Will Dick’s price match keep it on top of the sporting goods category?

Amazon.com isn’t the only online rival that Dick’s plans to match with its new “best price guarantee,” but it is among the most important in the sporting goods chain's efforts to maintain its lead in the category. While Dick’s has offered price matching in stores before, this is the first time the retailer has extended the offer to its website. When a customer finds an item they want to purchase from Dick’s and are ready to check out, they call a number and provide a reference to a website or ad with the product information. The online purchase is then completed on the call. A message on Dick’s site tells visitors that it “won’t be beat by a qualifying retailer’s price offered in their store or on their website.” In addition to matching competitor pricing, Dick’s adds that purchases qualify for points in its Scorecard rewards program. To qualify for a price match, items must be “identical,” which means they are the same brand, model number and color as sold by Dick’s. Other caveats are that Dick’s will not price match products marked down during Thanksgiving or Cyber Week as well as those promoted during special daily and hourly sales. Dick’s has published a long list of retailers and suppliers it plans to price match: Many other retailers have engaged in price matching in recent years with varying degrees of success. Academy Sports, among the chains Dick’s is price matching, unveiled its “Price Match + 5%” program during the holiday selling season last year. To be eligible, customers show a printed copy of a competitor’s ad or a digital version on their phone. The retailer offers a chat option and phone number for customers shopping online looking for a match.

• Best Price Guarantee – Dick’s Sporting Goods
• Dick's Sporting Goods is the latest retailer to price match Amazon – Engadget
• Retailers go beyond (below) price-matching for the holidays – RetailWire