Competing big-box stores like Target and Best Buy are trying to attract shoppers this holiday season by offering free shipping on all online purchases, no matter how small. This strategy doesn’t interest Walmart, because their plans this year for holiday domination don’t include free online shipping: they include using in-store pickup to get shoppers into their stores.

Walmart is keeping their threshold for free shipping on most online orders at $50, which was also their online strategy last year. They’ve probably stuck with it because it works. Online customers either build carts worth $50 or more “The vast majority of our orders today are free shipping or free pickup,” the head of Walmart.com explained to reporters.

As long as customers don’t go elsewhere, not offering free shipping makes sense. Walmart is also growing its own subscription-based free shipping program for customers, but they have to pay a subscription fee to join it, making up for their savings later and giving Walmart another reason not to budge from its $50 cart minimum.

Wal-Mart Won’t Promote Free-Shipping Deals Over Holidays [Wall Street Journal]
(via ECommerceBytes)

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