National Free Shipping Day or simply called as Free Shipping Day annually falls during the mid-December in the United States during the holiday season. This year it falls on December 14th.
Holiday shopping online has one major barrier that shopping in your local store don't, and that's the high cost of shipping. That's one major factor which prevents people from shopping online extensively during this holiday season.
That's where Free Shipping Day comes in, where companies around the world give you the opportunity to do your holiday shopping without being hit for shipping fees left and right, and letting your holiday shopping dollar go further than ever.
| Event | National Free Shipping Day |
|---|---|
| Date | December 14, 2022 |
| Day | Wednesday |
| Significance | The day allows you to do your holiday shopping without worrying about shipping costs |
| Observed by | United States |
National Free Shipping Day History:
In 2005, Amazon launched Amazon Prime—a $79 annual membership service that provided, among other benefits, free two-day shipping and discounted one-day shipping within the contiguous United States. In early 2022, Prime increased its subscription costs for its more than 140 million U.S. subscribers, bumping the service to $139 per year. Free shipping is the second most commonly cited reason why people subscribe to Prime, despite the fact that most orders of $25 or more already qualify for free shipping. That's how important free shipping has become today when it comes to online shopping.
Free Shipping Day is a national shopping holiday as well as a year-round coupon website. The holiday started in 2008, while the coupon portion of the site was launched in 2017 as a resource for online savings, providing shoppers with coupons and free shipping codes from top retail partners and niche e-retailers. National Free Shipping Day was conceived by internet entrepreneur Luke Knowles. While running his own free shipping-focused website, he noticed an interesting trend among users: online shopping seemed to drop around December 10th.
Though many retailers were capable of shipping orders on time for the holidays, shoppers were worried about receiving their packages on time and the crazy holiday shipping fees that would accompany them. It struck him that an event promoting free shipping and guaranteed on-time delivery was exactly what the holiday season was missing. Following the first event was put together in two weeks by Luke and his one employee. It featured 250 participating merchants, including the names such as Target, JCPenney, and Pottery Barn.
After a busy and sleepless night on December 17, 2008, Knowles kicked off the first ever Free Shipping Day the following morning. The event earned $764 million in online sales and became one of the top 10 highest-earning days in e-commerce during the holiday season that year! National Free Shipping Day is now a permanent entry in the holiday shopping lexicon. More and more retailers partner with Free Shipping Day to capture sales from shoppers eager to finish their holiday lists in mid to late December. And now the day has been celebrated to take full advantage of the holiday season.
National Free Shipping Day Significance:
For many shoppers, shipping costs can be the make-or-break factor in a consumer's decision to complete a sale. According to a 2020 Baymard Institute study, 50% of survey respondents cited extra costs such as shipping as the #1 reason they abandoned their carts during checkout. When looking at European consumers, that number jumps to 65%. And it is mor just this survey other surveys also shows the similar result as well. Hence it is proven that the word 'free' attracts consumers everywhere around the world especially during the special occasions or holiday seasons.
It is because the "pain of paying" is a behavioral economics theory that refers to the negative emotions humans feel when making a purchase. Humans are a loss-averse species and we react more strongly to losses than we do to equal wins or gains. So, while some purchases hurt more than others, spending money will, on some level, always inflict a bit of psychological pain. This is the reason so many consumers abandon their shopping carts at checkout—online, anyway. Extra fees like taxes and shipping costs added to online purchases make an already painful transaction that much tougher to swallow.
Many companies, starting with Amazon, have figured out that offering free shipping is an effective way to offset the pain of paying and usher consumers down the last levels of the e-commerce conversion funnel.Consumers have come to expect perks like free or fast shipping—both, ideally. Without the guarantee of either, people are unlikely to complete a purchase. And with free shipping came the advent of free returns, and then refunds without returns. Thus free shipping has greatly helped in attracting consumers towards online shopping.
Besides all of these online shopping is very convenient and that's why it is continuously growing in our world today. Especially during the holiday seasons like this which is a very busy time for the people as shopping in person would be tiring and time-consuming. That's why when free shipping is offered in online shopping it not only helps the sellers but also the consumers so it is a win-win situation for both. Online shopping is general has made our lives very convenient and easy when it comes to shopping and when it is without any shipping cost who can miss that opportunity.
National Free Shipping Day Activities:
National Free Shipping Day features over 1,000 big-name and niche online retailers to choose from. Hence you can sit in the comfort of your home or office and get everything you need for family and friends. Since the retailers have waived their shipping fees, all you pay for is the merchandise. Prepare for the thanks you'll get when everybody receives their gifts on time and rgus making this holiday season much more special and lovely for you.
Many retailers will be promoting additional savings with coupons. Unlike in the past, coupon clipping is now just a click away. At the checkout stand, simply add in the promo code and take advantage of superior savings. So use this opportunity to use your coupons to make the full use and get even more discounts. If you don't have any coupon already then it is the time for you to collect some now.
We are so lucky to live in a time where technology actually makes life easier. Celebrate National Free Shipping Day by gathering a couple of friends and shopping together with the use of social media. Make group online shopping a thing for the day. In this way you will abe also able to help your friends and relatives who were looking for discounts and offers for their shopping and thus by providing it to them they will remember you forever for this favor.
National Free Shipping Day FAQs:
1. When is National Free Shipping Day celebrated?
National Free Shipping Day falls annually during any day of mid-December. This year it falls on December 14th.
2. What retailers participate in Free Shipping Day?
A few participating retailers are Target, Bloomingdales, and J. Crew. Other than these also there are many retailers who participates in Free Shipping Day.
3. Does Amazon have a free shipping day?
Amazon participates in free shipping day, but you can also get deals throughout the year if you have an Amazon Prime account.