space.template.Walmart

Questions for Secondary Research Walmart
Author: Yerkebulan, Nurym, Kenzhe, Amir

Company Name
Walmart

Question 1
What loyalty system do they currently use?  Include a picture and description of the loyalty card plus system they use

=**Answer:**=

Walmart doesn't have a loyalty cards. They officially respond:

”We want to offer everyday low prices to all of our customers”

“We believe that all of our customers deserve the lowest price possible, not just certain customers”

“Shoppers don’t have to be in a certain special group to save at Walmart”.

“We will not let up on our passion to reduce operating expenses so that we can invest in lower prices. This is the promise our customers expect from Walmart and what drives greater loyalty.”

But they have another loyalty system. Here are some of the key features:
 * Supporting its brand promise of “Everyday low prices” with weekly price scans of 60 competitors to make sure they deliver on the promise
 * A renewed layaway payment plan to ease the pain of major purchases for customers
 * Re-stocking it shelves with a broader selection of goods, reversing an attempt to streamline inventory and offering more choice to customers
 * Giving attention to private label product lines, focusing on its George clothing line

Walmart: Loyalty Cards? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Loyalty Cards! (n.d.). Retrieved December 9, 2014, from []

Hanifin, B. (2011, September 16). Walmart’s Loyalty Program. Retrieved January 28, 2015, from []

Question 1 Additional Contribution: Kenzhe
media type="youtube" key="7TuX7prH7w8" width="560" height="315"Walmart Iphone App. (n.d.). Retrieved 27 January, 2015 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TuX7prH7w8

Walmart has a Luvs Club Loyalty Program. Sweepstakes(form of gambling) begins at 9 am Eastern Time August 13, 2014 and ends on 6th April 2015. In order to participate that is available to the residents of the 50 United states (except Puerto Rico), it is essential to register on the Walmart website. To register it is obligatory to be 18 years old or older, write name, surname, email and answer to certain question about some inventory (e.g. diapers). After signing up, participants agree on terms concerning receiving if messages with a content from SPONSOR(Triad Retail Media), offers and marketing communications. (Luvs Club, (n.d.), Join the Luvs Club Loyalty Program., Retrieved February 1, 2015, from http://promos.rtm.com/luvsloyalty/ )
 * Pshenov Amir:**

Yerkebulan

Question 2
What are the features of the scheme? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For example: Do customers gain points, vouchures for points, discounts etc?

=**Answer:**=

They don't have a loyalty card. In the long term, loyalty cards encourage customers to spend even more money. Loyalty cards bring one huge advantage, they bring data about customers: their shopping habits, goods they look for, demographics, etc. Walmart absolutely needs that kind of data to be more adaptive for customers’ needs, that’s why instead of loyalty programs, they use different methods of gathering data:
 * “Scan & Go” smartphone app, which allows to scan the items as they shop, check prices and availability, leave customer reviews and ratings. This way Walmart can easily know what customers love to buy and look for frequently.
 * Walmart offers reloadable Visa and MasterCard credit cards, “Bluebird” prepaid debit cards, customers are able to make deposits, pay bills, shop at Walmart. Those cards reveals their personal data, including sex, age, home address, etc.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Walmart: Loyalty Cards? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Loyalty Cards! (n.d.). Retrieved December 9, 2014, from <span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">[]

Yerkebulan

Pshenov Amir:

Participants of Luvs Club Loyalty Program may win Grand prize consisting from 1000 Walmart gift dollars. It will be rewarded by random drawing selection First 2000 eligible registrants will be rewarded with total 2000 Giveawy Prizes, such as 5 Walmart eGift cardof dollars. Awards will be presented as a gift code and send to email address. Contestant who won Grand Prize will receive notification. Notification is presented as form that has to be notarized, competed signed and returned to the Realtime Media in 10 days. In case if the winner ignores or do not replies for a long period of time than winner will be chosen among other 2000 participants. (Luvs Club, <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans',sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">(n.d.), Join the Luvs Club Loyalty Program., Retrieved February 1, 2015, from http://promos.rtm.com/luvsloyalty/ )

Question 3
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What are the benefits for the customer? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For example: what do they get out off the scheme and how does it make their shopping experience better?

