Is Free Shipping a MUST in this economy?

November 10th, 2008 by Ed Henrich, VP of Professional Services, Responsys, Inc.
Posted in @Shop.org

In a recent comScore study, 72% of consumers said that if an e-commerce site eliminated free shipping, they would use another e-commerce site that did offer free shipping. Last week the LA Times reported that this year, nearly 80% of consumers said they were more likely to shop online with a retailer that offers free shipping, compared with 60% who said that last year.

In the last two weeks a lot more retailers are jumping on the free shipping band wagon. This week 7 of the top 100 retail sites offered unconditional free shipping up from just 4 retailers two weeks ago. 34% offered free shipping if you spent a certain amount, up from 27% two weeks ago.  More stats available on my blog This Week In Etail.

What do you think the final outcome will be?

Tags: free shipping | Retail Thoughts

Interact: Add a Comment | Trackback Link | Permalink

3 Comments on “Is Free Shipping a MUST in this economy?”

1. alan rimm-kaufman Says:
   
   November 11th, 2008 at 9:14 am

   I am normally an optimistic person, but I see all the promotions as a dismal race to the bottom that punishes everyone.

   More at http://www.rimmkaufman.com/rkgblog/2008/11/10/online-promotional-dilemma/

   Hopefully I am wrong…

2. Polly Cason Says:
   
   November 11th, 2008 at 2:58 pm

   There is no such thing as FREE shipping!

3. Anon Says:
   
   January 26th, 2009 at 2:40 pm

   I think that the day will come where retailers adjust their pricing to accommodate a free shipping scenario. What kills me is when retailers have the additional shipping charges in parentheses next to the product price. As a customer, I really don’t care about the breakdown of what I am buying (if that were the case, why not advertise the purchase price, freight, materials, etc too!) It’s not fooling anyone. Publish the price to get the product to the customer’s home. Period.

Leave a Comment