Consumers Looking for Bargains on Electronics
By Doug Desjardins
During the 2008 back-to-school shopping season, sales of electronics like computers, PDAs and cell phones did well despite a weakening economy. But that's not the case in 2009.
With unemployment continuing to rise and consumer confidence sinking, electronics sales are taking a hit along with just about every other product category. According to research firm The NPD Group, only 30% of consumers surveyed said they plan to make an electronics purchase for back-to-school shopping, down from 34% in 2008. And even people who plan on buying electronics are opting for low end products. The #1 electronics product back-to-school shoppers intend to buy this year is a calculator with 8% of consumers putting it on their list compared to 4% in 2008, the first time since 2003 that laptop computers weren't the #1 pick.
And that's because people on average plan to spend 7.7% less on back-to-school shopping this year compared to 2008, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF). An NRF study released in August showed that 56.2% of shoppers are looking for sales and bargains more often and 40% plan to increase their use of coupons.
"The economy has clearly changed the spending habits of American families and will likely create a difficult back to school shopping season for retailers," said NRF president Tracy Mullin. "As people focus primarily on price, strong promotions and deep discounts will ultimately win over back-to-school shoppers this year."
Many promotions are spotlighting netbook computers and small electronic devices for students. Wal-Mart is luring shoppers into stores with a variety of deals that include Acer netbook computers for $298 and Dell Mini V netbooks for $348. Target is selling a Royal Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) for just $29.99 and an MSI Mini Laptop for $299 with free shipping for online orders. And Kmart is selling a Franklin Talking Spanish-English Dictionary for Students for $49.99.
Consumers looking for back-to-school electronics like computers, cell phones and accessories can find plenty of deals and online coupons at Bens Bargains. The Dell deals include 25% of all Dell monitors and a Logitech wireless keyboard for $104. Hewlett Packard is selling a Targus 17-inch Black Laptop Case for just $27 and giving away HP coupons (expiration date Oct. 31) for $15 of any purchase of $75 or more and $30 off a purchase of $150 or more.
Back-to-school spending on electronics this year reflects the macro trends affecting the consumer electronics industry. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is projecting a decrease of more than 7% in total consumer electronics sales in 2009 of $164.9 billion compared to $178.6 billion in 2008. The CEA expects sales to rebound by 0.6% in 2010 to $166 billion.