Google Express

Google Shopping Express vehicle, original livery
Google Shopping Express vehicle, newer livery

Google Express, formerly Google Shopping Express,[1] is a shopping service from Google that was launched on a free trial basis in San Francisco and Silicon Valley in spring 2013, and publicly in September that year. In spring 2014, it was expanded to New York City and Los Angeles, and in fall 2014 to Chicago, Boston, and Washington, DC. Originally it was a same-day service;[2] it now offers same-day and overnight delivery.

The service was first announced in March 2013, from San Francisco as far south as San Jose. Retailers include a mix of national and local stores.[3][4][5] It was publicly launched on September 25, 2013, with some added retailers but still temporarily restricted to San Francisco and Silicon Valley.[6] Apps for Android and Apple smartphones were announced the same day; using these enables customers to use their loyalty accounts.[7] In May 2014 the service was expanded to New York City and West Los Angeles,[8][9] and in October 2014, they added service in Chicago, Boston, and Washington, DC, and additional retailers.[1][10]

At launch, Google waived the subscription fee for testers and for the first six months after sign-up;[8][9] the fee is somewhat below that for Amazon Prime. Amazon, which is also testing same-day delivery in selected markets, is the main competitor.[4][5][11][12][13] Delivery began with Prius sedans in Google Express livery, about 50 cars as of August 2013, when the service was available in 88 ZIP codes.[14] The fleet was later expanded to include Ford Transit vans,[15] and the company announced it might use bicycle and on-foot delivery in some areas.[16] The deliveries are subcontracted to a courier service, initially 1-800-Courier;[17] the service now also contracts with OnTrac. In the testing phase, retailers were also not charged or paid only a nominal fee. Customers pay $5 per shopping stop and receive deliveries within a three- to five-hour window.[13][14] Customers must have a Google Wallet account.[14][18]

The service displays a map of the merchandise pickup and delivery locations, and attempts to use the nearest available outlet,[13][14] not always successfully.[17][19]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Sarah Perez, "Google Shopping Express Expands To More Cities, Rebrands As Google Express", TechCrunch, October 14, 2014.
  2. ↑ "shop local stores online and get items delivered on the same day", Google Shopping Express, retrieved March 18, 2014.
  3. ↑ Salvador Rodriguez, "Google testing same-day delivery service", Business, Los Angeles Times, March 28, 2013.
  4. 1 2 Iain Thomson, "Google Shopping Express dips toe in same-day home delivery: Wants to ape Amazon and eBay, not Webvan or Kozmo", The Register, March 28, 2013.
  5. 1 2 Joanna Stern, "Google Shopping Express: Same-Day Delivery Beyond the Web", Technology, ABC News blogs, March 29, 2013.
  6. ↑ Heather Somerville, "Google same-day delivery makes public debut", Mercury News, September 25, 2013.
  7. ↑ Sarah Perez, "Google Shopping Express Launches In San Francisco Peninsula, Debuts New Apps", TechCrunch, September 25, 2013.
  8. 1 2 Alison Griswold, "Google Shopping Express Is Making a Masterful Play for Amazon’s Customers", Moneybox, Slate, May 5, 2014.
  9. 1 2 Alistair Barr, "In Battle with Amazon, Google Expands Same-Day Delivery Service", Blogs, Wall Street Journal, May 5, 2014.
  10. ↑ Brian Elliot, "Google Express: more cities, more stores and a new name", Oct 13, 2014.
  11. ↑ Alexia Tsotsis, "Google Starts Testing Google Shopping Express In SF, With Free Delivery From Target, Walgreens, Staples And More", TechCrunch, March 28, 2013.
  12. ↑ Dan Reyes, "Google Shopping Express May Rival Amazon and eBay", Technorati, March 28, 2013.
  13. 1 2 3 Farhad Manjoo, "The Glorious Future of Shopping: You order online. Your stuff comes the same day. You never have to leave your house again", Technology, Slate, June 30, 2013.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Heather Somerville, "Google puts pressure on eBay, expands same-day delivery", Business, Mercury News, August 30, 2013.
  15. ↑ Erin Connolly, "Here’s What You Need to Know Now That Google Express is in Town", Boston.com, October 15, 2014.
  16. ↑ Kaja Whitehouse, "Google expands same-day delivery service to Manhattan, LA", The New York Post, May 5, 2014.
  17. 1 2 Cyrus Farivar, "Google Shopping Express expands old formula: Take orders, deliver stuff (mostly): In which an Ars editor makes three orders in San Jose, but two actually show up", Business, Ars Technica, September 25, 2013.
  18. ↑ Shana Lynch, "Google Shopping Express versus eBay Now: Who won?", Silicon Valley Business Journal, September 25, 2013.
  19. ↑ Kevin Shalvey, "Google Shopping Express Test: Same-Day Bagels", Investors.com, Investor's Business Daily, June 5, 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/21/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.