October 14 2008

Two-thirds of shoppers will cut spending this Christmas, over half want to haggle over price

Most shoppers are cutting down on their overall spend this Christmas and they want to get as much as they possibly can for their money. Online, though, may not hold all the cards as shoppers say they're now prepared to try negotiating a discount with a retailer — and that's not a function most websites are well placed to handle

Two-thirds of Britain's shoppers are planning to spend less this Christmas than they did last year, according to a poll conducted by GfK Research Panels and released on Monday.

Just under one-third of consumers say they will spend the same amount this year as last year — and a lucky/out-of-touch/unaware/living-on-another-planet 3% say they will spend more than last year.

Research by Experian's CreditExpert.co.uk has found that 57% of British adults say they are now more likely than they were a year ago to try negotiating a discount on an advertised price. 47% of those questioned are prepared to ask retailers for a better deal on everyday goods and services but only 16% are prepared to negotiate a deal on loans and other financial products.

Significant findings from the research include:

• Men are better at haggling than women: women saved £217 on a single high-ticket product on average, but men saved £343.
• 77% say confidence is the key to getting a better deal.
• 38% had successfully negotiated a better price for a new car
• 60% were comfortable haggling on home entertainment products such as TVs or stereos from a technology retailer.
• 57% think they are good at getting a bargain or negotiating a better price.
• 63% of 18-24 year olds think they are good at haggling. But they are the least likely to actually bargain successfully and achieve the lowest average reduction in price for a single product of £171, £115 less than the national average.
• The 45-54 age group are the most successful negotiators, making an average saving of £362.83 on a single transaction.

What effect will this increased willingness to haggle have on retail sales? Well, one possible result could be that we will see a swing in sales from online to in-store, as consumers do their research for the best price online and then go down to the shops to see if a bit of haggling can get them a still better deal again. Other effects are likely — what do you think the impact will be?

by Sarah Clark (Web Editor)