What could possibly go wrong? Walmart edition.

[The Illusive Man]

Wal-Mart Stores Inc is considering a radical plan to have store customers deliver packages to online buyers, a new twist on speedier delivery services that the company hopes will enable it to better compete with Amazon.com Inc.

Tapping customers to deliver goods would put the world's largest retailer squarely in middle of a new phenomenon sometimes known as "crowd-sourcing," or the "sharing economy."

Keep the following people in mind because their heads (along with the perpetrators) need to roll when items are stolen and people are assaulted. The most obvious reason as to why this is a bad idea can be summarized in two words, background checks.

• "I see a path to where this is crowd-sourced," Joel Anderson, chief executive of Walmart.com
• "I'm sure it will be a test in some stores," he added. "But they may only keep it for metro markets and for higher-priced items." Matt Nemer, a retail analyst at Wells Fargo Securities.

Also shift the insurance cost.

Drivers often need personal liability insurance to cover package delivery activities. Cargo insurance is also needed. Zipments self-insures this risk up to $250, but the firm encourages its couriers to buy additional coverage for higher-value packages, Pohl said.

[Barbarella]

This article smells "Oniony".

[The Illusive Man]

This article smells "Oniony".

The Onion is not Reuters, last I checked.

[ironbite]

...they want every day people to deliver packages to other customers.....

Ironbite-how...how stupid can they be?

[chitoryu12]

Wal-Mart Business Plan: Pie.

[Old Viking]

Wouldn't it save time to simply give the merchandise to customers and tell them to do with it as they please?

[Barbarella]

This article smells "Oniony".

The Onion is not Reuters, last I checked.

Oh, crap.

[Captain Jack Harkness]

Haha.  I'll keep a cautious eye on this, but I'm intrigued by this strategy.  You can't blame them for being bold.

So my question is this:  Are they gonna reimburse their customers for doing this shit?  How much?  I could see making some good scratch for doing shit like this.

[chitoryu12]

Haha.  I'll keep a cautious eye on this, but I'm intrigued by this strategy.  You can't blame them for being bold.

So my question is this:  Are they gonna reimburse their customers for doing this shit?  How much?  I could see making some good scratch for doing shit like this.

If they don't provide reimbursement, they can't get anybody to do it. Nobody's going to do delivery work for free.

[Captain Jack Harkness]

Haha.  I'll keep a cautious eye on this, but I'm intrigued by this strategy.  You can't blame them for being bold.

So my question is this:  Are they gonna reimburse their customers for doing this shit?  How much?  I could see making some good scratch for doing shit like this.

If they don't provide reimbursement, they can't get anybody to do it. Nobody's going to do delivery work for free.

Just read the article.  Looks like they slash your bill.  Does this mean store credit if the cost of gas is more than what you buy?

Edit:  I dunno why my reply was in the quote stack. >.<

[chitoryu12]

Just read the article.  Looks like they slash your bill.  Does this mean store credit if the cost of gas is more than what you buy?

It rightly would. If word gets out that they're essentially denying payment for the job, they're not going to get a good response to this plan.

Then again, this sounds like a horrible idea anyway. Random Joes ain't professional delivery drivers. Would YOU trust your delivery to whatever redneck they grabbed off the street?

[The Illusive Man]

Just read the article.  Looks like they slash your bill.  Does this mean store credit if the cost of gas is more than what you buy?

It rightly would. If word gets out that they're essentially denying payment for the job, they're not going to get a good response to this plan.

This statement vastly overestimates the cognitive ability of most Walmart shoppers.

Then again, this sounds like a horrible idea anyway. Random Joes ain't professional delivery drivers. Would YOU trust your delivery to whatever redneck they grabbed off the street?

Just Random Joes?

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY-tmSxREys" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY-tmSxREys</a>

[TheL]

Haha.  I'll keep a cautious eye on this, but I'm intrigued by this strategy.  You can't blame them for being bold.

So my question is this:  Are they gonna reimburse their customers for doing this shit?  How much?  I could see making some good scratch for doing shit like this.

If they don't provide reimbursement, they can't get anybody to do it. Nobody's going to do delivery work for free.

True, but if your plan is to steal the first high-cost shipment, you probably don't care if you're getting paid or not.  And given the kinds of shit people try to pull at Wal-Marts...

[chitoryu12]

So apparently you need to sign up for this like an actual job and go through the usual process of a background check and other dealies to actually get to delivering. They're not just going to throw boxes at people who leave and ask them to drop them off.

[MadCatTLX]

So apparently you need to sign up for this like an actual job and go through the usual process of a background check and other dealies to actually get to delivering. They're not just going to throw boxes at people who leave and ask them to drop them off.

So then what they're actually doing is hiring delivery drivers that work when they want or is convenient. That's actually a lot more sane than what it sounded like. I still don't know if they can get enough people who pass the checks and are willing to do this to make it viable. Somehow I doubt they'd pay enough to have people clamoring to deliver stuff.