What is Walmart? How to Sell on Walmart?

Walmart is a US-based retail chain. With the development of technology, Walmart, which has also started to operate in the field of e-commerce, allows all businesses meeting certain requirements to sell.

However, there are steps that businesses wishing to sell must follow. So, let's take a closer look at the details you need to know to sell on Walmart!

What is Walmart?

Walmart is an international retail chain founded in Arkansas in 1962 by Sam Walton. While initially operating only in the US, it has expanded to many countries around the world over time.

Walmart is known for its stores in many different formats, such as supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, and gas stations.

Walmart has a wide range of products, from electronics to clothing, from food products to pharmaceutical products, and also continues its e-commerce activities. Over the years, various policies and practices of the company on issues such as sustainability, community services, and employee rights have been subject to both appreciation and criticism.

However, Walmart continues to maintain its position as one of the largest players in the global retail sector.

Why Should You Sell on Walmart?

You should sell on Walmart because of its large customer base, trust, and continuous digital expansion. Why you should sell on Walmart can be generally explained by the following points:

• Walmart is a giant retail chain visited by millions of people worldwide.

• By selling on Walmart, you can deliver your products to a wide range of customers.

• Selling on the platform of a major brand like Walmart inspires trust in consumers.

• By selling on Walmart's online platform, you can reach a wide audience in the digital space as well as physical stores.

• Thanks to Walmart's advanced supply chain and logistics services, you can deliver your products to consumers faster and more effectively.

• Walmart offers various marketing and promotional opportunities for its sellers.

• Walmart provides sellers with valuable insights into consumers' shopping habits.

• Because Walmart operates in many countries, it offers the opportunity to sell your products in a global market.

What is Required to Sell on Walmart?

To sell on Walmart, you must have a seller account. Here are the steps you need to follow when creating a seller account to list your products on Walmart and access this massive customer base:

• Check eligibility criteria

• Create an account

• Complete the three-step setup process

1. Check eligibility criteria

Sellers planning to sell on the Walmart marketplace must meet the eligibility criteria set by the platform. The minimum eligibility criteria are:

• Business Tax ID or Business License Number (SSN is Not Accepted)

• Documents verifying your business name and address

• Marketplace or e-commerce history

• GTIN/UPC GS1 barcode compliant product catalog

• End-to-end fulfillment

Primarily, the seller is expected to have a legal business structure. Instead of individual sellers, registered and legally structured businesses are encouraged to be active on the platform. You are also required to have a valid tax identification number or EIN (Employer Identification Number).

To guarantee the quality and reliability of sellers' products, Walmart supports the sale of items of certain standards. In this context, it is important that the sold products have appropriate certificates or documentation.

Meeting the eligibility criteria is critical to maintaining customer trust on Walmart's platform and ensuring the quality of sellers. It is important to carefully review the criteria and ensure the necessary conditions are met before applying.

2. Create an Account

Businesses that want to participate as a seller on Walmart can create an account after checking the eligibility criteria. The information requested during account creation includes:

• Your first and last name

• Legal business name

• Business email

• Phone number belonging to the business (Mobile)

• A password of your choice

After completing the form, adding documents is usually requested. These include the business tax certificate, product certificates, or other business licenses.

3. Complete the three-step setup process

After creating your Walmart seller account, you are expected to complete your three-step setup process. The setup process includes business verification, payment settings, and shipping methods.

Business verification

After logging into the account you created, you can complete business verification by uploading the relevant documents via the system. The documents to be uploaded at this stage vary depending on the country where the business is located.

There are 3 different tax classifications accepted by Walmart. The accepted tax classifications can be explained as follows:

• W-9: The tax classification you should use if your company is established in the US and you have a US tax number.

• W-8ECI: You fall into this tax class if your company has a US tax number but the country of incorporation is not the US.

• W-8BEN-E: If your company's location of incorporation is not the US and you do not have a valid US tax number, you can benefit from the W-8BEN-E tax class.

In the W-8BEN-E tax classification, Turkey is one of the countries accepted by Walmart. That is, you do not need to open a company in the US to sell on Walmart.

However, there are some documents your business in Turkey must have, and you need to submit these documents to Walmart. The documents required by Walmart from sellers in Turkey are:

• Trade Registry Gazette or Certificate of Activity

• Tax Plate

• Utility bill (Electricity, water, etc.) or bank statement belonging to the business

At this stage, you must enter your information on the system exactly as it appears in the official documents. In addition, verifying the accuracy of information and documents helps you prevent potential issues that may arise later. Business verification usually takes from a few minutes to two business days.

Payment settings

Once your business is verified, you must register with one of the third-party payment processors accepted by Walmart. The payment processors supported by Walmart are:

• Payoneer

• Hyperwallet (Only for US sellers)

• PingPong

When you start operating as a new seller on the Walmart marketplace, you will experience a payment hold period to build up your selling history and credibility. This hold period varies depending on the seller's location and country.

For sellers operating in the US:

• A payment hold period of up to 14 days applies for each fulfilled order.

• This hold period continues for 90 days after the shipment of your first order and until you achieve a total of $7,500 in sales (GMV).

For international sellers:

• There is a maximum 21-day payment hold period for each shipped order.

• This hold period applies for 90 days from the shipment of your first order and until a total of $7,500 in sales (GMV) is made.

