Content, E-Commerce, and the Future of Distribution

Transcription

1 December 4, 2014 Content, E-Commerce, and the Future of Distribution Jason Hein Codifyd.com

2 Introduction Principal consultant at Codifyd 17+ years experience in distribution 4.5 years at AmazonSupply Launched content team Senior vendor manager 13 years at McMaster-Carr Merchandising Project management Marketing

3 Codifyd Company Overview FOUNDED 1999 EUROPEAN OFFICE LONDON EMPLOYEES 100+ HEADQUARTERS CHICAGO GLOBAL CUSTOMER BASE MANUFACTURERS DISTRIBUTORS RETAILERS TYPICAL REVENUE: $1B+ SKU COUNT: 500K+ EXTENSIVE DOMAIN EXPERTISE 110+ Consultants Expertise in e-commerce, product MDM, new product introduction, enterprise search, omni-channel enablement, supplier onboarding and data quality/governance Onsite and offshore capabilities

4 Topics to Cover Disruption of e-commerce on B2B procurement Adding publishing to the distributor skill set Being a preeminent publisher: managing content as a business asset Case study examples

5 Disruption of E-Commerce on B2B Procurement TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR PRODUCT CONTENT

6 Disruption of E-Commerce on B2B Procurement What disruptive force is driving e-commerce in procurement? Perception: disruption comes from outsiders Disruption Google B2B = 222,000 results Disruption Amazon B2B = 241,000 results Disruption Alibaba B2B = 1,640,000 results Customer Customer Reality: entrants responding to customer demand The customer as the ultimate disruptive force Customer

7 Evolving Demographics of B2B Customers As technology evolves and becomes easier to use, its use is less generational Acquity annual survey: 500 B2B procurement professionals with spend >$100K per year Only 12.4% of buyers prefer an in-person meeting with a salesperson as their means to work with sales 68% of B2B buyers now purchase goods online (up from 57% in 2013) 94% of buyers conduct some form of online research before buying Generational differences now largely in mobile 55% of buyers aged use mobile phones for research (36% ages 45+) 35% of buyers have purchased via mobile (19% ages 45+) Acquity Group: 2014 State of B2B Procurement Study, October 2014

8 Website as Your Newest Salesperson User experience is the new sales training Website as a virtual sales person Effective salespeople require effective and ongoing training 83% of buyers use supplier websites when researching products online, but only 37% find supplier sites the most helpful channel for research What makes a site effective at sales? = Product Content 71% would purchase more products online if it were easier and more convenient to browse and buy from a supplier s website Acquity Group: 2014 State of B2B Procurement Study, October 2014

9 Adding Publishing to the Distributor Skill Set TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR PRODUCT CONTENT

10 Distributor of the Future Adding a new skill to drive success: publishing Distributor of the future is also a preeminent publisher of content Problem: content = everything Information presented to customers to promote incremental action Examples: Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes When a term means everything, it means nothing Distributors need a framework to analyze, design, and manage content

11 Understand the Information Presented What does the content describe to the customer? Product content presents three types of information used by customers: Differentiating Highlight the qualities that make products different from each other Storytelling Highlight key benefit(s) the customer gets when using of the product Transacting Capture the information needed to ship and store the products, ensuring customer expectations are met

12 Understand the Action the Content Should Promote What does the customer do with the information presented? Product content presents three types of information used by customers: Discovery Process of finding a product that may satisfy the customer s needs Conversion When the customer finds a product, incentivizing the customer to place the order Fulfillment Content that sets customer expectations for how the product will be shipped and received

13 Content Matrix Intersections of information and action classify and group similar content types Action Discovery Conversion Fulfillment Information Differentiating Storytelling Product attributes (navigation) Product images (primary) Product title/short description Search keywords Manufacturer part # Application Transacting N/A N/A Product attributes (display) Product images (secondary) CAD models/technical drawings Videos User guides/manuals (PDF) MSDS/spec sheets (PDF) Product copy (long descriptions) Feature bullets Pack quantity N/A Pack quantity Package type Shipping requirements Hazmat class

14 Being a Preeminent Publisher: Managing Content as Assets TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR PRODUCT CONTENT

