The survey found that while holiday shopping inspires positive emotions like excitement, over half of consumers also feel negative emotions like stress and anxiety. Many feel stressed about finances during the holidays and that shopping puts a strain on their budget. Consumers tend to spend more than planned, with only 10% coming in under budget. While shoppers have saved half of what they need for gifts, they expect to charge a quarter of spending to credit cards. Looking to 2016, top resolutions are paying off credit cards and paying balances in full each month.

1. EDELMAN BERLAND
Experian Holiday Shopping Survey
October - November 2015

2. 2 © Copyright 2015 Daniel J Edelman Inc. Intelligent Engagement
WHO HOW MANY ACCURACY WHEN HOW
Adults (18+)
nationwide
N=1,035
Margin of Error =
± 3.1%
Data Collection
Occurred
October 28-
November 3, 2015
Online Survey
Research Methodology

3. 3 © Copyright 2015 Daniel J Edelman Inc. Intelligent Engagement
• While the holiday season often inspires positive emotions like “excitement” and “cheer”, half of
consumers say that they also experience negative emotions like “stress” and “anxiety” when they
think about holiday shopping.
• Majorities agree that they feel stressed about their finances during the holiday season and that
holiday shopping puts a strain on their personal finances, primarily because they do not have
extra money to spend on gifts or do not want to add to their debt.
• Additionally, many shoppers admit that they tend to spend even more than they anticipated, with
just 1 in 10 consumers coming in “under-budget” on their holiday spending.
• However, when considering how much they will likely spend on gifts this year, consumers have
only saved up about half of what they need, and they estimate that they will wind up charging
about a quarter of their overall spending to a credit card.
• Looking ahead to 2016, the top three New Years’ credit resolutions are 1) to pay off a credit card,
2) to pay their full credit card balance each month, and 3) to pay off their credit card debt on time.
Key Findings

4. HOLIDAY SHOPPING
EMOTIONS

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Shoppers are excited for the upcoming holiday season, but
more than half also experience negative emotions like stress
and anxiety
Q1: When you think about holiday shopping, which of the following emotions do you feel?
75%
NET POSITIVE
EMOTIONS
53%
NET NEGATIVE
EMOTIONS
Holiday Shopping Emotions

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Shoppers are far more likely to be “generous” than “stingy”
during the holiday season, which can put a strain on
consumers’ finances
Q1: When you think about holiday shopping, which of the following emotions do you feel?
Q7: To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?
60%
52%
41%
Holiday shopping puts a
strain on my finances
I feel stressed about my
finances during the holiday
season
I feel obligated to spend
more than I can afford
when buying holiday gifts
Feelings Towards Spending
(Shown: % Agree)
35%
GENEROUS
-VS-
4%
STINGY
Subgroups
Most Likely
to Agree:
• Parents
• HHI <$50K
• Millennials

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Q8 Which, if any, of the following best describes why holiday shopping can be financially stressful for you personally? (Asked if stressed about finances / strain on finances,
n=666)
Adding to one’s existing debt and staying within budgets are
the primary causes of financial stress during the holidays
Financial Stress of Holiday Shopping
38% 38%
35%
26%
13%
11%
37%
35%
47%
18% 18%
15%
43% 42%
27% 28%
11%
9%
31%
35%
30%
32%
8% 6%
Don't want to add to
my debt
Difficult staying in
budget
No extra money to
buy gifts
Don't want more
credit card debt
No cash to buy gifts No credit to buy gifts
Total HHI <$50K HHI $50-$99K HHI $100K+

8. HOLIDAY SHOPPING
BUDGETS & SPENDING

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Consumers are more concerned about finding the “right” gifts
than staying within their budgets and often spend more than
anticipated
Q2: In your opinion, what – if anything – is the worst part about holiday shopping?
Q6: Which of the following best describes how much you spend during the holiday season?
NOTE: TOTALS MAY NOT ADD TO 100% DUE TO ROUNDING
Expected vs. Actual Spending
50%
11%
More than expected
Exactly as expected
Less than expected
38%
SPEND MORE
THAN EXPECTED
Biggest Holiday Shopping
Concern
27%
20%
14%
12%
9%
4%
4%
Crowds
Picking the right gift
Sticking to a budget
Having cash/credit to buy
gifts
Prices/Deals
Keeping gifts a secret
Risk of identity theft

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Q3: Which, if any, of the following have you… Ever done in the past / Plan to do this holiday season?
Moreover, many consumers do not even set aside a
specific budget for their holiday shopping
53%
Have shopped
without a budget
Have Gone Holiday Shopping
Without a Budget
43%
Plan to set aside
a budget this
year
Plan to Set Aside a Holiday
Shopping Budget this year

