Denver, CO – Spring is in full swing! As I've been traveling across the country speaking with brands about everything from their unboxing experience to their digital transformation initiatives, one theme holds true: even as the seasons change, the Holidays are never far off. For brands and retailers that rely on the holiday season shopping bump, it’s already time to plan for end-of-the-year sales. Last year, Black Friday weekend delivered a huge win for sellers, with sales up year-over-year and new records set for online, mobile device, and Cyber Monday sales.

These trends appear to be on track for this year’s holiday sales season, as well. Some analysts are also predicting that competition for consumer dollars will increase, with a wider array of products discounted and a longer timeframe for sales.

Traditionally, Black Friday – the day after Thanksgiving – has signaled the start of the holiday shopping season. In recent years, the sale has extended throughout the weekend, culminating in “Cyber Monday.” Even more recently, some retailers have announced “Black Friday” savings on Thanksgiving and even the day before the holiday. “Black Friday” is now a week-long event.

If your team is gearing up for this annual sale, now is the time to think about not only how you can focus the attention of consumers on your products, but also how you can continue your relationship with new customers once the sales are over – and ultimately increase customer LifeTime Value (LTV).

Product Registration Trends During the Holidays

Reserve your copy of our 2019 Trend Report: The Rise of the Engaged Owner

The holiday shopping season represents a unique opportunity for brands to engage with new customers, gain their trust, and facilitate brand loyalty and a higher LTV.

How?

By capturing the excitement of a new product owner when they first interact with their new purchase or gift. Our research with more than 300+ brands around the globe has shown that holidays are one of the best times to capture product registrations:

• 53% increase in registrations the day after Black Friday.
• 191% increase in registrations on Christmas day and December 26.
• Daily average of holiday season registrations (November, December, January) is 68% higher than the rest of the year.
• Holiday registrations account for nearly one-third of the year’s registrations.
• Photoregister℠ accounts for 57% of registrations on Christmas day, and 55% on the day after Christmas demonstrating the ease of mobile registration and preference by product owners.

Given these product registration trends, no product brand can afford to miss out on the opportunity to connect with holiday season customers for long-term gains.

If you don't know who your customers are, how can you even begin to increase LTV?

The key to building customer lifetime value lies in providing an exceptional Ownership Experience (OX). The key to providing a compelling OX is customer data. But not just any data. First-party data, collected by your brand about your customers, is the best data for truly understanding your product owners’ behavior and preferences.

Brands that are looking to increase LTV must ask themselves the following questions.

Do we know who buys our products?

Product registration, when done right, is the first step of the ownership experience. Research shows that the most valuable customers are those who register and engage with the brand, leading to increased customer loyalty and lifetime value. Getting more buyers to register is critical.

What first-party data are we collecting from our customers and how are we using it?

Brands that collect first party data have uncovered customer insights that fuel many initiatives, from digital transformation projects, to direct-to-consumer, advertising, customer support and new product development.

How can we identify our Most Valuable Customers (MVCs)?

Using the first-party data collected during registration and subsequent touchpoints, Registria works with our partner brands to apply advanced data analytics and best practices. Not only do they discover their MVCs, but also how to optimize communication to increase aftermarket revenue and open up a new point of sale.

Beyond marketing, how can we bring a positive impact to the ownership experience after someone purchases a product?

Build your culture around the owner. The holiday shopping season brings everyone in the organization together, all hands on deck. Apply that same mindset to your owners’ post-purchase journey and you will build a tremendous ownership experience!

Brands that make it easy for customers to register their new products see higher registration rates, experience greater brand affinity, and increase LTV. The holiday shopping season is the optimal time to connect with excited new product owners and leverage the highest registration rates of the year.