Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has made headlines within Silicon Valley and Wall Street lately. Reuters published the result of a study on Apple, which shows definite indications that the multinational corporation is up to some serious marketing moves.
The source quotes, retail intelligence firm, StellaService, reporting that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has almost cut its refund times in half to boost online sales. This is a small step, but a crucial one indeed as it can get more people, but directly from its website. This move could cost Apple huge expenses, but can prove advantageous in the long run if the company could lure online customers away from other online marketing retailers such as Amazon and Best Buy.
StellaService reports that customers can get a refund done in less than a week nowadays, compared to 10 days previously. This is because Apple now uses FedEx 2Day, an expedited service which lets customers send in their returned items within three days to its warehouse. A source has confirmed that customers will not incur additional cost through this measure.
Researches at StellaService noticed this improvement in refund time in November, but dismissed it as a temporary measure. It also discovered that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) changed its delivery agent to FedEx 2Day, through its research methods, wherein it orders several Apple products daily. Amazon maintains the first place in online retail, but Apple is catching up with a 24% increase in online sales to a record $18.3 billion in 2013. It displaced Staples, gaining the No. 2 position in worldwide sales. E-commerce experts aptly tout that Apple prides itself on customer service business controllability.
Speed is an increasingly competitive weapon Reuters quotes Marc Wulfraat, President of MWPVL International. This is not the case with many e-commerce firms, though, as they consider the returns process invaluable. He adds that many companies consider returns as hidden costs, increasing their complexity. Major rival Amazon offers refunds instantly in some cases, at an increased risk of fraud as customers may not return products. Apple cuts down the transitional days of the product, thereby decreasing fraud and offers speedier refunds.
On another side, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is in talks with Beats Electronics to acquire it for $3.2 billion. Apple has a hand over 60% of digital music while Beats handles 70% of the premium headphone market. Though experts are struggling to find a rationale behind this move, Apple must have something in mind. Wall Street experts are waiting for further statements from Apple, confirming the buy. And with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) announcing the launch of iPhone 6 in August, we could expect some major market changes from Apple.
