Dutch marketplace bol.com introduces a new delivery service in 2020. The model, called 'Verzenden via bol.com' (Shipping via bol.com) makes next-day delivery available to all partners. The marketplace platform will make more information available through its partner platform later this year.
Bol.com makes the new service available in cooperation with PostNL and Red je Pakketje. According to bol.com, logistical scaling advantages will help merchants to save on shipping costs with the news shipping model. The new model aims to delivery larger volumes more efficient. For customers, it means that the total assortment of products will increase, as well as having more flexible, trustworthy delivery options.
Orders that are placed during the day will be shipped the same day to the last-mile carrier. The delivery partner will take care of delivery the next day. An order which is placed after regular working hours, will be transferred to the last-mile deliverer first thing in the morning and be delivered that same day.
At the same time, the platform announced it will start optimisation of its 'Sponsored Products' advertising tool. With this, sellers can spotlight products on the platform, much like Amazon. Monthly, 114 million visitors come to the bol.com platform. Based on a bidding system, advertisements can be bought, where they will be displayed on relevant places to customers. The model works based on pay-per-click. More information on signing up, tariffs and workflow will be announced later this year.
Earlier this month, bol.com has started selling fashion items. Sellers who are interested through sell fashion on the platform can now sign up.
Finally, bol.com will start using a new commission model on March 1st, 2020. The aim is to help merchants generate more turnover through their sales on the platform. The platform is pushing sales by partners and hopes the new commission model will support a larger, more varied assortment. The adjusted commission model mostly benefits products with a price below €20,-. On average, the commission will be 30% lower. The fixed fee for these products is lowered. The Dutch marketplace continues to use a model which is based on a fixed fee plus variable fee based on the selling price including VAT. Some product categories have their own commission rates. A full overview can be found here (in Dutch).
