Ho-Ho-Holiday Shopping

Posted on | December 4, 2008 |

by Delia Passi

According to a recent survey by The Consumer Reports National Research Center there are big differences between men and women when it comes to holiday shopping. If I may be so bold…Duh! Have you been to the mall lately? Of the men you see there, many are on leashes.

Here are a few facts gleaned from the survey. Among couples, 78% of women said they do more than 75% of the holiday shopping. The men were in agreement with a 21% response to the same question. 42% of women said they will do more than 10 hours of shopping versus 29% of men. Was that in just one trip to the mall? Who gets away with doing less than 10 hours of holiday shopping? These people don’t know how to enjoy the process.

Another big surprise: Men are going for flat-panel TVs in a big way. This must be an example of the “I’ll buy my own present and you can wrap it” school of gift giving. If you want to save money on the TV apparently the best way is to let the woman buy it. She is inclined to buy a smaller set and spend $240 less.

Among other factoids about holiday shopping: According to a Maritz consumer poll, women are doing more online research before shopping than men (81% vs. 67%). They are more intent on giving practical vs. non-essential gifts than men (69% vs. 54%), and they will give more homemade and sentimental gifts (42% vs. 29%).

Like I’ve always said, men and women are different customers, and need to be viewed as such by salespeople. Given these facts, salespeople should be prepared to direct customers to the kinds of products that will best fit their shopping intentions. “Sir, the TVs are over there.”

I and my co-writing husband, the comedian and CFO, took a humorous look at husband and wife (Mark and Maria’s) holiday shopping role reversal in a series of blogs appearing this week on the Readers Digest website. Check them out. Not only will you completely relate but we provide even more insight on how men and women differ in the shopping process. Enjoy!!

Delia Passi, Founder of WomenCertified® and author of Winning the Toughest Customer: The Essential Guide to Selling to Women is a regular columnist on ReachingWomenDaily.