The importance of Q1 to overall strategy

Keeping a store top-of-mind is increasingly important because the digital space makes it easy for consumers find more selection, better pricing and better experiences with the click of a mouse. New data out from Cardlytics suggests that Q1, a time when many retailers and brands take a break from hard-hitting campaigns, is actually the time to speed forward.

by Kristina Knight

According to their data most newly acquired holiday consumers will lapse from a brand during Q1 (77%) but while they may not shop with Retailer A nearly half of those lapsed shoppers (40%) will go ahead to shop with a competing merchant.

"Many merchants spend a lot of time and resources during the holiday season to beat out competitors and win the most customer spend - which is important, because there is a huge amount of spend happening in Q4. But the purchase data we see on the Cardlytics platform shows that many retailers aren't capitalizing on their Q4 momentum. A full 77% of customers acquired during the holidaysdon't return to the same retailer in the first quarter of the new year, which is an enormous missed revenue opportunity. Even more surprisingly, we see that on average, 40% of these lapsed holiday customers go on to shop with that retailer's competitors in Q1," said Dani Cusion, CMO, Cardlytics.

Added to that: returning customers tend to spend more than first time shoppers, up to 4x more between Q2 and Q4 if merchants continue to advertise, email and engage that those retailers who step back from actively campaigning for shoppers.
"Cardlytics found that shoppers who return to a merchant soon after the holiday season make more purchases and spend more with that merchant throughout the remainder of the year. Specifically, the holiday shoppers who come back in Q1 are more than twice as likely to make a repeat purchase during the rest of the year. Moreover, customers who shop with a certain retailer over the holidays and then again during the first quarter of the new year spend an average of 4.6 times more between Q2 and Q4 compared to those who wait until April or later to make their next purchase," said Cusion.

To keep newly acquired shoppers shopping, Cusion advises merchants and brands to not take a break during the months of January, February and March.

"Shoppers often aren't incentivized to return to retailers directly after the holidays, so Q1 is a crucial time for retailers to re-engage. Well-timed customer acquisition campaigns can attract these shoppers, which will then drive loyalty for the rest of the year. Enticing omnichannel offerings, like free next-day shipping and BOPIS (buy online, pick-up in store) options can help prevent shoppers from lapsing. Post-holiday sales and other promotions can also keep both new and long-time consumers coming back instead of going to the competition," said Cusion.

Tags: advertising, advertising trends, Cardlytics, ecommerce, ecommerce trends, loyalty marketing, mobile marketing, social marketing