Google Express coverage map.
The company known for being an internet search engine is leaping into a new arena in central Iowa with the expansion of Google Express.
The service started in eastern Iowa last month and now extends to Des Moines, Ames, Osceola, Mason City and dozens of other communities as far west as Atlantic and Carroll.
Google spokeswoman Rebecca Rutkoff says it’s an overnight delivery service “with lots of great national merchants to help people shop on their favorite stores online in a single place and get their goods overnight, the next day.”
The list of stores includes: Walgreens, Barnes & Noble, Toys”R”Us, Whole Foods, Staples and a dozen more. Rutkoff thinks the service will be popular with Iowans.
“People love having their favorite products from their favorite stores delivered the very next day and merchants love finding new customers and extending their reach beyond their typical geographic reach,” Rutkoff says. “People use it for a variety of things. If you’re a busy mom who has to suddenly get snacks for the soccer game, you can go online and get that from CostCo and have it delivered the very next day.”
The company is banking on people being willing to pay a little more for the immediacy of having next-day delivery. “You can sign up for an unlimited delivery membership for $95 a year or you can do an a la carte delivery for $4.99 per store,” Rutkoff says. “There’s also some three-month trials available for new members. Go to Google Express and find out all the information about all the different options.”
Rutkoff says they hope to go statewide with the service soon. While there were rumors months ago that drones might eventually be employed to fly packages to our front doors, Rutkoff assures, this service will be exclusively humans driving and delivering via traditional motor vehicles.