=**Answer:**=

Walmart is essentially using rivals' discounts to fuel its own loyalty program.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Walmart: Loyalty Cards? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Loyalty Cards! (n.d.). Retrieved December 9, 2014, from <span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">[]

Yerkebulan

Question 4
How does the system work? For example: include diagrams and bulleted text on how the loyalty card system works in the company you are studying.

Walmart doesn't have an explicit loyalty system, but they use discounts and coupons to increase their sale volumes and to attract customer.

Coupons can save up to 80% of the price, can include services like free shipping.
 * Coupons ( ** vouchers which then allow customers to buy products at lower prices) are used extensively in Walmart and are classified to two types:
 * Manufacturer coupons ** - coupons made by the creators' of the product. For example, if you have manufacturer coupons for Snickers, they would be made by Mars Inc. - manufacturers of the Snickers bar. These coupons can be used in any stores that sell that product.
 * Store coupons - ** coupons produced by the stores themselves and can be used only at that store or in one of the branches.

The process of using coupons: 1) The customer takes the coupons from the local newspapers, coupon specialized sites like Groupon, from friends and other sources for specific products or services. 2) The customer comes to the store that accepts those coupons and picks the items that the coupons are applicable for. 3) The customer hands the goods to the cashier and shows the coupons. 4) The cashier checks the coupons for legibility by comparing what's shown in the coupon with what's in the database. Then, the cashier marks the coupon as used to prevent copying the same coupons. 5) The customer pays the discounted price, gets his/her goods and goes home and lives happily ever after.




 * coupons scissors brown bag [Photograph]. (n.d.). Retrieved January 30, 2015, from: http://cdn.moneycrashers.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/coupons-scissors-brown-bag.jpg

by Nurym

Contributor Anel I: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cardsloans/article-2275737/The-best-supermarket-rewards-credit-cards-Clubcard-Nectar-M-S-Asda.html http://www.tesco.com/fuelsave/faq.asp

Question 5
What are the drawbacks/issues with the system? You should include the current problems that the company face with this system e.g. losing market share with another company?

1) Critics point out that excessive distribution of coupons are correlated with the falling redemption rates. 2) Excessive distribution of coupons create the possibility for fraud (using fake coupons to redeem products). 3) Not an effective marketing tool as no more than 2% of them are redeemed. 4) No targeting to potential customers. 5) Low trackability. 6) Reduce revenues for stores if a coupon campaign is not carefully thought out.
 * Coupons: **

by Nurym

Question 6
Include any illustrations/pictures of the loyalty card/system For example: what information is stored on the card?

Walmart does not offer any loyalty cards, instead it has:

 * ==== “Scan & Go” smartphone app, which allows to scan the items as they shop, check prices and availability, leave customer reviews and ratings. This way Walmart can easily know what customers love to buy and look for frequently. This application contains data on what customer have been purchasing all this time, the price, the category of items bought, place where they were bought, information about credit card, personal data of a user, real-time location and many more. ====
 * ==== [[image:http://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new/2013/03/walmart_scan_go.jpg width="301" height="248"]] ====
 * ==== Walmart offers reloadable Visa and MasterCard credit cards, “Bluebird” prepaid debit cards, customers are able to make deposits, pay bills, shop at Walmart. Those cards reveals their personal data, including sex, age, home address, etc. ====
 * ====[[image:http://s2.hubimg.com/u/4773685_f520.jpg width="397" height="252"]]====
 * ==== Walmart collects data during customer service operations, surveys and online registrations. It also extracts it from the other sources, such as data automatically collected when visiting websites (via cookies) ====

====<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Walmart: Loyalty Cards? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Loyalty Cards! (n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2015, from <span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">[] ====

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Privacy Policy.(n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2015, from http://www.momoftheyear.ca/privacy/
Kenzhe C:

Question 7
Explain the process on how the company collects the data and what benefits does it bring to the company as a stakeholder and the company as a whole?


