Amazon has reportedly made some changes in its delivery processes as the shopping company moves to slash costs. The company reportedly offers about $10 to shoppers willing to pick up their orders at Amazon pick-up stations instead of home delivery.
According to several reports, Amazon's shopping sector felt that home delivery has been taking much of their revenue. So in the bid to reduce the amount spent on sending orders to shoppers' homes, Amazon is offering to pay $10 to those who would be willing to pick up their orders from a pickup station instead of having them delivered to their homes. Once Amazon implements this, the company will join the list of other retailers offering the same thing to their customers.
The e-commerce giant has been reportedly messaging and emailing a large chunk of Prime subscribers, telling them about the offer to receive $10 if they receive their orders from pickup stations. According to those who have received the email from Amazon, the e-commerce company said the offer is only valid for orders from $25 and above.
Amazon has also specified the pickup locations where they can be eligible for this offer. All their pickup locations in Whole Foods, Kohl's Stores, and Amazon Fresh are eligible for this offer. When Amazon was asked to comment on the recent developments, they declined.
One of those who first received the offer from Amazon was Upstate New York-based shipping consultant Dean Maciuba who made certain comments about the initiative from Amazon. Dean Maciuba noted the initiative from Amazon was part of their plans to reduce how much they spent on delivering packages to residential areas.
When they deliver orders to residential areas, they have to pay for expenses such as residential package drop-offs. According to Dean Maciuba, the new development by Amazon is "a huge opportunity for Amazon to reduce the cost of delivery." Dean Maciuba also noted that the new policy about to be implemented by Amazon is also training customers to have direct contact with the company instead of using third parties.
More Initiatives From Amazon
Apart from compensating customers with $10 whenever they receive their orders from pickup stations, Amazon also has other initiatives being implemented. But on the other hand, this initiative is not on the customers' side. Amazon now plans on charging customers about $1 whenever they return packages via a United Parcel Service store. According to the e-commerce company, this policy will be effective if the customer has an Amazon pickup/return station closer to their address.
First reported by The Information news site, even shipping companies such as UPS and FedEx are encouraging Amazon customers to use Amazon delivery stations when they are returning an order. However, if a customer is ready to pay the $1 fee, they can go ahead and return goods using shipping companies like UPS and FedEx.
Over the past months, Amazon has been making several changes to the way they operate, and it has been affecting a lot of things in the company. Changes have been made, particularly in their delivery processes, with most aimed at reducing costs.