Walmart is putting its money where its virtual mouth is by announcing it has an online pricing tool that will compare the price of its 80,000 different products to those of its competitor's prices and if beaten Walmart will then refund the difference to its customers.
Called Savings Catcher the site allows Walmart customers to enter their receipt number and then Walmart's software goes out and checks the advertised prices for what was purchased. If any difference is found that amount is refunded to the customer as store credit.
Savings Catcher was introduced as a beta test into seven markets last month including Dallas, Atlanta and San Diego. The chain has not said when the program will be expanded.
Offering Savings Catcher may not always mean consumers will get the least expensive price. There are a lot of tricks of the retail trade that allow a store to make a lowest price guarantee offer without actually having to worry about paying out.
One of the oldest dodges stores use is requiring that exact same model, down to the normally very long model number, be offered in the competing store in order to qualify for the lowest price discount. In many cases this proves impossible as many manufacturers make models specific to a single retailer and Walmart is a leader in that category. It often insists that vendors create a version of their product just for the chain and this means that technically no other store can beat the price because they do not offer that product. So, while a box of Cheerios is a box of Cheerios in any store, the Panasonic 46-inch plasma TV sold in Walmart may not be the same as the one sold in Best Buy.
If the service catches on it could prove disastrous for other retailers. Walmart has always boasted that it is the Every Day Low Price leader and matching a competitors price is not a new sales tactic, but this service could actually prove that the tag line is accurate. Particularly since most customers do not always have the time, inclination or technical ability to search other stores for a better price before making a purchase.
Duncan MacNaughton, chief merchandising and marketing officer for Walmart Store Inc.'s U.S. discount division, said that shoppers are looking for ''technological answers to saving them money and time.''
If Savings Catcher is released to Walmart's national customer base it could prove a huge boon. The chain has struggled over the last few years as competitors like Target and Amazon have encroached on its territory.
