Who Loses From Google Checkout? Not eBay, but Amazon.

Rafe Needleman, writing for News.com, says about Google Checkout:

This is not much of a competitor to eBay's (EBAY) PayPal, as some have predicted. Checkout is designed for serious merchants more than for individuals unloading old Star Trek snow globes on eBay. To be sure, the few merchants that are considering adding PayPal as a payment option (and that don't already have it), might divert their energies to signing up for Checkout, however there's no reason a commerce site couldn't offer both PayPal and Checkout if it desired.

Checkout is, however, a huge threat to Amazon (AMZN). The biggest thing the online superstore has going for it is convenience. Once you buy an item on Amazon, buying the next one is a one-click affair. But go to another store, and you've got to enter your credit card info all over again. Amazon wins for convenience, and over time it's earned buyers' trust.

Comments

[Eric Balkan:]

I disagree that convenience is Amazon's biggest plus. Think about the user reviews. I know I personally always check the Amazon listings before buying something, anything, to see what other people have said about it. Other big plusses for Amazon are: free shipping over $25 from their own warehouse and $25 "gift" coupons earned with their credit card. Perhaps Amazon's biggest plus is that their management knows how to market to consumers.

2006 Jul 01 12:11 AM

[Faisal Laljee:]

I agree with Eric - I don't shop Amazon for their checkout convenience. If that were the case, I would not be shopping at Overstock, Drugstore, eBay, Expedia, Smartbargains and others. I love their customer product reviews, free shipping over $25, customer service, product recommendations, cheap prices etc.

-- Faisal Laljee

2006 Jul 02 07:08 AM

[Soldi Dude:]

Ditto to Faisal's and Eric's comments. I have passed on many, many items and purchased others on amzn based on the comment system. Customer service and delivery time are second to none. Heck, I bought a flat panel and 2-weeks later it dropped in price $100 - Amazon credited me the $100 w/in hours of sending an email. I know many, many people who agree. Don't think I would be inclined to give google my cc information just yet. Amazon has spent many, many more years building consumer trest. Google on the other hand is constantly at the forefront of privacy controversy.

Time will tell, but for now, I don't see a mass exodus from amzn.

2006 Aug 13 06:02 PM