WASHINGTON–According to Shop.org’s eHoliday Study, many online retailers will be enhancing their presence on Facebook, Twitter and other social-networking sites to bolster sales during the holidays.
Nearly one-half (47.1 percent) of Web retailers that participated in the study said they would increase their use of social media this holiday season, while more than three out of five said they have added or improved their Facebook and Twitter pages. Slightly less than two-thirds said they have added or enhanced their blogs and RSS feeds.
The study also found that about four out of five online retailers plan to debut free-shipping offers with conditions at some point during the holiday shopping season. More than half also said they would offer some free shipping without conditions, and more than one-third said they had increased their budgets for free shipping over last year’s holidays.
The survey was conducted for Shop.org, a division of the National Retail Federation, by BIGresearch. Scott Silverman, executive director of Shop.org, said these efforts are a major part of the incentives online retailers are using to boost business during the holidays. “From free shipping to Facebook, online retailers are combining new initiatives with tried-and-true tactics to make their companies stand out.”