BUSINESS - Walmart Escalates Ecommerce Battle with Free Two-Day Shipping

In an effort to challenge ecommerce giant Amazon, Walmart has introduced free two-day shipping for home delivery on orders of at least $35 in the US.
 

This initiative replaces their Shipping Pass, which offered free two-day shipping for an annual $49 fee, and all current subscribers will receive a refund.

“In today's world of ecommerce, two-day free shipping is table stakes. It no longer makes sense to charge for it,” Marc Lore, president and CEO of Walmart US ecommerce, said in a release.

The new shipping offer is a direct strike at and attempt to undercut Amazon who dominates the ecommerce market.

Amazon Prime is a $99-per-year service that bundles two-day shipping on purchases with unlimited streaming media and other perks and has strong customer loyalty.

Walmart’s acquisition of Jet.com in 2016 was a clear statement of their intention to become a serious competitor in the online sales market.

Their new shipping program is another.

It won’t be surprising to see Walmart offer better services and deeper discounts in the future, particularly as ecommerce and mobile commerce continue to increase in importance with consumers.

“Two-day free shipping is the first of many moves we will be making to enhance the customer experience and accelerate growth,” Lore said.

Key Findings of a Consumer Survey Focusing on Technology and Its Impact

Blackhawk Engagement Solutions surveyed approximately 2,500 people to examine how they pre-shop, filter information, their path-to-purchase influencers, and how marketers can impact these paths. Blackhawk’s GVP of Marketing, Rodney Mason said, “Today, the key to winning at retail is keeping up with your customers. By charting where shoppers are landing as they explore new shopping territories, retail marketers can position their businesses in front of the competition and closer to targeted and underserved customers.”

The main trends from the survey are:

• 71% of people use a smartphone daily. Internet shopping and TV watching are positively correlated.
• 19% will purchase a competitor’s product on their smartphone while in a store. 38% of people compare prices using Amazon, Google, and retail websites.
• 63% would allow retailers to send offers to their smartphone and 59% would allow retailers to know their personal location and identity for financial savings.
• Financial savings are the main reason people follow brands on social media. 89% of people that follow brands want special offers.
• The main digital promotion media is email.
• A price difference of 10% makes online sales more favourable. Most people prefer to purchase items at a physical location that price matches.
• Mobile wallets are increasing in popularity. 54% of people would use a mobile wallet versus a traditional wallet if a mobile wallet was wides accepted.

Blackhawk’s full report may be found here.

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