OCM's FAQ Library gives Walmart and Sam's Club suppliers direct access to expert guidance on compliance, reporting, content, logistics, and more.
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Everything You Want to Know About Working with OCM
Most brokers split their attention across dozens of retailers. OCM is different, we work exclusively with Walmart and Sam's Club, and have since 1993. That singular focus means our team understands the systems, processes, and people inside these retailers better than any generalist broker ever could. We don't just report data, we analyze it, act on it, and stay ahead of changes so you don't have to.
Absolutely. Sam's Club is half of what we do. From MADRID support and member pricing strategy to content and compliance, our team has deep experience navigating the Sam's Club supplier ecosystem alongside Walmart. If you sell at both, or want to, we've got you covered.
Simple! just reach out through our Let's Connect page and tell us a little about your business. We'll set up a conversation to learn where you are, where you want to go, and whether OCM is the right fit. There's no pressure, just a straightforward conversation with people who know Walmart inside and out.
We work with clients on a contract basis tailored to their needs. The best way to find out what makes sense for your situation is to connect with us directly, we're happy to walk you through our service plans and find an arrangement that works for your business.
That's actually one of the most common reasons suppliers come to us. Whether you're dealing with OTIF penalties, declining sales, content issues, chargebacks, or just feeling like you don't have the right support, we've seen it before and we know how to fix it. We'll assess where things stand and build a plan to get your business back on track.
Your Walmart Supplier Launch Guide
To become a Walmart supplier you need to apply through Walmart's Supplier One portal. The process includes submitting your company information, product details, and compliance documentation. It can take several weeks to get approved and having an experienced broker like OCM in your corner can significantly speed up the process and help you avoid common mistakes.
Retail Link is Walmart's proprietary data platform where suppliers access sales reports, inventory data, purchase orders, and more. Yes, you absolutely need it. It's the hub of your entire Walmart business and understanding how to use it effectively is critical to your success as a supplier.
A ship point is a registered location in Walmart's system that tells Walmart where your product ships from. Without an active ship point, Walmart cannot generate purchase orders for your items. Setting this up correctly from day one is one of the first things OCM tackles for new suppliers.
EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is how Walmart sends and receives purchase orders, invoices, and shipping confirmations electronically. You must have EDI capability to do business with Walmart. Options range from third-party EDI providers to free solutions like WebEDI through Retail Link for smaller suppliers.
It varies depending on how quickly your setup steps are completed, item creation, ship point, EDI, and case label compliance all need to be in place first. With everything in order, suppliers typically see their first orders within a few weeks of launch. OCM helps compress that timeline by managing all the moving pieces simultaneously.
Making Sense of Your Walmart Data
At minimum you should be reviewing your weekly sales report, inventory pipeline, OTIF scorecard, and in-stock levels. Depending on your business, you may also want to monitor forecast accuracy, on-shelf availability, and Walmart Connect performance. OCM delivers customized weekly reporting packages so you always know where your business stands.
Scintilla is Walmart's newer analytics platform that provides more advanced data visualization and reporting capabilities than traditional Retail Link. It's particularly useful for deeper sales trend analysis and category insights. OCM helps suppliers navigate both platforms and pulls the most actionable data from each.
You can monitor your inventory pipeline report in Scintilla to see how many weeks of supply you have on hand at distribution centers and stores. OCM tracks this weekly for clients and flags any items showing low inventory so we can work with replenishment to get orders placed before you go out of stock.
Omnichannel reporting looks at your performance across all Walmart selling channels: in-store, Walmart.com, pickup, and delivery. Understanding how your product performs across each channel helps you make smarter decisions about inventory, pricing, and content strategy.
Walmart's replenishment system generates order forecasts based on sales trends, seasonality, and inventory levels. You can track forecast accuracy through Retail Link and compare it against actual orders received. OCM helps suppliers analyze forecast data and work with Walmart's replenishment team to improve accuracy and avoid over or under ordering.
Getting Your Products Seen on Walmart.com
A content score measures how complete and optimized your product listing is on Walmart.com, including title, description, images, attributes, and more. A higher content score improves your search ranking and conversion rate. Walmart also uses content scores to determine eligibility for certain programs and promotions.
