If you’re a retailer, predictions for the 2024 back-to-school shopping season may put you in a good mood. Despite economic concerns about inflation (in June, prices were up 3.3% from a year ago, but the rate has begun to slow), back-to-school spending is expected not only to stay strong, but to surpass 2023. As usual, we sought insights from Steve Wilson, one of our resident retail experts. Watch this short video for a quick overview of his insights. To dig deeper, read on!
Thanks to robust consumer demand and higher prices, the National Retail Federation projects back-to-school spending will reach around $41.5 billion, up from last year’s $36.9 billion. Although consumers are tending to be more selective about their expenditures, parents are expected to prioritize education-related purchases over other discretionary purchases.
Research from JLL indicates that parents will increase their per-child spending for the second year in a row from $390 to $475. What’s driving the demand? What trends are guiding consumer buying behavior as they make school-related purchases? And how can retailers maximum the momentum to make the most of this all-important season?
2024 Back-to-School Trends
Trend 1:
Parents are focusing on electronic gadgets and computer equipment to support their children’s education, which is not surprising, given the pervasive role technology is playing a in the classroom learning experience.
Trend 2:
Parents are also increasingly taking cost-saving measures. They are showing a preference for store brands and generic products and focusing on the basics. Before making a buying decision, they’ll seek out a sale or a discount coupon.
According to a Google Consumer Insights report, 71% of U.S. shoppers are willing to wait over two weeks to buy something if they want to take advantage of a sale, deal, or promotion.
In fact, parents—particularly those who are younger and tech-savvy—are adept at conducting price comparisons and finding deals on social media. What this suggests for retailers is to be similarly attuned by leveraging social media for promotions, offering competitive prices, and providing a seamless online shopping experience—a strategy for success during this crucial retail period.
Trend 3:
As in past years, many consumers are getting a head start on their back-to-school shopping, often in response to promotional events. The NRF reports that 68% of shoppers—up from 55% in 2019—say they typically plan their back-to-school and college shopping around retailer events like Prime Day, 4th of July, or Labor Day sales. This early shopping trend allows families to manage their budgets more effectively, ensure they can take advantage of discounts, and avoid potential supply shortages.
While online shopping continues to rise, the truth is that more than 80% of all shopping still occurs in brick-and-mortar stores. The role of physical retail remains crucial, particularly for back-to-school shopping, where the tactile experience of selecting supplies and clothing is significant.
The role of physical retail remains crucial, particularly for back-to-school shopping, where the tactile experience of selecting supplies and clothing is significant.
Tips to Build Retail Traffic and Maximize Sales
Ensure you are effectively blending the online experience with in-store offerings. Highlighting back-to-school on your website is just as important as hanging welcoming banners in your store. Realize that more than 50% of North American back-to-school shoppers say they’ll check for in-store inventory online before going into a store. And many are re-checking and reading product reviews in the aisle during in-store visits. They are also continuing to utilize convenient options such as BOPIS (buy online, pick up in-store), curbside pickup, and contactless shopping options.
Attract customers to your stores with enticing local marketing campaigns and social media engagement on multiple platforms. Consider bundling school supplies to add value and convenience for parents.
“Today’s retail media enables consistency of messaging for the customer journey across all touchpoints, including e-commerce, online research, mobile and in-store. That consistency amplifies the impact of the physical retail store experience.”
Source: TotalRetail
Ensure your stores are well-staffed with knowledgeable employees who are friendly, helpful, and customer-oriented – so the back-to-school rush doesn’t become a shopping bust.
Finally, don’t regard discounting, social interactivity, and omnichannel consistency as one-off strategies reserved for back-to-school or any other special shopping season. Instead, give them life by expanding and modifying them in accordance with customer responses. Listen to your customers, emphasize more of the actions that worked well and make them even more successful in the future. Do what you can to ensure every back-to-school customer wants to come back to your store.
Watch our short video as Steve Wilson, MarketSource Vice President of Retail Strategy and Operations, gives his expert observations of the 2024 Back-to-School shopping season.
Author: Karen Salamone
Karen is Head of Marketing for MarketSource. She is a transformational B2B and B2B2C leader with a history of building marketing organizations, content teams, and demand generation centers of excellence from the ground up. She is recognized for delivering meaningful insights and fresh approaches and for earning best-in-class content, design, and multi-media awards.
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