Halloween is just a few days away. Before you know it, you’ll be sitting around the Christmas tree with your loved ones drinking egg nog. Although Christmas might be a stressful time of the year for many consumers, it is even more so for big box retail stores like Walmart and Target. During the past week, both retail stores have revealed their holiday strategies. Walmart will try to enhance customer service with their brand new Pickup service, while Target intends to entice with an abundance of new products. Neither company can afford a flawed holiday season with Amazon just waiting to capitalize on a mistake.
WalMart’s Holiday Strategy
Walmart unveiled their holiday strategy on October the 27th. The company’s United States chief operating officer, Judith McKenna, admits “We are listening to our customer and looking for ways to simplify their busy lives”. Holiday season can be immensely stressful for many Americans, but Walmart hopes their near features can alleviate those stresses to some degree. The company’s plan will go into effect on November the 4th. During this time, Walmart stores throughout the nation will be filled with holiday spirit in the form of new Holiday Helpers.
Holiday Helpers and Same-Day Pickup
Holiday Helpers will assist consumers by helping them find the shortest line, while also opening new registers as necessary. The company confirms they will increase the number of Holiday Helpers in order to accommodate customer levels even during peak hours. The company also intend to lean heavily on their same-day Pickup service. Additional stress members will help customers obtain their Pickups quicker, while each store will have their very own Pickup manager.
Exclusive Items
And of course, Walmart will attempt to convince consumers to visit their stores with many new exclusives. The Disney Princess Carriage and a new 3D Virtual Reality Drone will be a few of the new additions to Walmart shelves. The retailer also intends to rollback prices at the beginning of the season. And finally, Walmart will attempt to push its online platform into the spotlight. Beginning on November the 1st, the company’s website will feature a top 20 list of items. The list will help consumers discover new items, great deals, and exclusive offerings.
Target’s Holiday Strategy
Target’s CEO, Brian Cornell insists “Target is at our very best during the holidays, and we’re building on last year’s winning formula”. The company will try to do their best to ensure customers save time and money when visiting their local Target store. Consumers were impressed with their performance last year and they will attempt to build on that to deliver a even better customer experience.
Target’s Wondershop
One of the new additions from Target is the Wondershop. Target’s new Wondershop will be available online and in stores. When guests visit the Wondershop, they’ll be able to find everything they need to create the perfect Christmas tree decoration. Consumers will find more than 2,000 seasonal items, as well as an exclusive Bull’s eye ornament.
Wonderlist
Target understands how difficult it can be to find gifts for family members and friends. The new addition is designed to help consumers find the perfect items for their loved ones. When visiting the Wonderlist section of Target’s official website, consumers will be able to choose from a selection of four hundred gift ideas. Ideas are customizable based on the receiver’s interest and personality type.
Target’s New Offerings
Target will also be stocking their shelves with many news items. Country music lovers will want to check out the Garth Brooks 10-disc box set. The company will also provide consumers with access to Sony’s new PlayStation VR and VR One Plus. Homeowners will want to check out the retailer’s lineup of Google Home products.
- Nearly 1,000 new items for kids
- Approximately 1,800 new or exclusive toys
- 50 trolls exclusives
- 2 new Disney princesses
- 50 exclusive board games
Target’s Marketing Campaign
Finally, Target will go all out with their Christmas marketing campaign this year. The campaign will feature a Broadway-style product with The Toycracker taking center stage. The company will broadcast an 8-minute musical, which will air in two segment, during ABC’s broadcast premiere of Disney’s Frozen on December the 11th. John Legend and Chrissy Teigen will star in the production.
From the information provided by both retailers, it is clearly obvious both are ready for a super Holiday season. Consumers may very well feel obligated to visit both retailers, in order to find the best bargains!