A survey by global commerce leader Lightspeed POS Inc. indicates 56.9 percent of respondents said supporting local retailers would play an active role in their shopping habits this holiday season.
The Canadian 2020 Dining & Shopping Habits Survey indicated responses were fairly mixed on when Canadians plan to start holiday shopping this year – the most common response was to begin shopping in December (30.1 percent) and the least common response was last-minute shopping (11.9 percent).
And 21.4 percent of respondents started shopping in October.
Lightspeed has continued to support retailers on an ongoing basis by providing them with innovative tools to help reach new and existing customers for the holiday season and into the New Year, increasing their revenue amid the pandemic.
More than ever innovative and effective tools are what retailers need in today’s unique circumstances to grow their business and successfully navigate the challenges of the current retail environment. Giving retailers quick and efficient payment capabilities with Lightspeed Payments, while also providing a seamless online shopping experience for consumers throughout the holiday season with Lightspeed eCommerce, are just two retail solutions provided by the Montreal-based commerce company.
Other key findings from the Lightspeed survey include 43.8 percent of respondents saying they either definitely will consider or may consider purchasing subscriptions as gifts (i.e. a membership or replenishment of product) and 62.8 percent considering purchasing gifts from restaurants that have launched an eCommerce store, with the most popular gift choice of gift certificates.
In response, Lightspeed has a suite of solutions to help those retailers fulfill customers’ desires. Lightspeed Subscriptions, which offers retailers a new sales strategy that focuses on customer loyalty and recurring payments to unlock long-term profitability, and Lightspeed eCom for Restaurant, specifically designed to create an effortless online shopping experience, both serve to assist retailers during this challenging time of unprecedented challenges.
Lightspeed Subscriptions is currently in beta in North America only. It works with Lightspeed Payments and Lightspeed Retail to give retailers the tools they need to set up and manage recurring monthly billing. Whether retailers are shipping monthly packages or collecting membership fees, Subscriptions will handle payment collection for them. With Subscriptions retailers can create a plan, sell a subscription and manage existing subscriptions by unlocking a new revenue stream that never closes its doors. And retailers can manage inventory, shipping, marketing, and reports from one platform in a booming online marketplace.
The Lightspeed eCom for Restaurant solution can help businesses future-proof their restaurants by selling their products online and growing their brand where their customers browse.
COVID-19 is forcing independent businesses to urgently replace legacy point-of-sale systems in order to remain operational and safely adapt to evolving consumer behaviours. The scale achieved by Lightspeed presents retail and restaurant business owners in the United States with enhanced resources to pivot their operations.
Lightspeed powers complex small and medium-sized businesses with its cloud-based, omnichannel commerce platforms in over 100 countries. With smart, scalable and dependable point of sale systems, Lightspeed provides all-in-one solutions that drive innovation and digital transformation within the retail, hospitality, and golf industries. Its product suite enables SMBs to sell across channels, manage operations, engage with consumers, accept payments, and ultimately grow their business. In a time of unprecedented challenges, Lightspeed is dedicated to lightening the load for retailers by providing them with innovative solutions to problems faced during this unique holiday period.
*Partner content. To work with Retail Insider, email: craig@retail-insider.com
