New Survey Shows Layaway and Social Media Marketing to Have Minimal Impact on Holiday Shopping

CFI Group holiday shopping survey shows limited return for retailers

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Nov 19, 2012, 10:00 ET

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Nov. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The holiday shopping season has already showcased incentives like layaway, online price matching and early "Black Friday" door-busters to entice reluctant customers weary of spending money; but according to a recent survey released by CFI Group, a customer satisfaction technology and analytics firm, incentives such as these won't be enough to lure them in.

While big retailers continue to push layaway plans, the recent CFI Group survey reports a small percentage of consumers actually plan to use it. According to the study, 53 percent of people surveyed are more aware of layaway plans, but two thirds are actually less likely to take advantage of the perk compared to previous years. Overall, 85 percent of the survey participants do not plan to use layaway plans at all this year.

"To compete successfully this holiday shopping season, retailers need to understand what drives customer satisfaction for their customer base," said Sheri Petras, CEO of CFI Group. "While incentives like layaway, online price matching and inciting door-busters may reduce consumer anxiety as the economy recovers, retailers need to continue to identify the root source of customer satisfaction and keep friendly and accessible customer service top of mind."

Social media promotions are also shaping up to be less-than-impactful according to data revealed in the holiday retail survey. An overwhelming 85 percent of survey participants do not plan to make any holiday purchases based on deals or information gained from a retailer's Facebook, Twitter or other social media platform.

Rather than merely following the trends of this holiday season, CFI Group helps retailers identify what drives customer satisfaction, and ultimately financial performance. CFI Group encourages retailers to offer what customers are really looking for. The best way to do this is to continually ask customers for feedback and use the data to determine what changes the company should make to increase satisfaction and keep those customers coming back.

About CFI Group (www.cfigroup.com)

CFI Group is a global leader in providing customer feedback insights through analytics. CFI Group provides a Customer Feedback Management (CFM) technology platform that leverages the science of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). This platform continuously measures the customer experience across multiple channels, benchmarks performance, and prioritizes improvements for maximum impact. Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, CFI Group serves global clients from a network of offices worldwide.

SOURCE CFI Group