Earning consumer permission to leverage premium pricing is the goal of many brands. When March rolls around each year, premium priced, rabbit-shaped chocolate that is fundamentally no different than chocolate purchased the prior week will hop into many shopping baskets.
Why?
In our annual spring holiday study with nearly 600 Americans, we evaluated a set of potential factors driving the purchase of premium priced products during the spring holiday season. This shopper behavior research uncovered a clear divide between key purchase drivers and a set of largely immaterial factors.
Physical features don’t drive premium pricing
When it comes to premium-priced spring holiday items, having extra features or better quality is not an important factor for driving sales.
In fact, only 6% of people feel that seasonal chocolate is better quality than regular chocolate, and only 8% of people feel that seasonal alcohol is better quality than regular alcohol.
Similarly, people aren’t choosing premium priced seasonal items because their kids or their partner are specifically requesting them. Across all of the categories we examined, fewer than 4% of people cite requests from others as purchase drivers.
Emotions DO drive premium pricing
On the other hand, the common denominators that do put consumers on the path to purchasing premium priced spring holiday products are emotional triggers and the memories those seasonal items elicit.
For example, getting into the spirit of the holiday was a top 3 purchase motivator in every single category we studied. Up to 30% of people say that getting into the holiday spirit drives their purchase of premium priced party supplies, and, 28% of people say it’s a motivator for purchasing premium frozen desserts.
Beyond getting into the holiday spirit, our shopper research showed that each product category has a unique set of emotional triggers for purchasing premium priced products. Let’s look at a few of them.
Candy releases the inner child
Typically thought of as just for children, chocolate and candy are guaranteed to be winning gifts for both children and adults. But as we just learned, people don’t purchase premium versions during the spring holiday season because those treats are better quality or have different features.
About 14% of shoppers say they buy premium priced confectionery because it makes the kids happy. And, 20% buy it because it reminds them of when they were kids themselves. Tapping into joyful memories of childhood is an important purchase driver for premium confectionery.
The emotional need to remind people of when they were kids is also a driver behind premium purchases of cookies (15%) and craft/party supplies (19%). Simply having those products in hand, at home, is enough to elicit fond memories and create joy.
Salty snacks bring back special moments
Salty snacks also command premium pricing during the spring holiday season by reminding people of when they were kids (16%).
But, even stronger than that, the key driver in this category is reminding people of special moments with their loved ones (27%). Perhaps Dad always loved the dill pickle chips or Grandma always loved the pretzel sticks. A great way for consumers to release those nostalgic memories is to re-engage in the physical components of the moments.
Other categories that can command premium pricing by evoking long ago memories include baking supplies (13%), party supplies (16%), and crackers (18%).
Alcoholic beverages support me-time
As with salty snacks, alcoholic beverages help remind people of special moments with their loved ones (14%) – perhaps Mom always enjoyed a glass of wine with her Easter meal.
But in this case, a key driver for purchasing premium priced alcohol during the spring holiday season is that it makes “me” happy (16%). Enjoying a relaxing glass of wine is one way to embrace self-care.
A focus on self is also a key purchase driver for premium priced soda (19%), clothing (15%), and decorations (12%). Even if other household members don’t seem to appreciate them, it’s important for people to do things that make “me” happy.
Next steps
Happiness is an essential human need. By harnessing nostalgia and the emotional needs that products serve, brands can help consumers re-experience joyful moments from their past and create new joyful experiences for their children. Brands that understand and serve up the emotional needs offered by their products will gain consumer permission to apply premium pricing.
If you’d like to understand the emotional needs driving premium pricing in your product category, the shopper insights experts at Explorer Research have the deep knowledge and expertise to help. Get in touch with us to better understand your shoppers and ultimately build a stronger path to purchase.
To learn more about spring holiday seasonal shopping behaviors, download our most recent annual spring holiday study here.
Note: In March 2024, 581 adults across the USA completed a 10-minute self-administered questionnaire. As with all non-probability samples using access panels, margin of error cannot be calculated and the results are subject to both sampling and non-sampling error.
