Reach tech-savvy consumers who are on your holiday “nice list”

AR, VR, metaverse… oh my!

As the separation between the physical and virtual world becomes far less pronounced, evolving digital tools will extend consumers’ experience of the world, facilitating new ways to engage with products and with each other.

For marketers, widespread digital adoption is bringing in a new wave of brand access. Engagement opportunities are moving beyond the point of purchase or usage and towards a round-the-clock relationship of participation, discovery and socialization.

In April 2022, Microsoft Advertising surveyed more than 1,000 US consumers to see how they’re engaging with augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and the metaverse. We discovered that 43% have shopped through the emerging technologies of AR and VR.¹ For context, imagine seeing what the placement of a large-screen TV or entertainment center you’re planning to purchase will look like in your living room without ever leaving home! More than 25% of consumers have used AR or VR to make purchases online, and there are between 21% and 23% who’ve used AR or VR to view a product they’ll ultimately purchase in-store.¹

Be sure to check out the on-demand webcast, Beyond the Click & Query: Holiday planning in Tech & Telecom, where we examine how advertisers can evolve to reach these consumers.

Gift shoppers will spend more on electronics

In terms of holiday budgets, while the majority of consumers plan on spending about the same this year as last year, 44% of those planning to purchase large electronics and 28% on small electronics plan on spending more in 2022.¹ For those purchasing small electronics, 45% plan to spend more than $500 while 64% of those planning to buy large electronics are expected to spend over $500.¹ For non-electronic purchasers, only 34% planning to spend more than $500.¹

It’s never too early to plan for the holiday season

So, when are these consumers going to start shopping? While the majority plan on beginning around the same time as last year, across all categories, 37% of those planning to purchase both small and large electronics will start earlier this year.¹ In fact, 25% of large electronic intenders have already started making their gift purchases!¹

Nothing about the last two years has been normal. The way we work and live has gone through a transformation, where the digitization of our lives has rapidly accelerated. For advertisers, there was a rush to adapt different strategies to reach consumers with newly forged behaviors. Advertisers found their pre-pandemic tactics no longer work, as all existing, well-thought-out consumer journeys were flipped upside down.

This leads us to wonder: Is there a new consumer journey? Are other advertisers adapting to this journey?

Our new study should prove useful as you plan for the holidays. Microsoft Advertising set out to find answers to these questions with the help of Forrester Consulting, who talked to more than 5,000 consumers and over 1,300 advertising executives globally. What they shared with us was fascinating.

There are 52 million Luxury Shoppers in the US on our Microsoft platforms, and 15.2 million Travel Enthusiasts on our Microsoft properties who work remotely.² Additionally, Travel Enthusiasts on Microsoft Advertising are 78% more likely to be planning to purchase a smart wearable device (such as a smartwatch or fitness band) than the average internet user.²

In the world of technology, Luxury Shoppers on Microsoft Advertising are:

• 56% more likely to be planning to purchase a laptop.³
• 46% more likely to be planning to purchase a flat-screen TV.³
• 60% more likely to trust new technology to improve their health than the average internet user.³

Give yourself an early holiday gift and watch the webcast to learn more about:

• Who the Workday Consumer is.
• How metaverse consumer shopping experiences have emerged.
• How to supercharge your full funnel strategy this holiday season and adopt a multi-channel strategy to lengthen your window of opportunity to reach consumers through non-brand keywords, native image ads and video ads.
• Tips on preparing your digital transformation for a cookieless future by using Microsoft’s first-party data and Universal Event Tracking (UET).

It’s never too early to learn how to reach key consumer audiences across the broad spectrum of technology that includes media, electronics, online services, telecommunications, hardware and software.

Want to learn more about the Luxury Shopper, Travel Enthusiast, Digital Nomad and other consumer personas? Download “Life Reinvented: Emerging Consumer Behaviors.”