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The average consumer anticipates spending about 6% more year-
over-year on holiday gifts – highest among parents and more
affluent consumers
Q9: Approximately, how much do you plan to spend on holiday gifts this season?
$758
$806
Anticipated 2014 Anticipated 2015
Anticipated Holiday Spending
(Shown: Mean USD Amount)
HHI <$50K HHI $50-99K HHI $100K+
$396 $787 $1,338
Parents
Non-
Parents
$989 $683
Men Women
$866 $734

12. CREDIT USAGE FOR
HOLIDAY SHOPPING

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Consumers have only saved half of the money they need for
holiday shopping and already expect to charge nearly a fourth of
overall spending
52%
25%
23%
Have already saved Will save in coming
months
Will charge to a credit card
Percentage of Budget Saved vs. Charged
(Shown: Mean percentage of total budget)
$

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53%
49%
45%
22%
18%
9%
6%
After cash, credit cards will be the most common form of
payment for holiday purchases
Q4: How do you plan to pay for your holiday gifts this year?
Q5: How many major credit or store credit cards do you plan on using to complete your holiday shopping? (Asked if using credit cards or store credit cards, n=568)
Shopping Payment Method
Most Likely to Use
Major Credit Cards:
-HHI $100K+ (71%)
-55+ (55%)
-Men (53%)
TOTAL AVG. # OF CARDS: 2
Most Likely to Use
Store Credit Cards:
-Parents (26%)
-Millennials (23%)
-Men (21%)
TOTAL AVG. # OF CARDS:
2

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Holiday shopping charges have a significant impact on
consumers’ credit
Q3: Below is a list of shopping behaviors. Which, if any, of the following… Have you ever done in the past? / Do you plan to do this holiday season?
Q11: To the best of your knowledge, has holiday shopping ever negatively affected your credit score (i.e., your score dropped)?
9%
12%
9%
17%
18%
22%
Open a store credit card for the discount and
then immediately close it
Open a new credit card for holiday shopping
Pay off holiday shopping credit card charges
late
Have Ever Done Plan To Do This Season
Holiday Shopping Behaviors
10%
OF CONSUMERS
AND
18%
OF MILLENNIALS
SAY HOLIDAY
SHOPPING HAS
NEGATIVELY
AFFECTED THEIR
CREDIT SCORE
Millennial
s: 30%
Millennial
s: 31%
Millennial
s: 21%

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Looking ahead to 2016, consumers’ top resolutions are to pay
off a credit card or to start making monthly payments on time
or in full
Q16: Which of the following are your 2016 New Year’s credit resolutions?
28%
25%
21%
18%
14% 14%
7%
Pay off a credit
card
Pay full credit
card balance
each month
Pay credit card
debt on time
Not open any
more credit
cards
Check credit
report more
often
Check credit
score more
often
Enroll in credit
monitoring
service
New Year’s Credit Resolutions

17. HOLIDAY SHOPPING &
IDENTITY PROTECTION

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Consumers are moderately concerned about identity
theft this holiday season
Q13: Please rate how concerned you are about identity theft this holiday.
Concern About Identity Theft
28%
22%
50%
Very concerned Somewhat concerned Not concerned
50%
NET CONCERNED
Millennial
s: 57%

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Respondents plan to do more than half of their shopping at brick-
and-mortar stores, which is where they feel slightly less
vulnerable
Q12: What percentage of your holiday shopping do you anticipate doing… (Shown: Mean percentage)
Q14: Where do you feel that your identity is most at risk this holiday season? (Asked if shopping both in-store and online this holiday season, n=799)
NOTE: TOTALS MAY NOT ADD TO 100% DUE TO ROUNDING
Identity is Most Vulnerable in…
14%
55%
In a retail store When online shopping Both equally
30%
FEEL MORE AT RISK
WHEN SHOPPING
ONLINE
Anticipated Shopping Locations
55%
36%
9%
Millennial
s: 42%
45%
NET
ONLINE

20. 20 © Copyright 2015 Daniel J Edelman Inc. Intelligent Engagement
54%
52%
51%
48%
45%
35%
25%
Shop only on personal internet connections /
networks
Check to see if the site is secure
Log out of personal accounts after shopping
Go to websites directly instead of clicking on links
Don't click on links sent in emails
Don't store payment card info on retailers' websites
Pay with a credit card dedicated to online shopping
only
Protecting Against Identity Theft
Among those that plan to shop online, the most common
precautions are using personal networks, secure sites and
logging out of accounts
Q15: Which, if any, of the following actions do you take to protect your identity when shopping online? (Asked if shopping online, n=864)
18-34 55+
46% 67%
49% 63%
44% 63%
45% 50%
34% 59%
33% 37%
28% 26%

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