The MiQ holiday shopper gift guide: A guide to how people gift

We’ll explore three different shopper personas shaping the holiday season, including what motivates them to purchase, where they shop, and the watching, browsing, and buying behaviors that lead them from awareness to “I’m buying this.”

They're the people who live and die by “good things come to those who wait.” 

Last-minute shoppers are digitally versatile, social-first, and 71% identify as male. This subset of purchase procrastinators is 127% more into fantasy sports, and plays basketball at 3x the rate of someone who may get their shopping done with a healthy buffer. They’re deal driven, but forfeit the luxury of time it takes to compare every aspect of quality or price. The focus is finding the right gift as quickly and frictionlessly as possible. 

What motivates them

• Value: Although 62% actively seek discounts…
• Convenience: …57% are willing to pay more to cross something off the list in time.
• Mobile: 79% use mobile as their primary shopping device.
• Shopping shortcuts: Fast delivery and buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) help reduce friction.

Where they discover and shop

100% of this audience uses social to discover products, namely Pinterest (+242% index), TikTok, and Instagram, while Amazon and mass merchants anchor the transaction. Amazon reaches 94% of online gift buyers in this segment; Walmart reaches 71%; and Target reaches roughly 55-60%.

They tune into Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu and over-index on Spotify and Apple Music relative to the broader audience. More than half shop while watching TV, creating a natural opportunity for coordinated video, display, and mobile messaging.

And a natural distraction from getting holiday shopping done ahead of time.

Signals to act on

The best creative for this cohort involves minimal decision-making. Show the product, the deadline, the fulfillment option, and why it makes a good gift. Maybe throw a basketball on it.

• Lead with speed and certainty. “Order by,” “ready today,” “pickup near you,” and delivery guarantees should be marquee features.
• Make social commerce useful and build cross-screen cohesion. While creator recommendations and short-form product demonstrations can help shoppers move from discovery to decision, CTV, mobile video, and social should reinforce the same message.
• Promote buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) as a last-minute solution. If adoption is low despite strong interest, retailers have an opportunity to make pickup more visible as shipping windows close.
• Match payment messaging to the audience. Buy now, pay later (BNPL) may be relevant for Millennials, digital wallets for Gen Z, and expedited shipping for higher-income shoppers.

For this audience, “20% off” is only the tip of the priceberg. The total value package includes free delivery, transparent pricing, rewards, and confidence that the offer is the best available.

What motivates them

• Price comparison: 46% compare prices across multiple retailers before deciding whether a deal is genuine. Coupon and deal usage over-indexes by 28%, while price-comparison tools over-index by 33%.
• Free delivery: 72% cite free delivery as the top online purchase driver.
• Upfront savings: They prefer upfront savings over BNPL. They’d rather save now than save later. 

Where they discover and shop

Walmart and Amazon are the anchor destinations, reaching 69% and 82% of this audience, respectively. Slickdeals is the top deal-sourcing platform.

A nod to simpler channel mixes, Facebook is a powerful reach channel, while broadcast TV remains relevant: 34% watch it all or most days, 15% above the general population. Streaming is also part of the mix, particularly ad-supported and bundled services.

Because 78% use their phones while watching TV, and they’re 42% more likely to use AI for recommendations, brands have more opportunities to coordinate TV, social, display, retail media, and potentially even AI-driven ad messaging.

Signals to act on

Coupon-cutter creative should be direct and easily verifiable. Show the original price, current price, coupon, delivery terms, and loyalty benefit in a single visual.

• Ensure the discount and the final value price are immediately visible.
• 31% of this audience reads brand emails, showing that email is a useful conversion channel for coupon offers, loyalty reminders, price drops, and limited-time offers.
• Make comparison easier with clear pricing, savings callouts, customer reviews, and retailer inventory information.
• Partner with deal destinations, like Slickdeals, where purchase intent is already high.

This is the gifter who makes everyone else look bad at Secret Santa – the one who doesn’t balk at a $10 price tag on a banana and is willing to pay for quality, access, design, and the cachet of an elevated gift-giving experience. 

Naturally, they expect the same level of sophistication from brand communications. This audience is highly receptive to premium content and branded experiences. Their path to purchase can move between inspiration, research, and retail, but prestige is often the signal that turns interest into intent.

What motivates them

• Exclusivity: This audience is 139% more likely to value exclusive brands and 152% more likely to be motivated by exclusive online offerings.
• Premium convenience: Convenience still matters, especially when it preserves a premium experience. Click-and-collect over-indexes by 148%.
• Willingness to pay for content: They’re comfortable paying for content. Digital purchases or rentals are 74% above average.

Where they discover and shop

HBO Max has the strongest over-index, followed by Amazon Prime Video. Instagram leads among social platforms, while LinkedIn’s strong over-index points to a professional audience.

Instagram and Pinterest support product and brand discovery; however, influencer endorsements and social brand-following are more important than average. Podcasts, particularly on tech, sports, and culture, also present an opportunity to reach these premium-oriented shoppers. 

Their retailer of choice depends on what they’re buying. Luxury watch shoppers are especially digitally oriented, while fashion buyers prefer in-store experiences. Beauty and fragrance are the outliers, where there’s a greater willingness to buy from local and independent retailers.

Signals to act on

Luxe creative should create an experience before the shopper reaches checkout. Focus on story, detail, scarcity, and the emotional meaning of giving well.

• Lead with access, not price. Early access, limited editions, personalization, and members-only collections can be stronger motivators than broad promotional language.
• Use premium environments to frame the product. Streaming video, Instagram, Pinterest, professional content, and relevant cultural contexts can reinforce quality and status.
• Make the experience part of the gift. Packaging, concierge support, appointment shopping, and seamless pickup can turn fulfillment into a brand moment.
• Treat creators as curators. For these seasonal splurgers, the most effective influencer content highlights taste, craftsmanship, provenance, or cultural relevance.

To wrap things up neatly, here’s how to put these insights into action and meet holiday shoppers with omnichannel messaging that’s relevant, timely, and designed to make their experience merry and bright.

From awareness to “I’m buying this.”

• Awareness: Use the channels where each audience naturally discovers ideas: social and creators for last-minute shoppers, Facebook and deal platforms for value seekers, and premium streaming and visual environments for luxe gift givers.
• Consideration: Give each cohort the proof it needs. Last-minute shoppers need availability and speed; deal seekers need transparent savings; and luxe shoppers need quality and distinction.
• Conversion: Remove the final friction. Highlight BOPIS and delivery deadlines for urgent shoppers, free shipping and coupons for deal seekers, and concierge-level fulfillment for premium shoppers.
• Retention and CRM: Build smaller, more relevant audience segments instead of sending one holiday blast. Examples include “needs delivery by Friday,” “coupon engaged,” “luxury accessories researcher,” “beauty and fragrance browser,” and “high-intent cart abandoner."

In the words of Alice Childress, “Like snowflakes, the human pattern is never cast twice.” 

This holds especially true for holiday shoppers, uniquely defined by what motivates them to add to cart. Brands that recognize those differences can make every touchpoint work harder.

With MiQ Sigma’s Buying Intelligence, you get a comprehensive view of every shopper across watching, browsing, and buying signals, and a better understanding of what’s driving purchase decisions and how to grow market share. 

The common thread is relevance. When media, message, and moment align, the path from awareness to “I’m buying this” becomes shorter—making your brand the gift that keeps on giving.