Amazon Brings New Services To The Online Retail War

It seems the war for online purchasing supremacy has just deepened, with Amazon announcing it will add several more perks to its services. Amazon Prime has been a staple service of late for Amazon users, but with Walmart recently introducing its Tahoe service, it seems Amazon may be a little concerned about customers taking advantage of the Walmart service, which is almost half the price of Amazon Prime’s $99 yearly fee.

While Walmart’s Tahoe service does not offer everything Amazon Prime does, it seems the big wigs at Amazon would like to make sure customers stay with them rather than giving Walmart’s service a go. Add into the mix the fact retailers such as Macy’s and Nordstrom are testing out new same day delivery services for a flat $15 fee. A new provider, Jet, has also entered the arena with their $49 yearly fee, which will help customers track down the cheapest bargains on the internet, and now Google has gotten in on the online phenomenon and is offering services to giants such as Target, Costco, and Walgreens under certain conditions.

So what is Amazon offering customers now?

• Amazon Prime will now offer same day delivery services on over 1 million of their online products in 14 metropolitan areas across the U.S. This will better Walmart’s five areas that offer free delivery. Customers can make online purchases via Amazon as late as noon and be guaranteed delivery by 9 p.m. that day. States including this Amazon service are: Seattle/Tacoma, San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Tampa Bay area, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Baltimore, Indianapolis, New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia. But you will need to check with your zip code here to confirm your area is within an Amazon free delivery zone. Minimum Amazon order is $35.
• Get ready for the Amazon supermarket. Amazon will branch out into the private label sector of the food industry by producing its own line of food stables such as milk, cereal, baby food, and cleaning products, the Wall Street Journal has announced. Amazon is looking at trademarking a variety of items to offer to its Amazon Prime customers under its already established Elements brand.
• Want to buy an Amazon Kindle for your children? Now, Amazon has a special Kindle for Kids bundle on offer. According to Tech Crunch, the offer gives parents the opportunity to purchase a Kindle, a durable “kid-friendly” cover, and an extended warranty at the discounted price of $99 (a saving of $39.98). While the Amazon Kindle on offer is just designed for books, it does offer the Amazon Kindle Free Time service, which Tech Crunch tells us will be “measuring reading progress, tracking accomplishments, and earning achievement badges for reaching various milestones.” It also allows for children to read before they play games on devices if the parent owns an Amazon Kindle Fire or similar Amazon devices.

What do you think of Amazon’s war on online purchasing? Let us know your thoughts by commenting below!

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