In our first post of our Walmart Growth Series, we discussed the importance of well-structured and thought-out SEO. In our second piece, we will focus on two other key areas that will drive success for your business on Walmart: (1) Images and Enhanced Content and (2) Generating Product Reviews.

IMAGES & ENHANCED CONTENT

IMAGES:  

Images are incredibly important for any eCommerce website, and Walmart is no different. Below we outline Walmart’s image requirements: 

  • NUMBER OF IMAGES: Walmart suggests uploading a minimum of 4 images for each listing. 
  • SIZE OF IMAGES: Walmart suggests images should be a minimum of 2,000 X 2,000 pixels or higher. 
    • One important note is that any image under 1,000 X 1,000 generally results in poor zoom capability, creating an undesirable experience for the consumer which may lower conversions. 
  • ASPECT RATIO: 1:1 (Square)
  • BACKGROUND: The main image must have a white background

When uploading images to Walmart, you can either manually upload them within ‘Seller Central’ or you can include image URLs in your bulk file when creating and/or editing the image. These URLs must end in an image file type (.jpg, .png, etc.) and link to a public image file. 

When uploading a product that you are already selling on Amazon, you can actually link those pages saving you time when creating a new listing on Walmart: 

ENHANCED CONTENT: 

Unfortunately at this time, the only visual content sellers can upload to their PDPs themselves are images. However, Walmart does allow sellers to go through support for assistance uploading ‘360-Spin’ images and videos which can be done through a Walmart hosting service. 

As far as other types of enhanced content, you will have to go through a pre-vetted third-party hosting provider. Additional types of enhanced content include: 

  • Premium Content –  Includes a high-quality image with a paragraph that describes the details and benefits of each feature.
  • Comparison Charts – Provides a visual representation of product features for multiple items side by side to help the consumer make a purchase decision. 
  • Interactive Images: Allows consumers to interact and explore key features of a product by clicking on certain points of the screen. 
  • File Attachments: Product manuals, fliers, or guides that provide the customer with in-depth information about the item. 

See the below chart showing the content type and Walmart approved hosting providers: 

Generating Product Reviews 

Product reviews are one of the leading factors in a consumer’s buying decision process and can be a key pillar in building consumer trust for a new product or brand. 

Similar to enhanced content, Walmart has partnered with a third-party service provider to create a program similar to Amazon’s ‘Vine’ service. Walmart’s review service, ‘Spark Reviewer’ was created in partnership with Bazaarvoice, a well-recognized company that syndicates user-generated content across eCommerce platforms. 

How does the ‘Spark’ program work?

  1. Select the products you want to generate reviews. These do not need to be new products; you can actually submit any product in your catalog to the program regardless of the current number of reviews or time online! This is a great benefit of the program and can help boost sales on an older product that has lost momentum. 
  2. After choosing your products Bazaarvoice will match your product with a consumer that is part of their ‘Spark’ program who can choose to receive the item in exchange for their honest feedback. 
  3. Once you begin receiving matches you are notified and told where to ship the product. You are responsible for the fulfillment and this is not done through Walmart.
  4. You should begin seeing reviews within 3 weeks of sending out your products! According to Bazaarvoice, 97% of users who receive a product write a review so you should see great success with this program.

This program does come at a price, including the product cost, shipping fees, and a per-unit fee based on the number of reviews you are looking to receive. While Amazon only allows you to send up to 30 units to consumers via its ‘Vine’ program, ‘Spark’ allows you to send over 150+ items if you choose to do so. 

If your brand has a D2C site that already has a considerable number of reviews for the products you wish to sell on Walmart.com, then there are also programs that can syndicate these existing reviews and show them on your Walmart product pages. 

At Direct Agents, we make sure to work with your brand every step of the way when launching a new product on Walmart and have partnerships with the key service providers they use to boost engagement. 

In our Walmart Series, we have now covered how brands can use organic techniques to ensure a smooth and successful launch on Walmart but another key aspect in driving conversions that is becoming ever more important is fast and free shipping! 

Be sure to keep an eye out for our next Walmart Growth Series blog. We will go over important details about Walmart Fulfillment Service (WFS) and provide some insight into third-party solutions for enhanced logistical capabilities. Historically Walmart has been a bit behind here when it comes to offering logistical services to sellers but with their Walmart Fulfillment Service (WFS) launching in 2020 and of course, some great third-party options, this is becoming easier to accomplish on the platform. 

In need of an incredible team of Walmart experts who will help guide you toward Marketplace success? Reach out to us at [email protected] today to chat. We love to share our expertise and make connections with new brands! 

– Emily Lease (Senior eCommerce Strategist)