eBay Now adding new locations, expanding to desktop

Service available in the Bay Area Peninsula, Brooklyn and Queens, coming to Chicago and Dallas later

With heavy competition breathing down its neck, eBay is stepping up its game in the same day delivery space, by expanding the eBay Now service to new locations and a new format.

eBay Now, which debuted last year, was only available San Francisco before San Jose and New York. And now it is branching further out in those areas; starting Monday will be available in the Bay Area Peninsula, Brooklyn and Queens, the company announced via blog post. The service will also be debuting in Chicago and Dallas later this summer.

In addition, eBay Now, which was previously only available on mobile, will also be coming to desktop, in order to capitalize on where, and when, the service is most being used.

“More than half our orders are made between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. when our customers are usually at work,”Dane Glasgow, Vice President, Local and Mobile at eBay, said in a statement. “We want to make it easy for consumers to access eBay Now on any device.”

The eBay Now service allows users to order items from retailers in their area, including Finish Line, GNC, Home Depot, Macy's, Office Depot, RadioShack, Target, Toys R Us, and Walgreens. They will have their packages delivered to their door, typically within an hour.

The service has a minimum charge of $25, which may increase during periods of peak demand, and costs only $5 per order. 

Competition

It is easy to see why eBay is so eager to expand it same-day delivery service, and make it more convenient for its customers, as it has companies like Google and Amazon to contend with.

In March, Google unveiled its same-day delivery service, called Google Shopping Express, which allows shoppers to purchase items online from local retailers and get their items during a time window of their choosing.

Some of the retailers Google is working with include Target, Walgreens, Staples, American Eagle, Toys R Us, and Babies R Us, as well as local stores such as San Francisco’s Blue Bottle Coffee, Raley’s Nob Hill Foods, and the Bay Area’s Palo Alto Toy & Sport.

And, of course, there is Amazon Prime, which also comes with access to unlimited TV episodes and movies at no extra cost.

Then there are start ups, like Deliv, which raised a $1 million seed round in March, and Shutl, which raised $3.2 million in October. 

It should also be noted, though, that same-day delivery is perhaps not quite all that is it cracked up to be.

Only 9% of people say that same-day delivery would improve their shopping experience, compared to 50% who said lower prices and 75% who said free delivery, according to a survey conducted by The Boston Consulting Group in March.

(Image source: https://www.ebay.com)