GutCheck Research Explores Millennials and GenX Holiday Shopping Behaviors
Denver, Colorado (PRWEB) November 21, 2013 -- Millennial holiday shoppers expressed a preference for online shopping while Generation X (GenX) are planning to outspend Millennials this holiday season, according to new research from GutCheck, a Denver-based agile research firm. The consumer research was launched last week to help the company’s CPG customers better understand what products consumers are most excited about this 2013 holiday season.
The research was designed to understand the similarities and differences between Millennials and GenX consumers as they gear up for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Consumers from both age groups anticipate a wide array of new video game systems, tablets, toys, clothes, and assorted electronic devices and accessories to dominate their holiday purchases this year. The most anticipated electronics included XBox One, PlayStation 4, and various tablets including as iPad and Amazon Kindle Fire. The research revealed that affordability, multi-use functionality and the recipient’s personality as the key factors in guiding the purchase decision.
Across both groups, the most popular channel for shopping this season is online, especially for electronics and specialty items, for the convenience and ease of identifying deals through side-by-side price comparison. However, Millennials outpaced GenXers with a stronger preference for online shopping.
Consumers still value the in-store experience for gifts like clothing, shoes, fragrances, and jewelry in order to validate the purchase by seeing the item in person. According to the research, while in-store-only shoppers were in the minority, they preferred in-store shopping for the holiday atmosphere and because it was more personal than the online experience.
Not surprising to GutCheck researchers based on their experience probing consumers for the company’s CPG clients, most research participants adhere to budget restrictions and rules for holiday shopping, focusing the majority of their spending on immediate family. However, GenX participants’ budgets skewed higher than their Millennial counterparts with the majority of Millennial budgets ranging from $250-$999 and the majority of Gen X ranging from $500-1499.
This research was completed using GutCheck’s Instant Research Community offering, with two groups of n=23 and n=24 respondents representing the target age groups and other qualifying demographics. Participants had to celebrate Christmas and plan to purchase one or more gifts, including electronics. As with all qualitative research, the findings reported here should be considered directional and not serve as a means of statistical significance.
About GutCheck
GutCheck is an on-demand research community solution that provides immediate insights from specific customer segments enabling clients to optimize their product innovation and marketing communications processes. Unlike traditional online communities that want for speed and accuracy, GutCheck delivers highly actionable feedback in days and without the need to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars upfront. For more information: http://gutcheckit.com.
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Media Contact:
Laura Taylor
Taylor Strategic Communications for GutCheck
taylor-laura(at)comcast(dot)net
(303) 346-9149 office
(720) 556-2640 mobile
Laura Taylor, GutCheck, http://www.gutcheckit.com, +1 303-346-9149, [email protected]
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