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We’ve gone from customer pays for shipping, to free shipping, to 25% of the US prepays for shipping. After free and faster free shipping, the next best thing f

We’ve gone from customer pays for shipping, to free shipping, to 25% of the US prepays for shipping. After free and faster free shipping, the next best thing feels like predicting what you want and sending it to you.

me_me_me 7y ago
I was joking about the same thing at the lunch yesterday. But amazon is already doing it with their reoccurring product purchases.
ceejayoz 7y ago
Amazon experimented with that years ago. https://www.theverge.com/2014/1/18/5320636/amazon-plans-to-ship-your-packages-before-you-even-buy-them https://www.theverge.com/2014/1/18/5320636/amazon-plans-to-s... > Drawing on its massive store of customer data, Amazon plans on shipping you items it thinks you'll like before you click the purchase button. The company today gained a new patent for "anticipatory shipping," a system that allows Amazon to send items to shipping hubs in areas where it believes said item will sell well. This new scheme will potentially cut delivery times down, and put the online vendor ahead of its real-world counterparts. IIRC, they now site the most frequently ordered items in smaller, more localized distribution centers for quicker/shorter shipping.
- Red_Leaves_Flyy 7y ago
  Grocers have been doing this for decades... People have been doing this far longer. There's nothing novel about putting stacks of toilet paper in warehouses near big populations.
  - smileybarry 7y ago
    That's the large-scale strategy, but IIRC Amazon had per-buyer prediction. If you looked at a specific item and it predicted you're likely to order it soon, it would be delivered to a distribution center closer to you. (Using free space in a truck already heading there anyway)
  - ceejayoz 7y ago
    Pre-positioning staples like toilet paper isn't new, no. Pre-positioning a few black truffles because one person thought about buying them yesterday is, though.
user5994461 7y ago
It's only free shipping if the basket is more than £20 and there's no bulky items.

me_me_me 7y ago

I was joking about the same thing at the lunch yesterday. But amazon is already doing it with their reoccurring product purchases.

ceejayoz 7y ago

Amazon experimented with that years ago. https://www.theverge.com/2014/1/18/5320636/amazon-plans-to-ship-your-packages-before-you-even-buy-them https://www.theverge.com/2014/1/18/5320636/amazon-plans-to-s... > Drawing on its massive store of customer data, Amazon plans on shipping you items it thinks you'll like before you click the purchase button. The company today gained a new patent for "anticipatory shipping," a system that allows Amazon to send items to shipping hubs in areas where it believes said item will sell well. This new scheme will potentially cut delivery times down, and put the online vendor ahead of its real-world counterparts. IIRC, they now site the most frequently ordered items in smaller, more localized distribution centers for quicker/shorter shipping.

Red_Leaves_Flyy 7y ago
Grocers have been doing this for decades... People have been doing this far longer. There's nothing novel about putting stacks of toilet paper in warehouses near big populations.
- smileybarry 7y ago
  That's the large-scale strategy, but IIRC Amazon had per-buyer prediction. If you looked at a specific item and it predicted you're likely to order it soon, it would be delivered to a distribution center closer to you. (Using free space in a truck already heading there anyway)
- ceejayoz 7y ago
  Pre-positioning staples like toilet paper isn't new, no. Pre-positioning a few black truffles because one person thought about buying them yesterday is, though.

user5994461 7y ago

It's only free shipping if the basket is more than £20 and there's no bulky items.