Global Multi-Brand Sitecore DXP
Nidec is a global manufacturer of recognized brands like U.S. MOTORS, Leroy-Somer, Control Techniques, and Kato Engineering. Part of the company’s growth strategy involves acquiring powerful brands like these. But this approach also requires onboarding an ever-expanding line to a single web platform.
Challenge
Layer One helped build and implement a multi-brand, multi-domain Sitecore Experience Platform (XP). Layer One responded with a solution enabling Nidec to onboard multiple brands efficiently—with onboarding times now taking as few as six weeks. More than that, the new Sitecore XP has generated consistent growth in all marketing metrics.
Scott Garrett, Director of Global Digital Customer Engagement, was tasked with creating a unified web platform. He joined the company on the heels of a major acquisitions push. It was an exciting time for Nidec, says Scott, but the rapid expansion also created a number of challenges:
Combining standalone websites into a single marketing platform. “We had to contend with many standalone branded websites, many of which were dated, self-bandaged, or just static. There was no easy way to update them. On top of that, the sites didn’t reflect the Nidec brand,” recalls Scott.
Maintaining distinct sub-brands under the Nidec umbrella. "Nidec understands brand importance. “We want acquired brands to keep their identity. That’s why we needed a digital marketing platform that was both flexible enough to meet the needs of different brands but also presented a common look and feel that said ‘This is Nidec.’”
Identifying and developing modules that all the brands would use. The business units for each of these brands would be sharing the cost for a new platform, explains Scott. “Naturally, there was going to be some arm-wrestling when it came to who gets what. We needed a way to establish tools that most if not all the brands would want and would really use.”
Results
Examples include:
- A distributor locator that makes it easy for end users to find a local distributor to service their requirements
- Content templates that convey the Nidec brand yet still allow flexibility for each brand’s identity
- An automation tool that routes web queries to the proper salespeople
Thanks to a great-performing Sitecore XP, Scott says Nidec has enjoyed results like these:
A cohesive environment with 14 websites onboarded (and counting). “To think of all those standalone websites we had when we started compared to now, it’s amazing,” says Scott. Nidec has more brands to bring on, but with the umbrella platform in place, Scott says it’s a relatively smooth process for different brands to insert their content. “They can still express their own brand uniqueness, but the platform creates a cohesive site.” In fact, the process continues to improve, with onboarding times now taking around six weeks.
Growth across all metrics. Not only does Nidec now have greater visibility of web visitor metrics—they’re experiencing vast improvements in those metrics. “We’re seeing definite continuous growth of traffic, inquiries coming in, improvement in the quality of the inquiries, info downloads. Every marketing metric that we’ve got continues to grow.” And according to Scott, the increases extend to sales as well. “The number of visits to our location distributor is huge. And we know that’s driving sales.”
Faster customer-response times faster. People today have less tolerance for waiting, says Scott. “With the new platform, we’re now able to respond much faster. When a web inquiry comes in, it automatically gets routed to the proper salespeople, and they're following up within minutes.”
There are lots of web developers out there. But we needed way more than that. What we were looking for was a partner who really understood what it meant to build a B2B marketing platform.
