Amsive

PUBLISHED: Sep 3, 2015 5 min read

Why I Ended My Amazon Prime Service and What It Means for Your Magento Store

It all started with Truffle Salt.

A few weeks back, I was shopping in my local mall, wandered into Sur La Table, and stumbled upon a huge display of artisan salts. Being the inner foodie that I am, I tasted each salt and immediately realized that I needed truffle salt in my life. It was the perfect balance of truffle and brine and I was already imaging every piece of food I would apply it to. I picked up the jar, checked the price, and carefully put the salt back on the shelf. There was no way I could justify spending $27.00 on salt. We left the store with my palette still enjoying the last truffle flavor notes. I felt defeated.

The next week, I stopped in every specialty food store I could find to see if they had truffle salt. Most did not, and the ones that did also had the hefty price tag. Could I really spend over twenty bucks on salt?

Finally, I checked online to see if I could find the truffle salt I wanted, nay, needed, at a better price. I checked Amazon, and read reviews of about 10 different truffle salts. I finally settled on a large jar of truffle salt that was $20.96; I felt comfortable with this price based on the size of the jar.

However, that Prime icon spoke to me on a spiritual level. Yes Amazon, I did want free shipping. And Yes, I did need my truffle salt in two days.

I signed up for the free thirty day trial, and waited patiently for my delivery. The app on my phone notified me the moment my package was delivered, and I rushed down to the lobby with the same gusto as a child on Christmas morning.

And just like that, in 48 hours, I had the item I so desperately needed, or so I thought.

The days following my first order, I also purchased:

  • A 128GB Flash Drive (while on line at WalMart buying other items)
  • Three plastic lobsters (from the comfort of my couch)
  • A padlock (from inside CVS)

And then last night, it hit me. I am buying stuff I really don’t need. I was drawn to the novelty of two day shipping, and not having to go out to the store to buy one tiny thing. Plus, the one-touch checkout is fabulous. Who has time to get up and get their wallet when all snuggled up on the couch? Not I.

Each day, I found myself checking Amazon for things to buy. Navy flip-flops. Toilet bowl cleaner. A drone. I could feel myself being sucked into the idea of, “Well, you’re not paying for shipping.” True, yes. But I am spending money on things I really don’t need.

For me, Amazon Prime completely did away with logic and reason. I was impulsively shopping. And how could you not! It didn’t feel like shopping. I never touched my credit card. I never left my house. And I didn’t have to wait long for the delivery to arrive. It was instant gratification in the worst way.

So last night, I sucked it up, and ended my trial.

I will miss the delivery boxes at my front door, and the joy of seeing the UPS truck turn down my street. I’ll miss being able to buy anything I need with the touch of a finger.

What does this all mean for your Magento Store?

Why have I delighted you with my story of salt and shopping? Because Amazon Prime works. It works well. They got me to do exactly what they wanted; spend more money.

However, you can use my experience to help your own eCommerce store.

1.) Make the checkout easy

And I mean like crazy easy. Try using a One Step Checkout flow as opposed to the native One Page Checkout. This will help cut down on the time it takes for the customer to checkout (and give them less time to change their mind).

2.) Save their card information

Offer to save the customer’s credit card and billing details during the checkout. That way, when they come back to your site, they don’t need to re-enter their card details. This can be achieved by updating (or changing) your payment processor to use a CIM-type module (Customer Information Manager).

3.) Two words: Free Shipping

I don’t care how you do it, but offer customers free shipping. I’m a naive customer. I will pay more for an item on your site if you offer free shipping, than for a lower priced item with paid shipping. I saw the word free, so I’m getting a deal; right?

An alternative is offering free two-day shipping with a service like ShopRunner. Plus, I have a free ShopRunner account thanks to my trusty AMEX. Heck, they even say how they are better than Amazon Prime:

Both services are similar, but with ShopRunner members get free 2-day shipping to a more diverse group of retailers like Neiman Marcus, GNC and the NFL Shop.
ShopRunner members also enjoy free return shipping, member-only deals and have access to Express Checkout at select stores.

All in all, there are multiple ways that you too can have an easy to use site that will help increase sales, profit, and ROI. Don’t let Amazon have all the fun; let your customers experience the ease of online shopping on your Magento site as well!

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