Google has been busy on the ecommerce front lately, announcing a plan to drop commission fees for sellers who use its Buy on Google checkout service, while making its pilot-tested product recommendation engine publicly available to let sellers display more personalized offers.
Although some shoppers are looking forward to returning to stores, others will be more inclined to continue to shop from the safety of their home. The shift to ecommerce caused by COVID-19 will linger well after social distancing policies are lifted. But behavior varies from shopper to shopper and between categories.
In developing an ecommerce fulfillment center move plan, it is helpful to understand some common problems other multichannel companies have encountered, including lack of a sufficiently detailed planning and budgeting process and inventory inaccuracy before and after. Following these 10 steps will help make your move a success.
One key reason friendly fraud is such a problem is that merchants and banks lack the capacity to distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate dispute claims. AI-based tools sending transaction data would allow for more accurate analysis of industry trends and consumer preferences, freeing up resources and reducing overhead.
Missing Prime Day this July, and can’t wait until October? Never fear. Global buy now and pay later platform Klarna has teamed up with media partner Cosmopolitan to create a new shopping event called Hauliday over the weekend of Aug. 8-9, with deals aplenty aimed at millennial and Gen Z shoppers.
Amazon as of Sept. 1 will require third-party sellers in the U.S. to provide their business name and address in their seller profile, a requirement that has been in place for some time in Europe, Japan and Mexico based on government regulations. The benefits to consumers are not entirely clear, ditto the impact on counterfeiting.
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.
Moving forward, one thing is certain: Marketplace facilitator laws will continue to evolve. We’re already seeing some changes in the U.S., with Louisiana going after high-volume 3P sellers during COVID-19. But states are also going to great lengths to pursue lodging and communications platforms and even food delivery services.
Website design and builder firm Wix has enhanced its ecommerce solution by adding a number of capabilities, taking aim at market leader Shopify by giving SMBs an entire raft of tools to set up and run their e-shop without breaking the bank. Wix said the COVID-driven explosion in ecommerce accelerated its development plans.
To succeed in this new world of retail disruption and ever-shifting customer demands, smart brands are moving to a direct model. The benefits of DTC can be substantial but require a dramatic retooling of operations, from customer service to returns management, direct merchandising, direct delivery and warehousing and logistics.