Back to School Email Marketing – Top 8 Campaigns of 2015

• Average Spending on Back to School has grown 42% in the past 10 years
• The average family with children in grades K-12 plans to spend $630.36 on electronics, apparel and other school needs, down from $28 last year.
• Total k-12 spending is expected to reach $24.9 billion.
• Total expenditures for K-12 and college is expected to reach $68 billion.
• 7 % will purchase new apparel, spending an average of $217.82, though most 94% will head out for new school supplies, spending an average of $97.74; families will also spend $117.56 on new shoes.

• In 2014, 58.3 % of parents said they would buy electronics for their school-age children, and planned to spend an average of $212.35 —families said they would decrease their spending on gadgets for their children and will spend an average of $197.24.
• More families with children in grades K-12 are opting to wait before rushing out to shop. According to the survey, 6 % will shop at least 2 months before school, down from 22.5 percent last year. 42.8 % will shop at least 3 weeks to one month before school. 30.3 % will shop 1 to 2 weeks before school, up from 25.4 percent last year.

• 9 % said they shop early to spread out their budgets, and 51.1% do so to avoid crowds associated with school shopping. Other popular reasons include not wanting to miss out on popular merchandise 21.5 % and prices and promotions being too good to pass up 45.3 %.
• Planning to shop around for their school merchandise, families will head to their local department 56.4%, discount 2%, clothing 53.5 %, electronics 22.4 % and office supply stores (35.9 percent). And slightly more than one-third 35.6 % of those looking for school items will shop online.
• Of those planning to shop online, nearly half 4 % say they will take advantage of retailers’ buy online, pick up in store or ship to store options, and 17.3 % will look for expedited shipping offers. 92.1 % will take advantage of retailers’ free shipping offers.
• Broken out by age, Millennials are much more likely to use these channels: Two-thirds of 18-24- and 25-34-year-olds will use a buy online, pick up in store or ship to store option (65.7 % and 65 %), and 15.4 percent of 25-34-year-olds will use a reserve online option, much higher than the 9.1 percent of average adults who plan to do so. Additionally, 23 percent of 18-24-year-olds will use same-day delivery, significantly more than the 10.2 percent of average adults.
• According to the survey, 4 % of school shoppers say their children will influence one-quarter or more of their back-to-school purchases. And for the smaller purchases, children plan to chip in some of their own money; teens will dole out $33.27, and pre-teens will spend an average $17.57.

LIKE THEIR YOUNGER COUNTERPARTS, COLLEGE SHOPPERS SPENDING LESS IN 2015

• Trendy Millennials Drive Dorm Furnishing Spending Up 30 % in 2015
• College shoppers and their families will also spend slightly less this year after investing in electronics and supplies in 2014. 2015 Back-to-College Spending Survey, families with children in college and college students will spend an average of $899.18, down slightly from $916.48 last year.
• After spending significantly more on electronics last year, the average person shopping for electronics will spend $207.27, down from $243.79. Families with college students and students themselves will spend $136.95 on apparel, $117.98 on food items to stock their dorms and apartments, $66.70 on school supplies, $72.79 on shoes and $78.02 on personal care items.
• According to the survey, 3 % of college shoppers will purchase dorm or apartment furnishings and will spend an average $126.30, up 30 % from $96.70 last year.