15 Product Categorization Foundation of Content Strategy Have a place for every thing, and keep every thing in its proper place Charles A Goodrich How the distributor groups similar products Each group (node) is mutually exclusive Make it easy to choose next step Taxonomy design sets standards for user experience for the website Number of nodes is linked to the number of products offered

16 Attribute Schema The Discovery Tool Kit Data is not information, information is not knowledge, knowledge is not understanding, understanding is not wisdom. Clifford Stoll Attribute schema consist of three primary parts Differentiation attributes Discovery Conversion Attribute definitions Formatting and valid values for attributes

17 Rich Media Close the Deal for Conversion Content makes poor men rich; discontent makes rich men poor Benjamin Franklin Almost exclusively conversion content Requirements vary by product type Typically targeted application High-traffic, low-conversion SKUs Competitive differentiation

18 Case Studies: The Impact of Effective Content Strategy TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR PRODUCT CONTENT

19 Case Study #1 - Patterson Companies Inc. HEADQUARTERS ST. PAUL, MN PRODUCTS 280k CUSTOMERS 140k INDUSTRY INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION DENTAL SUPPLIES THE PROJECT THE RESULTS Improve the online navigation and search experience to avoid losing sales. Similar products scattered in multiple places on the website confused and frustrated customers. Ineffective search presented them with hundreds of search result pages. Feeling overwhelmed, customers often gave up after just a few clicks. Thirty-seven percent sales increase in the burs and diamonds categories THE SOLUTION Fifty percent reduction in time taken to find products CREATE ONE HOME FOR SIMILAR PRODUCTS If a group of products share the same characteristics, put them in the same place on the website. This removes doubt about where to find products and builds trust with customers. SEND CUSTOMERS TO THE SAME PLACE Customers who discover products through keyword search or the faceted navigation menu should land on the same webpage. This gives them a fast, consistent product findability experience. Hundreds of duplicate product categories removed for less long-term maintenance CREATE A FACETED SEARCH EXPERIENCE Browsing by product material or size lets customers quickly filter through thousands of products fast. They can easily narrow down their selection and enjoy a custom shopping experience this way. Less customer confusion about where to find products

20 Case Study #2 - RS Components HEADQUARTERS OXFORD, ENGLAND PRODUCTS 550k CUSTOMERS 1.6M INDUSTRY INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION: ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS THE PROJECT THE RESULTS Improve the online experience for its customers to increase web revenue. Incomplete product data and unorganized data models not only confused customers, they made it hard to quickly find and easily understand products. Frustrated, customers often abandoned their search and wandered to competitor websites. Twenty-five percent reduction in the overall cost of data ownership and maintenance THE SOLUTION CREATE AND DEFINE BEST PRACTICES Create a standardized, repeatable process for data, taxonomy, and schema that helps identify inaccuracies, waste, and technological shortcomings. APPLY PRINCIPLES COMPANY-WIDE Apply the project results to other enterprise-wide initiatives to form a permanent data governance policy, process, and team. Improvements in customer experience resulting in increased online revenue THINK LIKE THE CUSTOMER Name products the way customers normally search for them. Use search engine and keyword data to make quick and effective decisions like whether to call a product a trash can or waste bin. Improved data security by reducing the number of employees who can change product data from 150 to three

21 Case Study #3 - New Item Launch Program HEADQUARTERS USA PRODUCTS 1M CUSTOMERS 300k INDUSTRY INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION - METALWORKING THE PROJECT THE RESULTS Quickly bring new products to market to grow online sales. The lack of an efficient process for gathering and organizing content resulted in large volumes of complex content that was inconsistent and incomplete. It was taking several months to bring just a small number of new products to market. Multimillion-dollar incremental new product sales THE SOLUTION BUILD A FOUNDATION First decide what product attributes and values will be displayed online to customers. Perform rigorous product research, which leads to complete, robust content that drives conversion. CREATE RELATIONSHIPS Build a strategy for communicating with vendors and send a consistent message to them about the type, size, and format of content needed. BE CONSISTENT Display the same terminology online to customers. This makes online shopping easier and faster, and it has a positive impact on keyword and faceted search. Reduced time to market by eight weeks Introduced thirty thousand new products every three months and over two hundred thousand new products over two years

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