Walmart recommends a minimum of four images per item: a hero image, lifestyle shot, detail/feature image, and back of pack or ingredient shot. Higher image counts generally improve content scores. OCM helps suppliers source, optimize, and upload images that meet Walmart's technical requirements.
Walmart Connect is Walmart's advertising platform similar to Amazon Ads. It allows suppliers to run sponsored product campaigns that increase visibility in Walmart's search results and on product pages. If you're selling on Walmart.com, advertising is increasingly important to stay competitive, especially in crowded categories.
There are several reasons an item might not be visible on Walmart.com, it could be suppressed due to a low content score, missing attributes, a pricing issue, or an item status problem in the system. OCM audits item listings regularly to catch and resolve these issues before they impact your sales.
Your primary image is the main hero shot customers see in search results, it must be on a white background and meet specific size requirements. Secondary images show up in the image carousel on the product detail page and can include lifestyle shots, infographics, and detail images. Both are important for driving conversion.
Navigate Walmart's Compliance Requirements
OTIF stands for On Time and In Full, it measures whether your shipments arrive at Walmart's distribution centers on the right date and with the correct quantity. Walmart calculates your OTIF score as a percentage and charges fines for shipments that fall below their compliance threshold. Maintaining a strong OTIF score is critical to your business health at Walmart.
An ASN (Advanced Shipping Notice) is an electronic notification sent to Walmart before your shipment arrives at their distribution center. It must be accurate and submitted within Walmart's required timeframe. Errors or late ASNs can result in chargebacks. OCM helps suppliers understand ASN requirements and set up processes to ensure compliance.
SQEP (Supplier Quality Excellence Program) is Walmart's scorecard for measuring supplier performance across multiple compliance metrics. A low SQEP score can affect your relationship with Walmart buyers and lead to fines. OCM monitors your SQEP score regularly, identifies areas of weakness, and builds action plans to improve your performance.
GS1-128 is the barcode standard Walmart requires on all shipping cartons. It encodes key information like item number, quantity, and shipment details that Walmart's distribution centers scan upon receipt. Non-compliant labels are one of the most common causes of receiving chargebacks. OCM helps suppliers verify their labels meet Walmart's exact specifications.
WFS is Walmart's fulfillment program similar to Amazon FBA, you send your inventory to Walmart's fulfillment centers and they handle storage, picking, packing, and shipping directly to customers. It can improve your Walmart.com delivery speed and search ranking. OCM helps suppliers evaluate whether WFS makes sense for their business and navigate the onboarding process.
Understanding Walmart Fines & How to Fight Back
A chargeback is a penalty Walmart issues for a specific compliance violation, like a late shipment, incorrect label, or missing ASN. A deduction is a broader term for any amount Walmart withholds from your invoice payment, which can include chargebacks, pricing discrepancies, or shortage claims. Both directly impact your bottom line and should be monitored closely.
You can dispute chargebacks through Walmart's Deduction Management system in Retail Link. You'll need to provide supporting documentation like proof of on-time delivery or correct labeling — to back up your dispute. The process can be time consuming and complex, which is why having OCM manage your deductions ensures disputes are filed correctly and followed up on consistently.
The most frequent causes of Walmart fines include late or short shipments (OTIF violations), missing or incorrect ASNs, non-compliant GS1-128 labels, and purchase order accuracy issues. Many of these are avoidable with the right processes in place. OCM works proactively with clients to eliminate the root causes before fines occur.
Walmart typically allows suppliers a limited window to dispute deductions — often around 30 to 60 days from the date the deduction was taken. Missing that window means you forfeit your right to dispute. OCM monitors deductions weekly so nothing slips through the cracks and disputes are filed well within Walmart's deadlines.
Yes, in many cases invalid deductions can be recovered even if they've been sitting unaddressed for a while, depending on the type and age of the deduction. OCM has helped clients recover significant amounts through systematic deduction audits. The key is having someone who knows the process and follows through consistently until resolution.