Halloween, a predominantly American tradition, has become popular in Australia. At the end of October, people bring out their witches’ hats, host spooky-themed parties, and indulge in the popular trick-or-treat ritual. Halloween in Australia’s newfound fame makes it an ideal retail event for e-commerce sellers.
According to Retail Asia, more than 21% of Australians plan to celebrate the holiday with a projected average spend of $93. As the holiday nears, e-commerce sellers in Australia can tap into shoppers’ holiday spending intent and maximize profits.
This article will look at the fascinating world of Halloween in Australia, shedding light on what Halloween sales entail and how sellers can leverage this peak retail holiday in 2024. Whether you’re a small boutique store or an established seller, Halloween in Australia offers a unique opportunity to boost your revenue and engage with customers in a fun and creative way.
When is Halloween celebrated in Australia?
In Australia, Halloween is celebrated on October 31st, 2024. While not a nationally recognized holiday, Australians celebrate the festivals. Some Australians host Halloween-themed parties, while others participate in trick-or-treating. Australians who celebrate Halloween decorate their house with spooky themes, carve up pumpkins, and hold costume parties.
Want to elevate your Halloween game as an E-commerce seller?
Choose Locad and get started today!
What is the Halloween Sale?
A Halloween sale is a promotional event organised by e-commerce sellers to coincide with the spooky Halloween festivities, typically in late October. And while Halloween has its roots in Celtic traditions, it has evolved significantly over time and has found a distinct place in Australian culture. Recently, it has become a beloved celebration, especially among young Australians and families.
When Should Sellers Run The Halloween Sale 2024?
While running a halloween sale, sellers must keep in mind that shoppers like to make purchases earlier and then there are last minute shoppers. Make sure that your Halloween Sale 2024 starts a week early. Promote the sale ahead to generate buzz on social media platforms to start as early as the 21st. But tap into the last minute shopping deals by launching final day sale deals around 29-30th of October.
Want to take the stress out of warehousing this Halloween?
Simplify your logistics for e-commerce success with Locad
Top E-commerce Spending in Australia During Halloween 2023?
According to Statista, nearly 49% of Australians planned to purchase Halloween costumes, while 39% planned to get treats for trick or treating. 36% of Australians planned to celebrate the holiday by decorating their house, while 45% indicated that they would go trick or treating.
The Shopper Demographic During Halloween 2023
In 2023, the Australian Retailers Association reported that 40% of Australian shoppers celebrating the holiday were between 35-49 years old, which was nearly 1 million Australians. The next category of popular spenders were Australians aged between 18-34, totalling around 2.1 million Australians. Other responders were between 50-64 years and above, making up 620000 and 430000 Australians in total.
What can Australian Sellers Expect during Halloween 2024?
This year, the Australian Retailers Association notes that 35% of shoppers celebrating Halloween are 35-59 years old. While 25% of the shoppers were under 35. While the expected spending is down by 40 million from Halloween 2023, the sales generated this year is expected to surpass $450 million.
Ready to enhance your online store’s fulfillment for this Halloween?
Sign up with Locad for efficient 3PL services designed for e-commerce sellers!
What are Shoppers looking to buy during Halloween 2024?
Australians celebrating Halloween 2024 are most likely to shop for
- Shelf stable food items: For trick or treating
- Halloween themed spice mixes: Halloween is the time when shoppers look for pumpking themed spice mix, tart mix, cookies, pies which is in theme during Halloween season.
- For Australians hosting Halloween Parties: Shoppers tend to buy party essentials, home decor items to add a spooky vibe to their houses.
- Australians who dress up: Shoppers are likely to buy trendy costume essentials like clothing and accessories to complete their look. Goth cosmetics are something shoppers will add to their cart.
Want to ensure timely deliveries for your customers this Halloween?
Presenting you Locad with best fulfillment services in Australia!
Why Should You Have a Halloween Sale in Australia?
Running a Halloween sale in Australia isn’t just a trendy choice; it’s a savvy business move that can yield a multitude of benefits for e-commerce businesses. Here’s why you should consider joining the Halloween frenzy:
- Capitalising on Growing Popularity: Embracing this Halloween trend allows your e-commerce business to tap into a growing customer base eager to celebrate the holiday. It’s an excellent way to connect with a broader audience and offer your products to emerging market trends.
