rate uplift in only 20 days when it first introduced social proof messaging from Taggstar in 2021. It is now testing further messaging types, including review messaging.
Buying the perfect gift for someone as special as your mum isn’t easy. But offering your customers any additional help to ensure they’ve got that buying decision right will be appreciated, earning brownie points from their Mum, and for your business.
