Amazon Patents "Anticipatory Shipping"
By Anna Rose Welch, Editorial & Community Director, Advancing RNA
Company continues seeking ways to cut down on shipping time, anticipate consumer needs, and put data to good use
E-commerce giant Amazon, which often lures shoppers towards its endless, virtual aisles and cheaper prices, continues to strategize to maintain its dominance — now by finding a way to fulfill orders more quickly. In December, Amazon patented “anticipatory shipping,” which would enable the company to start the delivery process even before customers click “buy.” “Anticipatory shipping” could cut down on delivery time and keep people choosing online over physical stores, the Wall Street Journal says. Indeed, in the patent document, Amazon says that delays between the order and shipping date “may dissuade customers from buying items from online merchants.”
Pre-patent, Amazon’s shipping process went something like this, according to WSJ: Amazon would receive an order, label and package it in one of its warehouses, and then send the goods directly to consumers’ homes from the warehouse via UPS, USPS. However, with this new patent, Amazon expects it could box and ship items that customers in a specific area would want. The packages would then wait at shippers’ hubs or on trucks until an order is completed. The company would determine which items to send based on previous orders, product searches, shopping-contents, wish lists, and even the amount of time a curser hovers over an item.
Amazon has not clearly stated that it has or will deploy this “anticipatory shipping” technique. However, this voracious desire to beat consumers to the punch is all the rage these days, says WSJ. Whether it’s a refrigerator alerting someone they need more milk or televisions that predict what shows need to be recorded, companies are seeking out ways to show customers how well they know them and that they’re there to help consumers out — even if the customer doesn’t know they need help yet. Amazon in particular has been busy launching or dreaming up methods to help get customers what they need as soon as that need develops. The company’s aspirations for drone delivery, the launch of its Kindle Kiosks, and its warehouse network expansion to enable 7-day shipping all prove Amazon is serious about anticipating customers’ needs.
But this new delivery option also shows that the e-retailer knows it’s sitting on a goldmine of customer data and that it’s more than keen to utilize it to its fullest. Of course, as the Huffington Post elaborates, a package containing a product a customer had his/her eyes on wouldn’t just turn up on the front porch unannounced. But, if the data lines up right, that product could already be waiting for an official order at a nearby fulfillment center for when the customer finally hits the checkout button.
Read UPS’ white paper: “Improving The Global Online Shopping Experience”
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