Target.com and Walmart.com are both doing very well this holiday season and, for all intents and purposes, that's where the similarities between the two e-tail operations end.
A (Minneapolis) Star Tribune report points out that the two retailers have taken different approaches to their web operations.
Target is sticking to a marketing strategy that mirrors what's going on in its stores. Wal-Mart, on the other hand, has looked to promote its price image with special "web only" deals.
Dale Nitschke, president of Target.com, told the Star Tribune, "Everything we're doing is to support the bricks-and-mortar store. We're trying to create the same lean, fast-moving environment that you find in the Target store."
While Walmart.com has been out-in-front announcing deals on Thanksgiving when stores were closed, the business is also looking for synergies with deals such as free shipping for customers who pick up their purchases in stores. Target has no plans to offer a similar program.
As previously reported by Reuters, Walmart.com is also seeing a lot of traffic to its "find in store" feature that lets consumers know if a product can be found at their local Wal-Mart. Target has a similar feature on its site.
According to the Star Tribune, Target remains current with updates posted every 15-minutes. This is important for the season's hottest sellers such as the Wii gaming system.
Target uses demand on its website to adjust store stock levels. According to the report, stores will increase a given product's inventory when a spike in the item's sales online takes place.
Both Target and Wal-Mart expect big things from their respective online operations.
WalMart.com is looking for a sales increase up to 60 percent over last year's number.
Target.com's Nitschke said, "Our business is in its adolescence. We're not a mature business yet or a mature element of Target's strategy, but we're showing the potential of a teenager."
Discussion Questions: Do you see much difference between how Target and Wal-Mart go about their business online? Which marketing approaches or features do you think offer the greatest opportunity for the respective websites?