Adweek: Facebook Predicts Mobile Shopping Will Play a Major Role this Holiday Season

If last year's holiday shopping habits were any sign of things to come, marketers planning their holiday budgets might want to prepare for more mobile advertising and shopping than ever before.

Results of a study released today by Facebook IQ said the share of mobile purchases made during the holiday shopping season increased 33 percent between the 2014 and 2015. The study, Facebook's most significant holiday survey to date, included surveying 21,500 adults across 17 global markets asking them about their mobile shopping habits.

According to Facebook, the social network's users are more active during the holidays than other points of the year. In the U.S., users on average posted 30 percent more photos, text and videos. They're also more on-the-go, with 84 percent of posts coming from mobile devices.

"I think that one of the recurring themes we can see year over year is the increased use of mobile in the holiday season and the holiday shopping season in particular," said Ann Mack, Facebook's head of content and activation, said in an interview about the findings.

And while it might be Christmas in July for brands planning their holiday marketing budgets, Facebook said the majority of shoppers are still a half-year away from buying any gifts. Around a quarter of people surveyed identified themselves as spontaneous shoppers, and 61 percent said they're last-minute shoppers. Half of respondents said they do most of their shopping in December.

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