Here is a list of product releases and updates for late-October from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on shipping, social commerce, social video production, instant selling, team productivity, and holiday items.
Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.
Ecommerce Product Releases
Amazon Business Prime adds same-day and one-day shipping, spend visibility, and guided buying. Now Business Prime members in the U.S. can choose free same-day delivery or free 1-day shipping for more than 1 million items on orders over $35 in more than 8,000 cities. Members also have the option to choose consolidated shipping on eligible bulk orders to receive their order in fewer shipments. Also launched, “guided buying” lets you configure the Amazon shopping experience for your business specific policies. And “spend visibility” enables you to gain procurement insights into spending by department, category, supplier, and month, and fine-tune your policies to manage future expenditures.
Target launches free 2-day shipping for holidays with no minimum requirement. Target announced that it is removing the order minimum for most items sold online during the holiday season. Starting November 1, most items will be given free 2-day shipping with no minimum purchase required. The promotion is scheduled to extend through December 22.
Pinterest introduces product pins and shopping recommendations. Pinterest is now making pins shoppable with up-to-date pricing and stock information, with links to the checkout page on the retailer’s site, where users can buy. And, a new shopping recommendations section can now be found beneath style and home pins so shoppers can browse similar items across multiple brands. Pinterest is also introducing a new shopping shortcut so users can shop from their feed.
Adobe updates Creative Cloud and launches Premiere Rush CC. As part of its recent Creative Cloud update, Adobe has launched Premiere Rush CC. Designed for online video creators, Premiere Rush CC integrates capture, intuitive editing, simplified color, audio, and motion graphics with seamless publishing to leading social platforms, such as YouTube and Instagram. With Premiere Rush CC, content creators do not have to be video, color, or audio experts to publish professional-quality videos. Premiere Rush CC harnesses the power of Premiere Pro CC and After Effects CC, and offers built-in access to professionally-designed motion graphics templates in Adobe stock.
eBay launches instant selling trade-in services for smartphones. eBay announced the launch of eBay Instant Selling, a program that allows consumers to sell their devices and get paid instantly with an eBay voucher, without having to manage the selling process. The program allows consumers to sell their smartphones. The entire process takes only a few minutes, from start to final payment. “With Instant Selling, people can find out exactly how much their phone is worth, and sell their phone within a matter of minutes to immediately help fund the holidays, or maybe something off their personal wish list,” said Alyssa Steele, vice president of hard goods, eBay.
ShippingEasy releases annual holiday shipping guide. ShippingEasy, a provider of cloud-based shipping, inventory management, and customer marketing solutions for ecommerce sellers, has released its annual holiday shipping guide for online retailers. The 31-page guide includes a detailed breakdown of (a) shipping service levels, rate structures, and cutoff dates and (b) marketing strategies to increase brand awareness.
ShopRunner acquires Spring. ShopRunner, a free 2-day shipping and ecommerce checkout network, has completed its acquisition of Spring, a mobile shopping destination where customers can discover new fashion items and buy them directly from their favorite brands in a single-cart experience. With the combined products and member benefits, Spring customers will get access to the ShopRunner network, adding millennial shoppers to ShopRunner’s member base.
Visa unveils new tokenization partners to increase payment security. Visa has announced the expansion of the Visa Token Service for credential-on-file token requestors, further securing consumer payments in the digital channel. Participating acquirer gateway and technology partners will be able to tokenize credential-on-file digital payments on behalf of merchant and payment clients. The Visa Token Service offers another layer of security by replacing sensitive cardholder information with a token, a unique digital identifier.
Etsy tests super seller badge. Etsy is adding a “Super Seller” badge on the listing pages of eligible sellers, those that have more than 25 sales, ship on time for the majority of orders, and have five or more reviews, with the majority of reviews being five stars. Etsy’s goal with the promotion is to give shoppers more confidence in making a purchasing decision by showing them when a seller is running a successful shop.
Ascential launches Edge for ecommerce driven data. Ascential has announced the launch of Edge by Ascential, a next-generation data, insights, and advisory service for brand manufacturers and retailers worldwide. Edge by Ascential services include (a) weekly, daily, and real-time digital shelf performance metrics, (b) monitoring of price movements, promotions, availability, product content changes, and new product listings, (c) traffic, search optimization, and conversion measurements, (d) price and promotion analytics and benchmarking, (e) competitive and market intelligence, and (f) omnichannel go-to-market and market optimization strategies.
Yaguara launches machine-learning, predictive-growth management platform. Yaguara, a growth management platform that helps ecommerce teams set and meet organizational goals, has announced its brand launch. Using real-time data, Yaguara’s platform helps align and empower ecommerce teams to achieve business objectives and rapid growth. The platform uses machine learning to promote cross-team visibility and report on progress toward company-wide performance goals. Plans start at $250 per month.