 * ==== Walmart collects data during customer service operations, surveys and online registrations. It also extracts it from the other sources, such as data automatically collected when visiting websites (via cookies). in addition to that Walmart application and credit cards systems gives a data about purchases, average cost of items, location of the store where something was bought and etc. ====
 * ==== Walmart uses all of above data to provide products and services and to support core business function (marketing, loss and fraud prevention, authentication and etc.) ====
 * ==== To register and service accounts ====
 * ==== To alert the product information ====
 * ==== To improve and customize services, websites, ads' ====
 * ==== To send information about products ====
 * ==== To protect the security and integrity of the websites and business ====

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Privacy Policy.(n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2015, from http://www.momoftheyear.ca/privacy/
Kenzhe C:

Question 7 Additional Contribution: Assiya
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Explain the process on how the company collects the data and what benefits does it bring to the company as a stakeholder and the company as a whole? <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Company collects personal data from customers which is given during transactions, surveys, website registration.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">" Walmart uses your information to provide products and services and to support core business functions. These uses include order or service fulfillment, internal business processes, marketing, authentication, loss and fraud prevention, public safety and legal functions.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">We may combine all the information we collect. We may disclose your information within our corporate family of companies.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">We may disclose your personal information to third parties under the following limited circumstances:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">with service providers or suppliers that help with our business operations or joint products.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">with your consent.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">when necessary to protect the safety, property, or other rights of Walmart, customers, or associates, or when otherwise required by law."
 * <span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Walmart Privacy Policy, 2014. Retrieved 30 January from http://corporate.walmart.com/privacy-security/walmart-privacy-policy
 * ====<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">Privacy Policy.(n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2015, from http://www.momoftheyear.ca/privacy/====

Question 8
Explain the benefits for the customer for having their data collected by the company.

Kenzhe C: Pshenov Amir:
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Convenience Factor – Ease of Payment (Speed and Simplicity)
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Special Offers / Discounts for those who use application
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Feeling Of Belonging and Membership
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Store knows what you want and there is no need in searching particular item
 * 1) Possibility of receiving financial services
 * 2) Bonuses, Sales, discounts and prizes
 * 3) Information concerning required product comes to email
 * 4) High possibility of requireed item to appear in the stock.
 * 5) Delivery of purchased item comes directly to home
 * 6) Birthday priveleges

Question 9
What analysis does the company conduct on the data it collects and for what purposes?

Talking about coupons, Walmart is able to gather data by looking at the usage of coupons for certain coupons. If coupons for certain products are given out by filling out a form, then Walmart is able to gather information about the demographics, region and age of the customers and their needs. This data can be extremely beneficial, as they can more easily target their customers and present coupon offers to those who might actually use it. When building new stores in new locations, Walmart is able to know what products have demand in that region, so they stock the aisles with appropriate products.

by Nurym Contributor Anel I: http://www.prenhall.com/divisions/bp/app/chapters/groebner7/Chapter01.pdf

Question 10 (Yerkebulan's hand made)
What are the perspectives of not implementing the loyard card system? Is it benefitial for the company, and will the Walmart add it in future?

Question 11
Nurym's question: How beneficial are coupons for Walmart?

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This section is further explanation with images and perhaps videos that further define the concept. Label images/videos Figure 1, Figure 2, etc with a title and place the APA citation at the bottom of the page.

Put your contribution above with the appropriate question number
Amir Additional question: Why Tesco considered as Walmart's worst nightmare? Explain difference between Tesco's and Walmart's methods of attracting customers? Kenzhe Additional question: Suggest any ways for customers to prevent the collection of their personal data by Walmart. Toma Additional question: What are the privacy issues related to sharing of Walmart's data about customers with other shops?

Resources
<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: justify;">Kenzhe's Article:
 * use APA style for all content (i.e. text, diagrams, charts, images and videos)
 * use APA style for all content (i.e. text, diagrams, charts, images and videos

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: justify;">UK grocery sales have gone into decline for the first time in at least 20 years as a raging price war and the falling cost of food commodities hit Britain’s supermarkets. <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: justify;">“The major supermarkets have all had a difficult period, hit by both the flow of shoppers toward the discounters and reduced revenues as they competitively cut prices."

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: justify;">//Butler, S. (2014, November 18). UK grocery sales in decline for first time in 20 years. Retrieved February 2, 2015, from http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/nov/18/uk-grocery-sales-decline-price-war-asda-sainsburys-morrisons-tesco//