Walmart, the American retail giant, offers its customers a new way to shop. All they have to do is send a text message. This new experience called “Text to Shop” is available to customers on iOS and Android mobiles.
Connecting Text to Shop to the customer’s Walmart account
The Text to Shop service is seamlessly connected to the customer’s Walmart account. This means that the retailer knows what items are typically ordered by that customer. The customer sends the items they need via SMS and these products will be added to their shopping cart.
“With just a few quick text messages, your shopping is done”
For example, if someone is expecting a few more people at the table for the evening than expected, they text Walmart to quickly reorder the ingredients they need and schedule their retrieval. When the customer is done shopping, he reviews his shopping cart and checks out via text message or the Walmart app. Then, they select the time slot to pick up the products or have them delivered. “With just a few quick text messages, your purchases are complete,” Walmart points out,
Text to Shop is simple and convenient by design. It was designed in partnership with Walmart’s internal Global Tech team, “We worked closely with our customers to design Text to Shop,” Walmart explains.
The customer enters the product (“cereal”), Walmart suggests their usual brand and they indicate when they want to pick it up
Positive customer feedback
Customers respond favorably. “When different things come to mind, you’re usually shopping. I don’t have time to log into the app and add to the cart,” comments one customer. “I had gotten everything I needed, but I forgot two or three items, and I could get them with just a text. It’s almost like having your own personal shopper,” said another customer.
