Barnes & Noble Partners With Google For Same-Day Delivery

Google matches Amazon again as it moves forward with same-day delivery in an area that will certainly help one large book retailer in a big way. CNN Money recently reported that Barnes & Noble has partnered with Google to provide same-day delivery. The two retailers will work together to offer the service in Manhattan, West Los Angeles and the San Francisco peninsula.

It is an interesting, yet unsurprising concept that Barnes & Noble has decided to venture into with Google. The book retailer may be turning all of the stores within those cities, including the Manhattan Union Square store in New York City, into an actual warehouse in which Google will deliver books for the company same day. This gives us insight on the wave of innovative selling that same-day delivery is injecting into the retail industry for brick-and-mortar stores.

Jaime Carey, Barnes & Noble's chief merchandising officer, stated in the report, "The way the program is set up, they're using our local stores as the hub for this". Google employees will essentially pull the books for Barnes & Noble shelves, then give them to Google couriers who then deliver the books to the end customer. This is a set up that will probably work, as a Same-Day Courier like A-1 Express will have the delivery expertise and routing optimization tools to get it done. As more and more books are ordered, a strong delivery base will be a must.

Barnes & Noble will have delivery windows for customers to choose from. The windows will be 9am to 1pm, 1pm to 5pm and 6pm to 10 pm daily. The report didn't state any information regarding any time constraints in which the customer must placed their order. However, these windows are wide enough for couriers to pick up and delivery books on time. Couriers are use to delivering within very short windows, therefore, Barnes & Noble should be able to create a good foundation for same-day delivery, including working our any kinks that arise.

Online customers are now who Barnes & Nobles has its' sights on, as same-day delivery will give it the market entry strategy it needs. "For us, it's fantastic that we can bring new customers to those local stores," Carey said. Online retail has consistently grown 16% in recent years and is getting stronger, therefore, it's a good move for Barnes & Noble to venture into the market. Also, being a brick-and-mortar store with today's e-commerce just won't due any more. Your strategy has to be dual, aggressively pursuing business from both physical store and e-retail fronts.

Google's Shopping Express is proving to open doors for the retailer to get it's same-day delivery service in the hands of other physical store companies that need help selling their products. It appears this is the objective for partnership with Barnes & Noble. With the convenience of technology, customers are able to order online with ease and from anywhere. Therefore, it gives reason to not have to leave home, but rather save time and gas to do other things. A-1 Express is a New York Courier that retailers like Barnes & Noble can turn to deliver books nationwide.

Reference: 8.7.14, CNN Money, Aaron Smith, Barnes & Noble teams with Google for same-day delivery