Background
One of the largest pool and spa distributors in the Eastern United States serves thousands of product dealers and pool contractors. They have a large number of sales reps out in the field meeting with new and existing customers daily. To facilitate the order process and increase sales, the company developed a sophisticated web portal that enables their dealers to place orders for pool products and parts — with real-time pricing and inventory details.
The Challenge
The online ordering system implemented last year worked well for placing and tracking orders. All of the company’s product content was available online in its vast dealer channel. However, the pool and spa distributor realized that it was missing out on a key buyer segment — the nearly 50% of consumers that purchase products through mobile applications. This also impacted the sales team that were tasked with selling products on the road.
The pool distributor quickly moved forward to build a mobile app that would be available across multiple platforms and linked with the distributor’s Epicor P21 ERP system. The mobile app also needed to be linked to their website using ‘B2B Seller’ — providing users with a seamless transition when switching between ordering from the online portal and the mobile app.
Solution
B2Sell proposed a turnkey solution which included the design, development and support of the mobile apps and integration services. B2Sell’s mobile app connects to the P21 ERP system to get product data and images, customer account information and order information all in real-time. The mobile app also enabled customers to:
Browse products by category and manufacturer
Search for products by item number, product description and keywords
View product images and content – including brochures and user manuals
Compare products with updated inventory, pricing and discounts
B2Sell’s mobile app was a true customer-friendly sales tool. Users can order and store products from multiple wish lists and reorder products from their cell phones and tablet PC’s. Every user with a created profile can see products specific to their to their accounts and obtain pricing discounts assigned to them.
Once products are placed in the cart and ordered through the mobile app, the purchase details are automatically routed to the pool distributor’s P21 system for fulfillment.
Result
By partnering with B2Sell, the pool and spa distributor has benefited from a strong mobile presence across multiple platforms. The company has seen an immediate and dramatic increase in sales and order volume.
In addition, the pool distributor has experienced improved efficiency in the order process – with the seamless integration with their back-office systems (P21), CRM and product catalogs. Customer loyalty is also better with a noticeable increase in repeat orders due to the user-friendly search and results display and fast check-out.
