Canadians To Spend Conservatively This Season
December 3rd, 2009

As we have made pretty clear for the past few weeks, Synergy Marketing Consultants is all about gift-giving. And while we enjoy this topic and this practice all year round, we know that there is no better time than the holiday season to give gifts.

For some, it may go without saying that it is wise to not spend more than what your budget can manage when doing your holiday shopping. For others, it is not even a matter of choice. Spending this holiday season will have to significantly decrease for those who have been greatly affected by the recession of this past year.

And while a report from the QMI Agency, appearing on the website of The Toronto Sun yesterday, revealed that the economy seems to be slowly creeping its way out of recession, consumers are still reeling from its effects. The report comments that the outlook of many Canadians, with respect to their holiday spending, is “bleak”.

It reveals that the 2009 Air Miles Reward Program Holiday Survey shows that only 6% of Canadians believe that the economy is actually on the road to recovery. As a result, 71% of survey respondents indicate that they plan on spending less on gift-giving this season.

When put into dollar figures, the differences between last year's spending to this year's is as follows: “The average person will spend $676 on gifts this year compared with $736 in 2008. Atlantic Canadians have the biggest budgets this festive season with $794, while Quebec residents plan to spend the least with $522.”

The survey also discovered that one-third of Canadians feel stressed “because they're strapped for cash”. Naturally, most will be bargain-hunting this shopping season as approximately 60% of those who took the survey admitted that they will be trying to take advantage of loyalty points and other incentives offered by retailers.

In addition, 84% of respondents plan to exchange reward points or miles for gifts this year.

Neil Everett, chief marketing officer for the Air Miles reward program had this to say: "Consumer trends show that Canadians have become smarter shoppers during the past year by adding value like reward miles to their purchases that can be redeemed during the holidays as a supplement to their budget.”

The name of the game, evidently, is to save money while spending on gifts this year. That way, after enjoying the holiday season, the new year will be void of additional financial burden.