Why It’s Hard to Buy Gifts for Dad (And How to Make It Easier)

Why It’s-Hard-to-Buy-Gifts-for-Dad-(And-How-to-Make-It-Easier)

Father’s Day is just around the corner, which means every department store aisle and e-commerce site is full of aimless shoppers wondering, “Should I get this for Dad?”

Dads are notoriously hard to shop for. According to Psychology Today, this is because dads are better givers than takers. Need someone to pick you up from the airport or foot the bill for a surprise trip to the doctor’s office? Dad’s the man. But ask him for gift ideas for Father’s Day and he’ll say something like, “Don’t worry about it. I’m good.” Not helping, Dad…

Dad might not know what he wants for Father’s Day, but that doesn’t stop us from trying to buy him gifts. 75% of people will celebrate Father’s Day in 2022. And those that participate will spend an average of $171.79 on their gift — up from $134.75 in 2017.

(What are the top 5 gifts for dads? Get the details in our Father’s Day 2022 Infographic.

With so many shoppers determined to buy gifts for the dads in their lives, you have a golden opportunity to wow them with an amazing experience. Here’s how:

Help Customers Find the Perfect Gift

Shoppers want to buy Father’s Day gifts — they just don’t know what to buy. This uncertainty can be a major friction point. If you can make the “find” process easier for your customers, you might become their Father’s Day retailer of choice (and build loyalty for future purchases).

A quick way to do this is to segment the products on your website or in your brick-and-mortar store. Your customers will be able to find the perfect gift in less time.

What if, for example, you created an entire “Father’s Day Gift Ideas” section on your website? All customers would have to do is click the link and pursue the selection of curated products.

You could take this idea further and create themed gift guides or product bundles. Instead of generic lists, make a “Gifts For Musical Dads” product grouping. Or a “Gifts For Outdoorsy Dads” list. This will streamline gift-buying for your customers.

Speaking of a more personal experience, some extra guidance can help here, too. Use AI and machine learning software to assess your customers’ buying or browsing habits. Then deliver tailored search results, intelligent product recommendations, and suggestions for complementary items to add to their cart (for Dad or even themselves).

Pro Tip: Use stellar product content to help shoppers find the right gifts. Descriptions, images, and videos allow customers to make the perfect choice in less time. You’ll also want to give each product’s back-end data a look and ensure that it’s accurate, up-to-date, and properly linked for product groupings dads will love.

Streamline the Buying Process

Finding the right gift is just the beginning. Remember those eager (but hesitant) buyers? They’ll need a convenient experience to help them finalize their purchase.

Once a gift is selected, customers need to make sure it’s in stock, easy to pay for, and available before the special day. To streamline the buying process:

• Give Customers Multiple Ways to Buy: Your customers are busy, which means they want to buy products in ways that fit their schedules and preferences. If possible, allow them to shop in-store, on your website, via Facebook and Instagram, etc.
• Be Clear About What’s in Stock: What’s a fast way to frustrate customers? Promote an amazing Father’s Day gift, and then tell them it’s out of stock! Avoid this friction point by ensuring out-of-stock items are clearly labeled — and, ideally, allow them to filter those items out.
• Offer Flexible Payment Options: Add more flexibility by allowing your customers to buy now and pay later on gifts for Father’s Day. Doing so will help you avoid the friction of a pricy purchase. After all, a shopper might not be able to afford a $500 gift. But $100 a month for the next five months? That’s more doable!

Pro Tip: Offer coupon codes and special deals to customers who buy Father’s Day gifts ahead of time. Doing so will incentivize them to buy early and put less stress on your supply chain.

Get Products Into Your Customers’ Hands

Stores and shopping sites will be full of procrastinators in the days and hours leading up to Father’s Day. Tons of people wait until the last minute to shop for their dads — not because they don’t care, but because they feel uncertain.

Hopefully, you’ve helped ease this process by making it easier to find and buy gifts. But now these loving procrastinators will need to get their items fast.

Delight your customers by giving them a wealth of options in this area. Can they buy products online and pick them up in-store? Will they get their gifts faster if they’re shipped from a store rather than a central warehouse? Do you offer same-day delivery or overnight shipping?

By giving customers multiple ways to get their orders, you eliminate any lingering hesitancy in purchasing. Convenient pick-up and shipping options will thrill your customers and improve the likelihood they’ll return.

Pro Tip: Customers want Buy Online, Pickup In-Store (BOPIS) and curbside options. It’s a way to give customers an experience that even 1-day shopping can’t replicate. It also works best when you can provide customers with status updates via text and email.

Build Trust With Your Customers

Success in commerce always comes down to trust. If your customers don’t trust you to deliver a safe and convenient buying experience, they won’t be your customers for very long.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways you can earn your customers’ trust during the Father’s Day shopping season

• Keep Your Delivery Promises: Where is the customer’s order right now? Keep your customers in the loop and notify them at every stage of the order fulfillment process.
• Get the Details Right: Secure payment portals, fantastic customer service, and keeping one’s promises are essential. Skimp on these things and you’ll break trust.
• Offer Hassle-Free Returns: What if Dad doesn’t like his gift? Make sure that your customers can easily return products and receive full refunds.

Pro Tip: Shipment delays can be an inevitable source of friction. But these delays don’t have to break your customers’ trust. Micro order updates help keep your customers calm and informed, while lowering calls and emails to your customer service team. Transparency is key!

Win This Father’s Day

Father’s Day may be a challenge for shoppers, but it’s also an excellent opportunity for your commerce business — if you make it a frictionless experience, of course.

If you can help your customers find the perfect gift for Dad, simplify the buying and shipping/pick-up processes, and earn their trust — you may just earn a happy, repeat customer.

Want help with these things? Pivotree designs, builds, and manages complex commerce ecosystems for market-leading brands. Translation: we’ll help you implement the ideas in this article so that you can deliver frictionless commerce experiences.

We hope this article helps you prep for a fantastic Father’s Day! For more e-commerce tips on how to delight your customers (and their dads), download Pivotree’s Father’s Day 2022 Infographic.

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