Many e-commerce companies will extend the period in which they offer free delivery this Christmas, in a bid to entice more shoppers into completing a transaction. Author: Deborah Bates
Many e-commerce companies will extend the period in which they offer free delivery this Christmas, in a bid to entice more shoppers into completing a transaction.
According to figures cited by NYtimes.com, 90 per cent of American online retailers will offer a longer period of free delivery this year; with many doing so past December 20th. What’s more, 86 per cent providing free two-day or overnight delivery will continue to offer this right up until December 22nd.
They may have been convinced to make this move after hearing from Shop.org that one-third of consumers would spend more with an e-commerce company if they know the delivery will be free. The executive director of Shop.org, Vick Cantrell, explained: “As consumers shop around for the perfect gifts, express and standard free shipping offers could be the deciding factor for many procrastinators this holiday season.”
One of the world’s biggest online retailers, Amazon.com, hasn’t gone quite as far as some others; only offering free “super saver shipping” up until December 19th. After this date, shoppers will have to pay for one, two-day or express delivery, LAtimes.com revealed.
However offering free shipping is no use if an online retailer’s payment system is less than perfect, as this could convince shoppers to abandon their basket and head elsewhere too. As such, e-commerce companies would be well-placed to keep their online payment processing running as slickly as possible over the coming weeks.
Although many retailers are jumping on the bandwagon of offering extended free delivery, some are adamant that this is no less than what the consumer deserves – 365 days a year. One such company is Zappos.com, stating: “Free shipping both ways, 365 days is the norm – even during the busiest shopping season.”
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