Ware2Go, a UPS-owned provider of fulfillment on demand through partnership with warehouse owners, via an integration with Google Shopping, lets merchants offer free shipping early in the search and discovery process on Google, aimed at increasing conversion. Ware2Go handles fulfillment through its partner network.
Amazon has finally opened the doors of its hybrid Amazon Fresh store in the Woodland Hills section of Los Angeles, a futuristic blend of digital and physical challenging traditional grocers that had been put on hold this spring due to the COVID-19 crisis. Customers can breeze through checkout and navigate the store via Alexa.
Buyers used to ask retailers when their item could be delivered. Now, they want to choose the in-home delivery time and track it online. That’s a somewhat new and difficult expectation for brands to meet. The good news is that sophisticated truck routing solutions are available to help merchants better manage in-home home delivery.
Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’ve seen that curbside pickup has moved from a secondary method to a primary one for retailers. In the coming months, it will become increasingly clear that today’s curbside experience is just a starting point in terms of what store-based commerce will look like. Here’s a peek inside the near future.
After putting it off for four months due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Walmart plans to finally roll out its own $98 a year subscription program this month to challenge the outright dominance of Amazon Prime. It will reportedly include access to Walmart’s new two-hour grocery delivery service, deals and discount gas, Recode reported.
Not only have small businesses been able to rise to customers’ heightened expectations during the pandemic shutdown as they pivoted to ecommerce, they stepped up and filled major supply gaps. SMBs now have a window of opportunity to convert one-time customers into long-term loyalists, and here’s how they can do so.
Those who have embraced omnichannel retailing by allowing customers to do everything from browsing to payment on their personal device have found it much easier to adapt with tactics like BOPIS to ensure the safety and health of employees and shoppers. The current crisis will serve as a catalyst for long-term process changes.
When DTC brands are able to understand and implement last mile technology providing greater visibility and transparency, they put themselves in a position where they can control the customers’ experience from start to finish, ultimately enhancing it in every way possible. Here are three ways to boost the last-mile experience.
Kustomer, an up-and-coming cloud-based CRM platform for hot DTC brands like UNTUCKit, ThirdLove and The Farmer’s Dog, has acquired Reply.ai, which uses AI and machine learning to improve agent efficiency by deflecting customer queries through chatbots and widgets. The two have worked together on CRM integration projects.
A decision by the leadership team at jewelry retailer Kendra Scott to invest in an order management system ahead of last year’s peak season was a critical element enabling the company to quickly turn its fleet of stores into fulfillment centers and initiate curbside pickup, after shutting them down to the public due to COVID-19.