Have you started your Christmas shopping? Are you the ever-prepared, ever-organised sort who is already starting with the wrapping, or are you the last-minute dasher who’s planning to brave the crowds on Christmas Eve?

If you’re trying to tighten the gift-budget this year, according to social networking platform Meebo, you’re better off doing your shopping early.

A study by Meebo that looked into the shopping habits of 2000 online users found that ‘last minute shoppers’ are 45% more likely than regular shoppers to purchase luxury brands.

In contrast, ‘early bird shoppers’ are 34% more likely to hunt for deals and 30% more likely to use coupons.

Meebo’s president Martin Green also believes that demographic data available is insufficient for brand advertisers keen on web targeting “because it doesn’t provide insight into purchase intent and context”.

Rather, Green says that it is a consumer’s taste and personality traits that are big determinants on what brands they purchase.

Using data from Meebo’s 250 million monthly unique users, as well as surveys from the company’s research arm, the company formed patterns around people and their personality traits, giving it the ability to associate traits with validated brand preferences and behavioural data.