- Boosting Sales During Off-Peak Seasons: Halloween falls just before the busy holiday shopping season, making it an ideal time to boost your sales before the year-end rush. By strategically analysing your inventory, you can free up dead and slow-moving stock while planning your Halloween sale. This can help you reduce your holding cost and focus more on helping you generate revenue during a typically slower period, setting the stage for a successful holiday season.
- Engaging with Your Audience: Hosting a Halloween sale provides a unique opportunity to engage with your audience in a fun and creative way. It allows you to showcase your brand’s personality, connect with customers on a personal level, and build a steady pipeline for the upcoming sales seasons. This engagement can foster long-term customer loyalty and pave the way for repeat shopping activity.
- Attracting New Customers: The allure of Halloween-themed products and discounts can attract new customers to your e-commerce store. When you invest in promotion and marketing activities, you draw potential shoppers to your online e-commerce store. To leverage this pull, consider offering exclusive Halloween-themed items or bundles that are not available at other times of the year at competitive pricing. These exclusive offerings can create a sense of urgency and excitement among potential customers.
- Creating Memorable Shopping Experiences: Halloween offers a chance to create memorable shopping experiences. Use your website’s creative storytelling, engaging visuals, and interactive elements to immerse customers in the Halloween spirit. Encourage user-generated content by running Halloween-themed contests or social media challenges to boost visibility across social media platforms and maximise customer engagement further.
- Showcasing Product Versatility: A Halloween sale can highlight the versatility of your products. Whether you sell clothing, home décor, electronics, or food items, you can find ways to tie your products into the Halloween theme.
Create a best-selling lineup by surfacing products in your store that align with Halloween traditions and activities. Shoppers will look out for cosmetics for a Halloween look, clothes to create a killer costume, utensils and disposables for Halloween parties and more. This demonstrates that your offerings can cater to a variety of occasions, further expanding your customer base.
- Leveraging Social Media and Influencers: Use social media platforms to promote your Halloween sale. Promote your Halloween lineup weeks before the big day and as it inches closer, increase the frequency of Halloween posts, and look at influencers to maximise your sale hype. Collaborate with influencers who align with your brand and have a following interest in Halloween. Their endorsement can significantly increase your reach and credibility within the Halloween community.
- Data Gathering and Customer Insights: A well-executed Halloween sale can provide valuable data and insights into consumer behaviour and preferences. Use analytics tools to track customer engagement, sales patterns, and popular products. This information can inform your strategies for future promotions and marketing campaigns.
How to Run a Spooktacular Halloween Sale 2024
Infusing creativity into your Halloween sale marketing efforts can make your brand stand out and create a memorable experience for your customers. The key is to align your strategies with the Halloween theme while maintaining your brand’s authenticity and engaging with your audience in a fun and meaningful way
- Product Themed Delights: Embrace the Halloween spirit by infusing it into your product offerings. Consider limited-time products like “Pumpkin Spice Latte for Halloween” or Halloween-themed merchandise like mugs, T-shirts, and accessories. The key is to align your products with the season’s themes and trends.
- Interactive Contests and Challenges: Engage your audience with Halloween-themed contests and challenges. Encourage customers to share their costume ideas, spooky stories, or Halloween-themed recipes. Reward participants with discounts, freebies, or a chance to win exclusive prizes.
- User-Generated Content: Encourage your customers to tag your store and generate content featuring Halloween products purchased from your site. Repost user-generated content on your social media channels to build a sense of community and trust.
- Create Spooky Content: Develop captivating and spooky content that resonates with your target audience. Share Halloween-inspired blog posts, videos, and infographics that provide value, whether it’s Halloween party planning tips, DIY costume ideas, or spooky recipes.
- Thematic Visuals: Transform your website and social media profiles with thematic visuals. Use Halloween-themed graphics, banners, and profile pictures to create a cohesive and immersive experience for visitors. Ensure your visuals are consistent with your brand’s identity.
- Email Campaigns with a Twist: Send Halloween-themed email campaigns with catchy subject lines and engaging content. Include exclusive discounts, sneak peeks, or a Halloween-themed countdown to generate excitement among your subscribers.
- Spooky Social Media Hashtags: Create and promote unique Halloween hashtags for your brand. Encourage customers to use these hashtags when posting Halloween-related content. This not only boosts engagement but also helps you track user-generated content.
