Top Holiday 2022 Trends for Consumer Packaged Goods Brands
It seems like every year flies by faster, doesn’t it? We blinked, and the holiday season is basically here — again. But that’s good news because consumer packaged goods brands (especially food and beverage brands!) and holidays go hand in hand.
On average, 87% of consumers shop for food and beverage around Thanksgiving, followed closely by 79% for New Year’s and 61% for Halloween.
If you want your business to fall under the “my favorite” heading, I've got some tips to help boost your CPG sales this holiday season.
CPG Trends 2022: Consumer Packaged Goods This Holiday Season
The pandemic rapidly changed how people purchase consumer packaged goods — and what they’re willing to spend money on. All those CPG trends from 2021 are still very prevalent today - some of the most recent CPG trends 2022 saw include:
Hyper intentionality. Consumers chose to save rather than spend. Their frugal nature led to bucket-worthy indulgences or impulse buys, rather than the typical spending we've seen in the past.
Conscientious consumerism. Saving was (and is) still top of mind. Consumers are loving DIY options and homemade gifts, shopping local, buying from artisans, and hitting up Etsy for gifts handmade with love.
Micro-indulgences. CPG promotions for crafted or specialty items, locally sourced items, and unique buys prevail. Everyone’s looking for something new and different to spend their hard-earned money on.
Going big and prepping early. There’s no such thing as being over-prepared with your CPG brand. Consumer packaged goods brands are central to holiday gatherings and shopping excursions.
Authentic branding. Consumers love brands that build trust and meet them where they're at. A brand that practices authenticity and consistent marketing will win over consumers.
Not sure where to start with your CPG promotions and holiday prep? The holiday season is daunting for everyone — consumers included! But the sooner you start getting your ducks in a row, the better. Here are some tips for staying on top of holiday 2022 trends.
Holiday Prep and Tips for CPG Businesses During the 2022 Season
Following your heart only gets you so far. These tips will help your CPG brand navigate the holidays, make the right decisions, and prep for the guaranteed craziness of the 2022 season.
Data-Driven Insights Get Results
Checking out the data for your CPG brand, analyzing it, and preparing for what's next (based on those results) is necessary. The more strategic you are from the very beginning, the more rewarding and relaxing the end will be. Preparing your business and your team for the holidays in advance lets you step away and enjoy the holidays — something we all want.
Collaborate and Partner
Have you considered a collaboration or partnership for your brand this holiday season? People love shopping for fun, meaningful, interesting bundles so partnerships always come out on top. One easy way to incorporate collaborations is to highlight a holiday recipe and do a partnership for the ingredients with another CPG brand.
Promotions
You’ve seen the emails. All those clever promotional campaigns in Q4. To stand out from the competition, you’ve got to make sure your promotions are different and offer consumers a unique proposition.
Instead of focusing on straight discounts (so many brands offer those throughout the year as standard promotions anyway), go a little further. Try offering a free gift with purchase if your customer buys a certain amount. This can help protect already tight profit margins.
A strategic way to implement promotions is to take your AOV (average order value) plus a bump up to equal a gift or something similar. Maybe your threshold for AOV is around $50. So, you bump up the threshold and offer a gift with a $75 purchase. Optional gifts could be free samples, a(great for beauty brands), travel sizes, branded merchandise or create bundles of products.
Product Positioning for the Holidays
Is your current messaging on point? Sure, it worked well during the first three quarters of the year, but the holidays are a different beast. Get your brand noticed and get customers interested in your consumer packaged goods business by pulling out all the stops. That usually means concentrating on new, or slightly different, messaging for the holiday season.
The holidays are an extremely stressful time for most families. They’re juggling regular life and trying to make the holidays truly memorable. Target messaging you might use in your CPG promotions could:
Make your customers lives easier
Focus on togetherness at home
Help more people have moments at home
Compare your product plus staying home versus the cost of going out and inflation
Holiday Planning Timeframes
Did you know that holiday planning typically starts 60 to 90 days prior to the holiday season? We’re cutting it close this year, but you can always use these tips to get started WAY in advance next year.
Here’s some advance planning you could try out in 2023 (or in 2022 if you still have time to get it done):
Create gift guides for your customers (don’t forget to highlight your products!)
Offer “how to use” tips that include your consumer packaged goods products
Give your customers an option to create a wish list — easy to make, easy to share, easy for friends and family to purchase
Ask about having your products placed in other gift guides, reviews, or roundups
Plan merchandising and retail campaigns that take your products to the next level
Nail down merchandising early
Map out your creative direction for Q3 and Q4
Stay On Top of Holiday 2022 Trends With Your Consumer Packaged Goods Company
Feeling more confident about where your consumer packaged goods company is heading during the 2022 holiday season? Great! Not so much? Now’s the perfect time to get creative and think outside the box for your CPG business. Connect with your customers and use your existing consumer data to help you navigate these crazy Q4 months.
If you still feel like you’re drowning in the chaos or if you’re a little late to the game this year, don’t panic. Preparing for the holidays can be a time-consuming operation! But you don’t have to face the holiday 2022 trends alone! With monthly operations management services from Virtual Sidekic, you can feel confident about where your CPG brand is headed this season.
Let’s hop on a discovery call so I can help you feel confident about the upcoming holidays — and cue up some stress-free holiday strategies. There’s nothing your CPG brand can’t accomplish with a holiday prep system in place!