Walmart DSV Program: The Ultimate Guide for Ecommerce Sellers

As an experienced ecommerce seller who has built a multi-million dollar Amazon FBA business, I‘ve been asked a lot recently about whether sellers should consider expanding to Walmart‘s marketplace.

Walmart‘s sheer size as the world‘s largest retailer makes them impossible to ignore – they racked up over $573 billion in revenue in 2021!

For major players looking to scale up, Walmart offers some interesting opportunities through its Drop Ship Vendor (DSV) program.

In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll share everything you need to know about selling on Walmart DSV as an established ecommerce seller, from the approval process to optimizing profitability.

An Introduction to Walmart‘s DSV Program

First, what exactly is Walmart‘s DSV program and how does it work?

In simple terms, it allows large sellers to ship inventory directly to Walmart customers without having to pre-stock items in Walmart warehouses.

As a DSV seller, you supply wholesale goods to Walmart upfront. When an order comes in on Walmart.com, you package and ship the item quickly under the Walmart brand.

This means Walmart avoids holding tons of inventory, while you gain access to their massive online reach without exorbitant fulfillment fees. It‘s a win-win!

Walmart handles the entire sales process from listing products to transaction processing. Crucially, they also cover all shipping costs instead of charging you fulfillment fees like Amazon FBA.

Over the past 3 years, Walmart has heavily invested in growing their ecommerce business and improving fulfillment. Their online sales grew a staggering 69% in 2021 – it‘s now a $64 billion chunk of revenue!

Clearly, they‘re a serious contender in digital retail and are aggressively expanding their marketplace offerings.

Qualifying for Walmart‘s Exclusive DSV Program

Competition to become an approved Walmart DSV seller is intense – they only want seasoned players who can meet their high standards.

You‘ll need to submit an extensive application outlining your business credentials, capabilities and inventory. Plan for a 1-2 month approval process as Walmart vets applicants thoroughly.

Here are the core criteria you‘ll need to qualify:

• Your own warehouse and fulfillment operation – Walmart requires physical warehouse space, not just 3PL logistics.

• High-volume inventory stocks – Ability to supply hundreds or thousands of units upfront.

• Proven high-throughput order fulfillment – Scale to ship 50+ orders a day without errors.

• End-to-end order management abilities – From getting the wholesale PO to shipping out units.

• Stellar customer service track record – Quick response times and issue resolution.

• Financial stability – Enough cash flow to meet Walmart‘s demands.

• Digital operations maturity – Comfort with EDI, inventory APIs, supply chain automation.

You‘ll also need to provide your business‘s tax IDs, insurance, 3-5 supplier references, and a DUNS number.

Walmart denial rates exceed 50%, so having an immaculate business record and top-tier fulfillment capabilities is key. Don‘t apply until you‘re ready to wow them!

My advice is to get rolling on Amazon first to build up expertise. With over $3 million in Amazon revenue and a 4.9-star seller rating, I had a much easier time getting Walmart‘s approval.

Gearing Up for Walmart DSV Onboarding

Receiving your approval email for the DSV program is the exciting first step! But there‘s still an extensive onboarding process before you can start selling.

Here‘s what you can expect as part of onboarding:

• Share additional business docs – insurance certificates, projected sales data, bank account info, etc.

• Set up product UPCs – Walmart has a specific UPC system to integrate into your listings.

• List your first products – Work with Walmart‘s team to build listings using their Item 360 data templates.

• Pass warehouse checks – Walmart reps will inspect your fulfillment operation and initial product stocks.

• Get trained on Walmart fulfillment – They‘ll educate you on packaging, shipping procedures, returns and more.

• Have inventory go "live" – You‘ll receive notice that your items are now active on Walmart with sale pricing set.

• Start fulfilling orders! – Orders will start rolling in quickly, so prep your team for a surge in activity.

Expect the entire ramp-up process to take 6-8 weeks. As an experienced DSV seller told me, "Don‘t underestimate how much time the setup will take."

