Over 60 per cent of consumers are most likely to begin holiday shopping before Thanksgiving in the US, according to Statista and Marketing Week states that over a third of UK shoppers have already purchased Christmas-related items this year.

Esko, which provides a collaborative content creation platform for packaging, labels and marketing collateral, has recognized the trend for buying early in-store to avoid disappointment and acknowledges that ‘e-sales will explode’ this holiday season, putting retailers’ online strategies to the test, according to Forbes.

What we’re taking from these trends is that retailers, and the brands that supply them, need to act with supreme agility to cater to evolving consumerism. The need for reactivity is not going away any time soon. This will be a theme into Spring 2021, and perhaps beyond. Adopting effective technology will not only plug the gaps now but it will also future proof the packaging, label and marketing collateral creation process against this level of disruption for future retail generations."

Matthew Haws, Global Marketing Director at Esko | Brand Solutions

The Esko e-book explores retail challenges and trends and offers solutions on how to meet them head-on with the right digital tools. Time-consuming design approvals, laborious manual processes and missing assets shouldn’t slow down speed to market, according to Esko.

A centralized location for team projects, approvals, artwork and collateral, gives the whole team greater visibility, improving accuracy to keep costs down and reducing the risk of missed deadlines,” continues Haws. “We understand that costs are of the utmost importance to brands and retailers working to tight margins.”

Further to this, having the whole project to hand via solutions such as web-based collaborative workflow management system, WebCenter and accompanying digital asset management system, MediaBeacon, helps brand marketers to deliver joined-up omnichannel messaging with ease.

As the upsurge in e-commerce continues, digital collaboration through effective technology assists retail marketing teams to traverse the in-store and online marketing challenge to communicate clear messaging in a time when disinformation and conflicting messaging runs rife.

Retailers are navigating a hugely complex trading environment moving from Q4 and into Q1 2020,” continues Haws. “The right technology caters for the needs of today while putting brands in good stead to meet the trends of tomorrow. Joined up omnichannel retail strategies are imperative in today’s changing economy and an effective digital toolkit is key to helping retailers adapt.”