PVF Distributor eCommerce Success
Recognized nationally as a leader in the industry, First Supply was originally incorporated in 1897 and has evolved into the single source supplier that most Midwestern contractors rely on for plumbing, HVAC, municipal, waterworks, well & septic, builder PVF, and industrial supplies. They understood that their eCommerce and digital strategy would be paramount to continuing their legacy.
Challenge
- Improved Site Stability & Performance
- Increased eCommerce Sales
- OSR Adoption
- Enhanced Promotions
- Streamlined Credit Processing
- Better Order History Experience
- An improved connection to a new cloud-based ERP
- An implementation of a customer nurturing program
According to Staci Otradovec, eCommerce Manager at First Supply, "With our previous provider, we felt like we were just one company in a pool of other clients. We weren’t getting any attention or progress at the level that we wanted." She goes on to explain that "in order to move at the pace we expected, we felt a partner like Layer One could help."
Results
Layer One leveraged their deep experience in Optimizely B2B Configured Commerce to quickly get the ball rolling. Within the first 60 days, Layer One was able to stabilize the site and provide an improved connection to the cloud-based ERP. Over the months that followed, the remaining features were added to the site in a collaborative way further enhancing the vision of what each feature could be.
During the first couple of years, Layer One helped increase speed to market and provided a partnership that lead to double-digit ecommerce growth. Many new and innovative features were added to stimulate this growth, here is an example of just a few:
- Improved Product Data Quality Tools. This included product analysis to both enrich the data and improve search results. This led to the intial version of Layer One's Product Workbench.
- Cross Sell/Up Sell Implementation. Custom connection to First Supply's inriver PIM and use of the enhanced cross-sell/up-sell features.
- Integration with DQ Technologies Tracking and Fleet Management. Full support for delivery management back to the customer. This includes delivery date, pictures of delivery, and signature capture of receiving party.
- Custom Promotion Rules. Implementation included multiple free products or giveaways (based on purchase) as well as "raffle entry" engine.
- Support for Product End-of-Life (EOL). Support for products that can no longer be purchased. Implementation supports guiding the user to new part number
- Custom Order Import. Implementation of the ability to allow orders to be imported from Service Titan via an Excel spreadsheet. This tool is also capable of reading orders from other 3rd-party tools and ERPs.
Layer One continues to provide a strategic roadmap to further bring First Supply's vision to light and enable foresight into the short and long-term future. When Staci was asked if other PVF distributors should engage Layer One as a growth partner, she replied "Do it — that’s the best advice I could give. Obviously, do your research and compare companies, but also have full confidence in Layer One's vision and strategic thinking."
Thanks to Layer One, we’ve been able to work faster than we’ve ever worked in the past. Our website has a 9/10 rating, and we wouldn’t be where we are now without them. One of my favorite comments is a user saying, “This is like Christmas!”
