You’re already staffing up your store, stocking up on inventory, and putting up the decorations – it’s that time of year when all retailers are preparing for the holidays, and anxiously awaiting to see if they’ll get the expected influx of shoppers. Despite a year of economic uncertainty, Square and Afterpay’s Festive Forecast report found that 34% of consumers plan to spend more this holiday season compared to last, with Millennials leading the charge.

With the shopping season right around the corner, below are five ways retailers can ensure customers will flock to their stores, generating a bright holiday season that prioritizes the customer experience.

Offer exclusive or new offerings to entice shoppers

Consumer expectations are high and in the age of non-stop content, grabbing their attention can seem challenging. Retailers can entice customers by offering something new - even based on existing merchandise - to cultivate a unique experience. For example, consider product bundles or sell subscriptions like a monthly candle shipment. Square data found that for businesses that offered subscriptions in Q3 2023, 22% of their revenue came from this channel.

Businesses can also host curated holiday events, sell exclusive merch, or partner with another business on a collaborative gift bundle. With any of these, it’s still important to place equal weight on both your online and in-store shopping experiences, ensuring they’re synced across channels so customers can discover and shop in their preferred way.

Increase brand discovery through new channels

It may seem like consumers are increasingly digital-first, leaning into shopping apps (31%), websites and blogs/forums (23%), and wishlist apps or websites (22%) for gifting inspiration. On the other hand, businesses shouldn’t discount the fact that even more shoppers prefer an analog approach; 49% of shoppers get ideas through word-of-mouth and another 39% find inspiration in-store.

Given that across generations shoppers are finding inspiration and gifts both online and in-person, it makes it essential to nail down your omnichannel strategy so you can have a leg up on promoting your business no matter where you’re selling. This ensures you’re maximizing your reach by promoting your business on a variety of channels.

Develop a strong discounting strategy

While a good portion of consumers plan to spend more this holiday season, Square and Afterpay found that 71% of Americans will shop for cheaper alternatives as they look for deals to maximize savings.

With this in mind, retailers need to develop a strong discounting strategy throughout the holiday season to ensure they’re offering the best deals at the right time, that in return attracts customers. Businesses should tap into their data from last holiday season to understand what discounts worked, what didn’t, optimal timing, along with what products were top and bottom performers. Sellers can then make informed decisions on what to restock, order amounts, and when to strategically share discounts.

Offer convenience and choice to customers

Consumers continue to crave convenience and choice when it comes to their shopping experience. For example, offering a number of fulfillment methods will be a key differentiator whether it’s shipping, local delivery, or Buy Online and Pick Up In Store option, which 31% of Square sellers are already considering.

This convenience also extends to the checkout experience. Considering 77% of Americans say inflation has made it harder to save, consumers are actively looking for solutions to help them budget, including flexible payments like Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL). Currently, 21% of consumers would consider using BNPL to make their holiday shopping budget go further, with millennials most likely to try BNPL (35%). Retailers should offer BNPL to accommodate consumers looking for a flexible payment option at checkout, while also helping them budget.

Leverage AI-enabled tools

As a business owner, it’s important to work smarter, not harder. Artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tools remove many manual tasks to help streamline customer service and maximize staff output so you can focus on other critical tasks. This includes conversational commerce to handle customer inquiries, generated product descriptions, or AI-generated photos for your website, all of which can make you look more professional.

Consumers are also becoming more comfortable with AI as 24% report having used a virtual assistant to help with shopping over the past 12 months. Gen Z (36%) and millennials (35%) are adopting AI at the fastest rates, using it for product information and finding the best deals. As these numbers continue to rise across generations, businesses should lean into AI-enabled technology to both maximize operations and streamline the consumer shopping experience.

For tips on how to better run and grow your business, check out Square’s The Bottom Line here.