Google puts holiday promotions front and center this year

The news: Google rolled out a slate of shopping features to help retailers reach price-conscious consumers this holiday season. The additions include:

• Labels for coupons and promotions to make it easier for shoppers to find deals
• Deal comparisons so consumers can compare offers side-by-side
• Pricing insights into how a retailer’s price stacks up to competitors, and whether it’s low, high, or typical for the product

How we got here: Finding a good deal is an even greater priority for consumers this year. Almost half (43%) of US shoppers plan to look for more deals and sales than last year, per an Ipsos survey commissioned by Google.

• The price-conscious environment has led more retailers to highlight their promotions.
• Nearly one-third (32%) of marketers plan to ramp up promotional activity this holiday season, more than twice as many compared with last year, per a survey by CommerceNext and The Commerce Experience Collective.

The bigger picture: In addition to allowing it to capitalize on greater demand for promotional-focused marketing, Google’s latest shopping tools help boost the platform’s relevance—and usefulness—to shoppers. That could help Google fend off competition from TikTok and Instagram, which are fast becoming the search engines of choice for younger consumers.

Go further: For more on how marketers can use discounts to reach consumers, read our Digital Coupons report.

This article originally appeared in Insider Intelligence's Retail & Ecommerce Briefing—a daily recap of top stories reshaping the retail industry. Subscribe to have more hard-hitting takeaways delivered to your inbox daily.

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