The holiday season is fast approaching. In an effort to better understand where customers will shop during the holidays, we used E-Score Brand to identify the retailers shoppers would recommend to friends and family. Additionally, licensed products from entertainment brands are great gift ideas among Millennials, so we found which franchises Millennials say they would try new products from to gauge which entertainment brands will be hot this season.

Top Shops: Recommended Holiday Retailers

We used E-Score Brand to analyze which retail brands consumers are most likely to recommend to their friends this holiday season.

Retail brands that rank highest for Would Recommend are able to connect with customers beyond selling them goods. The top attributes of the top 15 retailers are A Leader and Family Friendly. Amazon leads all retailers for A Leader (66), while Target leads for Family Friendly (40.)

Amazon is a behemoth in the retail category leading all retailers in Awareness (86), Appeal (86), Brand Loyalty (89), Would Recommend to Friends and Family (76) and One of My Favorites (29).

Retailers like Bath and Body Works (Luxurious and Fun) and Best Buy (Informative and High-Quality) do a great job of focusing on appealing shopping experiences to deepen customer relationships and cut through growing competition from online and specialty stores. One consumer says of Bath and Body Works, “aromatherapy, it’s sooooo gooooood,” while comments about Best Buy include “a good place to get (your) hands on electronic devices,” and “[it’s] fun to walk around and shop.”

Extending Entertainment

Entertainment franchises like X-Men make for popular gifts like toys and apparel, but which ones have what it takes to make it big with Millennials this holiday season? Using E-Score Brand we ranked entertainment franchises among Millennials by Would Try Brand’s New Product/ Service.

Millennials are interested in movie-related shopping this holiday as 9 of the top 10 brands they would try have multiple extensions, including films, toys, and clothing.

Evidenced by Tom and Jerry, Looney Tunes, and Scooby-Doo taking the last three spots on the top 15 list, Millennials are interested in new products from classic entertainment franchises. These Classic franchises are also rated highly on the attribute Family Friendly, with scores of 47%, 57% and 61%, respectively.

A mix of nostalgia and anticipation help Harry Potter garner consideration for holiday gifts, as it tops the list of entertainment franchises young Millennials Would Recommend to Friends/ Family, likely fueled by the upcoming Magical Beasts and Where to Find Them movie.

The Comeback Kid: Best Buy Defies the Odds

Thought to be finished in the retail world just last year, E-Score, Forbes, and Bloomberg data supports the fact Best Buy is making a remarkable comeback in 2016, and is primed for the holiday season.

Consumer comments proclaim Best Buy as, “My haunt. I can never pass by a Best Buy without checking out the latest. I love streaming movies and stuff. Best Buy has everything that I need for home entertainment.” Sentiments like this have contributed to Best Buy’s 2016 recovery.

Best Buy is banking on quality products as part of its strategy for a return to prominence with a High-Quality score 9 points higher than the average retailer.

Customer loyalty is definitely helping Best Buy re-position itself. A Brand Loyalty score of 57% suggests many customers have stuck with the brand through difficult times, with many transitioning from brick and mortar to online shopping; evidenced by the company posting a 24% revenue growth online in Q2, according to one Forbes article.

Takeaway

Retailing is undergoing many changes as a wave of internet-raised shoppers comes of age. E-Score Brand’s intention metrics like ‘Would Recommend to Friends/ Family’ reveal the affinity and loyalty customers have with certain brands while brand extension questions such as “Would Try Brand’s New Product/ Service” reveal future opportunities.

Methodology

For Recommended Holiday Retail Brands – E-Score Brand: Category focus is Retail. These Reports have a Total Awareness score greater than or equal to 0%. The products were fielded after 09/01/2015 among survey takers whose responses match all of the following: ‘Age is greater than or equal to 18’.

For Most Wanted Entertainment Franchises –  E-Score Brand: Category focus is Entertainment Franchise. These Reports have a Total Awareness score greater than or equal to 0%. The products were fielded after 09/01/2015 among survey takers whose responses match all of the following: “Young Millennials” are people who indicate ‘Age is greater than or equal to 13 and ‘Age is less than or equal to 24’.

Resources

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