This policy is implemented to encourage sellers to build a reliable sales history on the platform and to increase buyer loyalty.

Shipping methods

After determining how you will receive payments from Walmart, you need to adjust your product shipping process. Seller Center is a central control point for all your logistics management, from product delivery to the return process.

You can easily configure your shipping settings through Walmart Shipping Templates, Marketplace API, or outer solution providers of your choice.

For product returns, you must first accept Walmart’s Return Shipping Service terms and define the address details of the facility you will use for return processes in the system.

If you need more detailed information or assistance with shipping settings, you can get help from the Shipping Templates section of the Walmart Seller Center.

If you want information about return processes and policies, you can review the Return Processing or Marketplace Returns Policy pages. Once you complete all these steps, you officially become a Walmart seller.

How to Sell on Walmart?

Once you create your seller account on Walmart and complete the relevant steps, you can start selling. The steps to follow at this point are:

• Product listing

• Pricing strategy

• Shipping and logistics

• Returns and customer service

• Product ratings and feedback

• Promotion and advertising

• Non-stop analysis and optimization

1. Product listing

Listing products on Walmart is the key step to presenting your products to potential buyers. When listing products, the product description must be written clearly, accurately, and in a way that ensures the customer has all the necessary information about the product.

Additionally, adding high-quality product images helps buyers get a clear idea of your product's actual appearance. A successful listing ensures that the product gets noticed on the platform and drives more sales.

2. Pricing strategy

Pricing strategy holds critical importance for every seller. While proper pricing increases sales, an incorrect strategy can lower sales and harm brand perception.

When selling on Walmart, researching the prices of similar products on the market should be your starting point. Setting a competitive price increases the likelihood of a buyer choosing your product.

However, when pricing, you should also take into account the product cost, logistics, taxes, and other expenses to set a price that preserves the profit margin.

3. Shipping and logistics

Managing your shipping and logistics processes effectively when selling on Walmart increases customer satisfaction, thereby reducing potential returns. Therefore, it is important to work with a reliable shipping company.

Fast and safe delivery increases customer loyalty. Offering various shipping options to customers provides flexibility and raises the likelihood of buying. Providing transparency at all stages of your logistics process is the most crucial point.

Providing shipping tracking info to customers allows them to track orders and manage their expectations regarding delivery. Inventory management is also an integral part of shipping and logistics.

Providing real-time stock information prevents the sale of out-of-stock items. Besides, you can improve your demand forecasts and adjust your stock levels accordingly to lower your costs.

4. Returns and customer service

An effective return and customer service process is vital to keeping customer satisfaction at the highest level when selling on Walmart. A clear and fair return policy helps you gain the customer's trust.

Providing customers with clear details about the return process and facilitating returns contributes to building a loyal customer base.

Customer service is not limited to post-purchase support. Providing rapid and effective responses to customers on issues such as product information, shipping status, or payment problems positively impacts your brand image.

5. Product ratings and feedback

One of the keys to succeeding as a seller on Walmart is how you respond to product reviews and customer feedback. Positive reviews provide potential customers with information about the quality of your products and the reliability of your service.

At the same time, negative reviews and criticism help you determine how you can improve your service or products. Responding to customer feedback quickly and constructively increases customer loyalty, lessening the potential impacts of negative comments.

By displaying a professional and solution-oriented approach to a negative review, you can show other customers how committed you are to resolving issues.

6. Promotion and advertising

Promotion and advertising strategies play a major role in increasing your sales on Walmart. You can encourage sales by offering attractive deals to customers with special discounts, coupons, and campaigns. 

Ads are an excellent tool to boost your products' visibility on the platform. By using advertising services like Walmart Ad Center, you can feature your products in specific categories or search results.

The most important factor to consider in your promotion and advertising strategies is knowing what your target audience wants and what offers can attract them.

In particular, seasonal promotions or discounts on special days grab customers' interest. However, it should not be forgotten that offering a quality product and service behind advertising and promotional activities guarantees the success of these strategies.

7. Non-stop analysis and optimization

It is highly important to carry out continuous analysis and optimization to ensure the sustainability of your success on Walmart. Walmart offers its sellers detailed sales reports, customer feedback, and traffic-derived data.

You can optimize your sales by analyzing the data provided to you. You can review the pricing of underperforming products, optimize product descriptions and images, or create more effective advertising campaigns.

Additionally, by analyzing the success of your best-selling products, you can also determine how to apply this success to other products.

What Are Walmart Commission Rates?

Walmart commission rates vary between 6% and 20% depending on the categories. The commission rates set by Walmart for some popular product categories are as follows:

• Clothing and accessories: 15%

• Automotive and motorsports: 12%

• Automotive electronics: 8% depending on the product type (e.g., dash cams, car speakers, etc.)

• Baby products: 8% for a total retail price of $10 or less, 15% for a total retail price of more than $10

• Beauty products: 8% for a total retail price of $10 or less, 15% for a total retail price of more than $10

• Books: 15%

• Camera and photo: 8%

• Cell phones: 8%

• Electronic accessories: 15% for a total retail price of up to $100, 8% for more than $100

Walmart has set various commission rates for products in many different categories, from kitchenware to home decor, from musical instruments to computers. Sellers should take these rates into account when deciding in which product category they will sell. Current commission rates can be accessed via Walmart Marketplace.