Diapers.com Launches Site For “The Other Baby”
Quidsi’s public relations people sent me an embargoed press release so, so long ago about the launch of its newest ecommerce site, Wag.com, that I forgot all about it until I fed my dogs this morning.
According to their press release (which was sent to me on June 23 and embargoed until yesterday), Wag.com is “a one-stop shop for everything pet-related. Along with Diapers.com, Soap.com and BeautyBar.com, the site will offer Quidsi’s legendary fast, free shipping, massive selection and award-winning customer service to busy people everywhere.” Yes, it’s Diapers.com for the “other baby” in the house.
The good news for Quidsi (which is owned by Amazon.com): Wag.com should be able to capture both loyal Diapers.com customers and fanatical pet owners and make a dent in the $50+ billion pet supplies industry. The bad news? More than one blogger/reporter has claimed Wag.com is the new Pets.com (although I haven’t seen Sock Puppet lurking around for a while).
I have a baby (see above). I have two dogs (see one of them above). My wife already buys some stuff from Diapers.com. You think that would make me/us loyal Wag.com buyers off the bat. Quidsi should have taken advantage of that when it teased Wag.com.
After I received Quidsi’s press release, I told my wife that Wag.com was coming soon. She told me she’d already heard of Wag.com. So I went to the site and saw the teaser, but no mention of its affiliation. But it had a link to its Facebook page which already had more that 1,500 people Like it. Had they used its Diapers.com branding power, it may have generated even more pre-launch interest.
Another thing that may go against Wag.com - smart shopping. My wife discovered she could find the same exact diapers sold as the Diapers.com brand at our local ShopRite store for less than what it costs to buy them at Diapers.com (There’s a tip for all you mommies and daddies to be!).
I did a quick check this morning on Wag.com and didn’t find the right food for my two basset hounds. I found the Purina One brand, which they eat, but not the same types. And they were in the 20-lb. bags, which is way too much for people who have little storage and never buy anything larger than the 8-lb. bag. If you’re in the market for those 20-lb. and above bags of dog food, great - let the UPS guy break his back for you!
But even if I did want dog food delivered to my door, I’d probably link up with my local Stop & Shop and sign up for the Peapod delivery service.
Don’t get me wrong - I think Quidsi put together a very solid new site. If it was in the 2011 MCM Awards competition, it would probably contend with the likes of eBags as Ecommerce Site of the Year. And at the least, its homepage would be one of the Top 15.
