If you’re familiar with e-commerce websites—and indulge in online purchases one too many times—you’re probably aware that the ruling retailer at the moment is Amazon.
Almost all of us turn to Amazon when it comes to making online purchases, thanks to this ecommerce behemoth’s low prices, but guess what? eBay is now on a roll, what with its new price matching policy.
According to Forbes, a price match guarantee can ensure that buyers do not leave eBay’s platform if they find a better deal on another website. eBay is now all set to make its customers happy with its price matching guarantees.
Clearly, eBay is stepping up its game. Here’s how.
eBay And Its Price Matching Guarantees
Firstly, if you’ve been living under a rock, and have no clue what a price matching guarantee is, then here you go.
Some retailers bring down the price of an item, if you can show them that their competitors are selling the same item at a lower price. This way, they retain their existing customers and attract new ones.
This is exactly what eBay will be doing. If you happen to come across a commodity on (say) Amazon or Walmart, and the same commodity is at a higher price on eBay, then eBay will match its price to that of its competitor.
That’s good news, right? And the best part is, that eBay is price matching to a wide number of retailers like Walmart, Home Depot, Best Buy, Target, and more.
Why Is eBay Going For Price Matching Guarantees?
eBay is one of the big players in the retailer’s market, but its competitors have become price-sensitive. Consequently, eBay lost a lot of its customers, thanks to prices being higher than its competitors, especially Amazon.
To retain its position as a force to reckon with in the retail sector, and to avoid losing its customers, eBay had to come up with a workable solution that is a win-win for both itself and its customers.
Price matching was the answer.
Customers are always on the lookout for the best deals on the market. If you want customers to choose you over the rest, you will have to throw out the best deals to grab their attention. This was eBay’s plan.
Hal Lawton, senior vice president of North America at eBay, says that the eBay deals selection has been a great success after its launch in 2011. Most of eBay’s deals are priced at lower rates than their competitors. If the prices aren’t, eBay has offered price matching guarantees.
Price Matching Guarantees And Other Retailers
Many retailers have taken to this price matching policy, and here’s a list of the four biggest retailers in the US who have followed suit.
Walmart
In 2003, Walmart announced its new price matching guarantees, and people were overjoyed. Items that were priced at a lower rate from over 29 stores were price matched.
However, you need to play by their rules, and their rules are pretty challenging. For example, the item in question has to match what’s available at Walmart. It has to be the same brand, the same quantity, and identical in all aspects. Also, you can price match only one type of item a day.
Let’s say you find a particular shampoo at Walmart that’s priced lower than it is on eBay. you can only price match one bottle of the shampoo a day. That’s how the system works.
Target
Target has jumped on the bandwagon too, and it has the same rules as Walmart. However, Target has an edge over Walmart: here, you can walk in with printed flyers that make “Lowest Price Guaranteed” claims, and Target will price match.
So price matching isn’t restricted to just their e-commerce competitors.
Best Buy
Best Buy’s price matching guarantees don’t cater to all the stores out there. It has just seven stores on its list: Amazon, B&H, Dell, Crutchfield, Newegg, HP and TigerDirect. But then again, that’s because Best Buy mostly deals with electronics.
Also, at Best Buy, you’ll have to approach the customer service desk, tell them the lowest price you’ve witnessed, and validate it with proof. You can show them the website or the printed ad.
This is slightly different from Walmart and Target, in that you get your items price matched at the register.
The Home Depot
It is safe to say that The Home Depot has the best price matching guarantees. If you find an item that is priced lower, The Home Depot won’t just lower the price to match its competitors—it will slash down the price by 10% after price matching it.
The Home Depot has its own set of rules and regulations too. For example, like Walmart and Target, the item has to be identical. This policy is not available for all the retailers in the market.
eBay To Step Up Its Game
The big giants of the ecommerce world are all battling their way up to the top, and eBay has entered the competition.
eBay announced its price match guarantee for over 50,000 items available on its site. Also, eBay has offered some of the best deals, saying that it has value-based prices that are much lower than that of their rivals like Amazon and Walmart.
Selling At eBay Or Amazon: What’s Your Best Bet?
If you’re a customer buying items from e-commerce websites, then you’ve been told about the best offers and price match guarantees. But what if you’re a seller?
When it comes to selling online, eBay and Amazon are the two retailers that usually grab the limelight. This is because they are the most popular and profitable online markets. eBay and Amazon are household names across the world, especially the US. They’ve seen a lot of success through the years.
When it comes to popularity, eBay beats Amazon on any given day. Sure, Amazon is extremely popular too, but only the next best after eBay as far as popularity among sellers is concerned.
However, Amazon has been selling products from almost every category that exists. But then again, eBay comes close to this too. eBay has been running the show for years, and it’s only natural that they are the best at their game.
Selling on eBay might be the better option. With 25 million sellers all around the world, eBay is definitely a major player in the e-commerce arena.
Over 21 years ago, eBay came into existence. When it did, it took the market by storm. eBay is still a worthy opponent that keeps all its competitors on its toes.
All in all, with the price matching guarantees, the numerous deals they have to offer, and the fact that they they are the best platform for selling your goods, eBay is definitely putting up a good fight in the battle of online retailers.
They’re fighting their way back to the top, and Amazon better watch out!
References:
http://www.skipmcgrath.com/articles/amazon-vs-ebay.shtml
http://www.cpcstrategy.com/blog/2017/03/selling-on-amazon-vs-ebay/
http://www.intelligencenode.com/blog/price-match-amazon-battle-e-commerce-throne/
https://techcrunch.com/2017/06/21/ebay-will-now-match-amazons-walmarts-and-others-prices-on-over-50000-items/
https://thenextweb.com/insider/2017/06/22/ebay-starts-price-matching-amazon-struggle-consumer-attention/#.tnw_1vskVr51
