Online shopping, influencer marketing, high street footfall: 5 killer stats to start your week

We arm you with all the numbers you need for the coming week including how much money brands are wasting on influencer marketing campaigns and how number of older people who are shopping online.

1. Brands ‘waste billions’ on influencer marketing

Brands are “wasting” $2.02bn (£1.58bn) a year on influencer marketing campaigns, with many experiencing lacklustre results after forking out for A-list celebrities to promote their products.

Influencer marketing is currently valued at $5bn (£3.9bn) globally, with 54% spent on A-list celebrities.

However, just 25% of consumers would consider buying a product that had been recommended by a celebrity with more than one million followers, while 50% would be ‘likely’ or ‘very likely’ to purchase an item if it was promoted by someone with a smaller following who was considered a specialist in that area.

Baby Boomers are the most sceptical with only 0.3% saying celebrities would have any positive influence over their purchasing decisions.

By comparison, 15% of millennials would likely to be swayed by a celebrity.

Source: Zine

2. Number of older people shopping online grows

More than three-quarters (78%) of adults purchased goods or services online in the last 12 months, up one percentage point since 2017 and 25 percentage points since 2008.

Young people are the most likely to shop online: 96% of those aged 25 to 34 years, followed by 95% of those aged 16 to 24.

However, while consumers aged 65 years account for the the lowest proportion of online shopping at 48%, this age group has experienced the largest rise, up from 16% in 2008.

The age group with the smallest growth is those aged 35 to 44 years, up 21 percentage points, to 89% in 2018.

The study also reveals some differences in the online shopping habits of men and women with the latter more likely to purchase clothes or sports goods online (59%), compared with men (50%). While, 35% of men purchased electronic equipment and 29% purchased video games software, other computer software and upgrades, compared to 19% and 15% of women respectively.

Source: ONS

3. UK retailers already planning for Black Friday

More than three fifths (62%) of online UK retailers are already planning for this year’s Black Friday event, whether that be ensuring they have enough stock or refining their deals and offers.

Of those who have taken part in Black Friday before, 92% saw an increase in the number of visitors to their site and a further 71% saw an increase in sales.

Of those planning ahead, 45% are focusing on ensuring they have enough stock and 39% on refining the deals and offers that will be available. Retailers are planning early to ensure they have the best offering on the market, cited by 56%, and to make sure they have plenty of time to market their offers and increase awareness (44%).

When asked whether they prefer to have regular offers available or partake in key events throughout the year, 48% of retailers say they rather hold regular offers, while 32% would prefer to get involved with both and 20% opted for key dates.

Source: Acceleration Partners

4. Retail footfall declines in July

Retail footfall fell by 0.8% in July compared to June, in line with last month’s decline of 0.9% and a decline of 1.1% year on year. However, the high street experienced an increase of 0.3%, marking its third month of consecutive growth.

Footfall in retail park locations declined by 0.5% in July compared to July 2017 when it increased by 1.7%. Footfall in shopping centres also fell by 3.4%, a larger decrease compared to 1.3% year on year.

Only two UK regions experienced footfall growth in July – the West Midlands (up 1.6%, marking two consecutive months growth) and Scotland, up 0.5%.

Source: BRC

5. Snapchat daily users slide for first time

Snapchat lost almost 2% of its daily users in the second quarter of 2018 – the first time the social media app has seen a decline.

The Snap-owned app now has 188 million users, down from 191 million in Q1, a decline that CEO Evan Spiegel blamed on a redesign earlier this year. The drop in Snapchat daily active users “was primarily driven by a slightly lower frequency of use among our user base due to the disruption caused by our redesign,” Speigel says.

However, revenues were up 44% year on year in Q2 to $262.3m against estimates of $249.8m. The company posted a loss of $353m.

Source: Snap

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