- Halloween-Themed Packaging: Enhance the unboxing experience by using Halloween-themed packaging for your products. A festive touch can make your customers feel like they’re receiving a special Halloween treat.
- Offer fast shipping and amazing discounts: Use shipping and attractive discounts to draw customers from competitors. By partnering with the right 3PL provider, you can offer shipping at an affordable cost. Set a minimum order value limit for free shipping to get customers to add more to their carts. By clearing up your inventory, you save on expensive holding costs that can help you list products with great discounts.
- Limited-Edition Collections: Introduce limited-edition Halloween collections with unique and collectible items. Limited availability can drive a sense of urgency and exclusivity, enticing customers to make a purchase.
How E-commerce Storage and Fulfillment Impacts Success of your Halloween Sale
The success of your Halloween sale in 2024 lies in a combination of factors like an incredible catalog of Halloween sale items that shoppers are looking to buy, great value deals, and faster shipping. For a peak retail sale day like Halloween, having an e-commerce fulfillment provider can help you manage the influx of orders and offset costly overheads, allowing you to create deals that beat your competitor’s offers. Let’s look at the pivotal role an e-commerce fulfillment provider like Locad can play in the spectacular success of Halloween sales in 2024.
Choosing your Halloween Lineup: Sellers looking to curate their Halloween catalog can get the help of Locad’s Logistics Engine to find out the current inventory on hand, the products that sold well during the past couple of weeks, and nonseasonal items that can be bundled and cleared off to avoid dead stock.
Distributed Stock Management: Sellers can choose to split and store inventory ahead of Halloween across Locad’s warehouses in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth. This helps sellers store inventory close to shoppers for faster pick, pack, and dispatch. Ensure you can offer quicker delivery to shoppers looking for last-minute Halloween shopping.
Multi-channel Selling: E-commerce sellers can connect their online stores on eBay, Shopify, Amazon, TikTok Shop, and custom websites to the Locad Logistics Engine. This can help them seamlessly sync orders and fulfill them through one dashboard without toggling between multiple marketplaces. With Locad’s smart inventory management, stock can be allocated to marketplaces prior based on seller’s forecast of the marketplace anticipated to garner the maximum footfall during Halloween.
Competitive Last Mile Rates: By connecting with Locad, e-commerce sellers can partner with top last-mile carriers across Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, and Brisbane, offering competitive rates for sellers to provide fulfillment at low shipping costs. Locad also auto-assigns the cheapest carrier for an order through multi-carrier management based on the product and the destination. Sellers can also partner with international shipping partners to accept and fulfill orders faster to international destinations.
Need help managing your inventory this season?
Let Locad handle your logistics while you focus on growth!
Customized picking and packing: Work with Locad to have Halloween-themed packaging for your orders. Specify picking and packing instructions and the void fillers or marketing inserts to turn one-time shoppers into repeat buyers ahead of peak retail seasons.
Demand Forecasting and Management: E-commerce sellers can analyze predictive sales patterns to forecast the volume of Halloween Sales. By logging these forecasts, sellers can instruct warehouses to be prepared with the required manpower to handle the surge in orders without breaching the Halloween orders fulfillment SLAs.
Inventory prepping for Halloween Bundles: Enlist Locad’s help to update stock for complete transparency into the current inventory. For sellers importing from wholesalers, add labels for localized selling. Pair up existing inventory to Halloween-themed products to increase average order value and increase the saleability of slow-moving stock. Locad can help prepare the inventory through kitting and bundling for faster dispatch and delivery.
Halloween Order Tracking: Track the fulfillment status of every order with Locad’s Logistics Engine. With each order, sharable live tracking links to give customers more transparency into order delivery and fulfillment timeline. This will prevent them from contacting your support team unless absolutely necessary.
Conclusion
Halloween sales in Australia have emerged as a thrilling avenue for businesses to do just that. Now, the bewitching question is: Are you ready to embrace the spirit of Halloween and captivate your audience with a spooktacular sale? Our checklist offers a wealth of guidance to help an e-commerce seller like you achieve just that.
And for e-commerce businesses looking for seamless order fulfilment in Australia, consider partnering with Locad. Our fulfillment services are designed to streamline your operations, ensuring a seamless shopping experience for your customers. So, as you prepare for your Halloween sale, remember that Locad is here to support your logistics needs.
Get ready to cast your sales spell and make this Halloween an enchanting success for your business!
