Plieger

From family business to digital B2B frontrunner

A good house isn’t complete without good plumbing. In terms of product range, expertise and service, the Plieger Group is a leader in their industry. However, when it comes to digital maturity, they realized they still had plenty of steps to take.

To establish themselves as a digital standout in their industry, Plieger collaborated with DEPT® on a brand refresh, a brand new native app and a web shop for both Plieger and ThermoNoord.

In 2021, we will further focus on data-driven optimization of the various channels, performance marketing and potentially moving up the value chain.

Sanitary expert

In the Netherlands, Plieger Group supplies a range of more than 150,000 items to installers, plumbing companies, retailers and hardware stores, among others. Their sub-brand, ThermoNoord, focuses mainly on ventilation.

For this project, Plieger Group’s main goal was to revamp its digital presence with a full-fledged webshop.

“Our webshop was outdated, did not provide live stock information, did not work well on mobile or tablet and was not future-proof,” said Jeroen Heydendael, Manager of Marketing & eCommerce at Plieger, “It was high time for a change!”

Exploring

The user’s word

To gain an understanding of the company’s audience, we began by researching Plieger’s customers and their perception of the company. What are they missing? What could Plieger improve?

To get answers, we visited a number of Plieger Express locations and interviewed the installers. This gave us a better understanding of day-to-day operations, needs, and the company’s competitors.

Based on these interviews and conversations, we started working on the MVP.

“The interesting thing about this project is that the needs and online behavior of this customer group differs from the commerce norm,” explained Nathan Coppens, Innovation Manager at DEPT®.

“Therefore, it was very important to first conduct thorough user research among installers so that we could design an optimal online flow and experience for them.”

A unique webshop situation

For us, it was interesting to discover that Plieger Group’s webshop and app required different features compared to other B2B businesses.

Plieger’s customers are mostly installation companies, with internal and field service employees. Because these groups had two very different sets of needs, multiple shopping baskets for different projects would need to be managed under the same name in the webshop and app.

Furthermore, it became clear that the webshop’s search function was in need of improvement, mainly within the UX design. Users wanted to be able to search not only by product name, but also by item numbers, product features, and other technical jargon.

However, while the search functionality within the shop needed to become more businesslike, at the same time it was important to maintain the flow that customers are used to from B2C websites. To make this possible, we looked for a golden mean in the UX design.

If an installer is visiting a customer, for example, it is important that the product price is not visible to ensure that the focus is only on the product itself. At the same time, the customer does need to be able to see prices to understand how it fits into an overall quote. Furthermore, it is important for installation companies to be able to see purchase prices when they are shopping.

For our purposes, this meant we had to ensure each person logging into the Plieger shop was assigned appropriate rights and functionalities.

The Native app

By using React Native and Expo, we built a native iOS and an Android app for both Plieger and Thermonoord simultaneously using the same code base. This code base was directly linked to SAP as the ‘single source of truth’ for 4 native apps.

Every version of the app had the same useful features, including the creation of different permissions and payment options for each user profile as well as the ability to have products delivered or picked up.

Because the app also contained a very large product overview—with 12,000 products from as many as 500 brands—we also added a barcode scanner to make it easy to order new products from local retailers.

Het platform

We built the platform is built in SAP Commerce Cloud, using Hybris. Hybris allows users to build modular pages through Page Builder functionality. Additionally, we designed and built a separate component system that allows Plieger’s content managers to build their own pages.

The blocks we created gave Plieger the ability to design pages quickly within the brand’s guidelines with options for image placement, titles, rich text, colors, and alignment.

DEPT® & Plieger

In addition to our work together on the new shop and app, we also supported Plieger in its digital transition.

During our consultations, for example, we ensured the digital organization and processes we were using would align with the needs of various internal departments (such as IT, Finance and logistics). Going forward, the ultimate goal is to continue to develop the commerce team efficiently.

Besides further optimizing the shop and developing service features that “bind” installers to Plieger, this year we are also focusing on enriching product information and offering inspiring content.

“The new shop and app are a great first step in our digital transformation,” said Jeroen Heydendael, Manager of Marketing & eCommerce at Plieger. “We still have a long way to go, but DEPT® helped us very much in terms of UX, creativity and technology. We are moving forward quickly with next steps, such as data-driven services.”

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