As the nights get longer and the days colder, it’s safe to say that summer’s well and truly over, the Christmas rush has just begun, and the biggest days in business are just around the corner.
As we enter the final two months of the year, it’s essential for businesses to prepare for the year’s biggest annual sale days. By offering consumers the perfect opportunity to enjoy huge savings on their Christmas shopping, these bargain extravaganzas provide businesses with the platform to reach a mass volume of new customers in a short space of time.
And when it comes to sales, there’s no days more anticipated than Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Boxing Day, right? Well, not quite. There is in fact one day that blows them all out of the water; Singles’ Day. Never heard of it? You’re not alone.
What is Singles’ Day?
Originated in China back in the 1900s, Singles’ Day started with a group of unattached university students buying themselves gifts in celebration of their single relationship status.
But what started out as a small annual antidote to Valentine’s Day has grown into a world-wide, multibillion-dollar mega-event.
Now, every year on the 11th November, a date that’s also written as 11.11 or one one, one one, thousands of retailers take part in an online discount frenzy, driving traffic with huge special offers in celebration of Singles’ Day.
So what’s the big deal?
Last year, Chinese retail giant Alibaba, the Asian answer to Amazon, hit a record of $25.4 billion sales in 24 hours, bringing in more than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. In fact, sales exceeded Black Friday’s total of $5 billion within just 20 minutes.
And with a 39% increase from the previous year, it’s only getting bigger and bigger, now catching on in several places outside of china too, including Southeast Asia, Norway, the United States and the United Kingdom.
What is China doing right?
According to the Vice President of International Business at Mood Media, Linda Ralph, UK brands have a lot to learn from China’s Singles’ Day;
“Many British retailers have overlooked the importance of the store experience over the period, focussing instead on discounts as the way to drive sales”.
There’s no doubt that Black Friday is synonymous with chaotic scenes and stampedes of shoppers scrambling for the best deals. In comparison, Singles’ Day is seen as a more “fun, interactive and social experience”; one that’s quick, stress-free and enjoyable for the customer.
So if we can learn anything from China’s incomparable success, it’s to start considering the importance of the customer experience, offering a more hassle-free process online and in-store, even on sale days.
What does this mean for you?
As the bargain bonanza season kick-starts on the 11th with Singles’ Day, now’s the perfect time to get ahead of your competitors by creating an unmatched shopping cart experience.
Our suite of advanced predictive address and data validation tools have proven to cut data entry time by up to 80%, streamlining the checkout process with minimum time, keystrokes and effort required from the customer.
So by implementing them into your shopping cart, you’ll significantly enhance your customer experience, instantly cutting cart abandonment and driving conversions, all while capturing verified, complete and enhanced customer data.
To learn more about getting sale day ready both online and offline and ensuring a smooth data validation process, quickly organise a bespoke demo with our expert team. Alternatively, you can start a free trial to immediately discover the power of our market leading technology for yourself.