My advice is to over-communicate with your Walmart rep to speed up approvals. Share inventory updates, ask questions, take notes – the more responsive you are, the quicker launch day arrives!

Optimizing Your Walmart DSV Listings

Walmart wants DSV items to fly off the shelves, so make sure you take the time to optimize each product listing.

Here are my top tips for creating listings that convert:

Laser-focus on product titles and bullet points. Frontload key details like brand, product name, colors, sizes, etc. Think like a shopper searching for your item.

Pick the ideal browse categories so your products get discovered. Check category sales volumes when possible.

Write detailed product descriptions clearly highlighting benefits and features. Add specs, dimensions, and details Walmart‘s catalog might lack.

Use high-quality product photos and videos so customers know exactly what they are buying. 8-12 images from all angles is ideal.

Suggest competitive pricing based on market data while leaving room for Walmart‘s markup. Offer bulk or exclusive discounts if you can.

Submit new listings early to beat catalog build deadlines for major sales like Black Friday or back-to-school season.

Optimize backend search keywords diligently to drive traffic from searches for your products and related terms.

There‘s both an art and a science to optimizing ecommerce listings. After spending over $500,000 on Amazon PPC ads, I have an experienced eye for creating listings that sell.

Always be testing – the more data you have on top-performing listings in your niche, the better you can optimize new products.

Is Selling on Walmart Marketplace DSV Profitable?

For high-volume sellers, the DSV program can become a very profitable sales channel. But you need the right fundamentals in place first.

Benefits of the DSV model:

• No advertising costs – Walmart drives site traffic so no need for PPC.

• Free access to Walmart‘s fulfillment – They pick up all shipping costs.

• Massive reach – Get your products seen by over 100M monthly visitors.

• Higher margins if you negotiate volume discounts on wholesale pricing.

• Insights into Walmart data – More visibility than selling on Marketplace.

However, profitability ultimately depends on your operational efficiency.

To make good margins as a DSV seller, you need:

• Extremely low fulfillment costs per order

• Quick, accurate order processing times

• Minimum returns and product damage

• Strong wholesale cost negotiations

Otherwise the fixed overhead of running your own warehouse will eat into your per unit revenue.

I‘d advise having your Amazon FBA business running smoothly first before adding Walmart volume – master one channel then expand.

Can You Sell on Both DSV & Walmart Marketplace?

Many advanced sellers use both DSV and Walmart Marketplace in parallel once established.

However, you cannot sell the exact same SKUs on DSV and Marketplace. Items must be unique to each segment.

Selling complementary products across the two programs allows larger brands to maximize sales on Walmart.

For example, a toy seller could offer their newest, hottest toys through the Marketplace program to test demand and control pricing.

Once sales volume and demand is proven, those top toys can then be produced in higher quantities for Walmart DSV distribution next holiday season.

DSV strengths like wholesale pricing and Walmart fulfillment work well for proven top-sellers, while Marketplace offers advantages for testing and rolling out new products.

Syncing inventory availability and coordinating launches across the platforms is critical to optimizing this dual-program seller strategy.

Key Takeaways: Selling on Walmart‘s DSV Program

Based on my experience building an eight-figure Amazon FBA business, here are my key recommendations if you‘re considering expanding into Walmart‘s DSV program:

• Get rolling on Amazon first to gain selling experience before attempting Walmart‘s strict DSV application.

• Only apply once you have proven order volumes. Walmart will expect 500+ shipments per day.

• Optimize listings aggressively – take advantage of every byte and pixel to boost conversions.

• Negotiate the best wholesale pricing through volume discounts and marketing support offers.

• Obsess over fast fulfillment times – invest in automation to keep costs low.

• Consider pairing with Marketplace to test products before scaling up volumes through DSV.

• Treat Walmart like Amazon‘s biggest rival – they‘re coming for the ecommerce crown!

Selling on Walmart requires dedication and top-tier operational skills. But for major players looking to expand, the DSV program offers powerful advantages if you can qualify.

I hope this insider guide has provided helpful perspective and inspiration as you grow your thriving ecommerce business! Let me know if you have any other questions.