INDUSTRIAL/COMMERCIAL

Companies that sell primarily to other businesses have a special set of challenges in dealing with their customers, since their customer relationships tend to be larger in scope and more complex than relationships with retail customers. As a result, it may be considerably more complex to implement an e-commerce system, or even to create a static website with detailed product information.

However, there are advantages industrial marketers enjoy as well -- it is often simpler and more productive for them to use outbound marketing to drive business than for a consumer advertiser with a large, unfocused market.

E-commerce requirements

A WebBusiness Connect^TM e-commerce website from The Computer Studio can be configured to include virtually all of the complexities typically encountered in implementing e-commerce for industrial marketers:

Pricing structure - When selling to industrial or commercial accounts, price schedules are often complex, and go significantly beyond a single price for each item. It is common to offer tiered pricing for different classes of accounts (i.e., dealers, high volume end users, small end users), volume discounts and occasionally, individually negotiated schedules for select customers.

Product specifications and configuration - Industrial buyers (particularly OEMs) typically require more detailed product specifications and customized configurations than consumers.

Repeat purchases - If your customer incorporates your product into his, or uses your product in his internal operations, you enjoy the ultimate dream of any organization, the cash cow. However, cash cows need feeding or they may go to another pasture. This requires, as a minimum, features to simplify reordering without worrying about complex specifications developed during the original ordering process.

Billing methods - On-line credit card payments are not adequate for many industrial purchases. Typically, accounts with established credit will buy on terms subject to a pre-established credit limit. New accounts will have to be able to apply for credit on-line, with an appropriate review and approval process. Support for COD deliveries and check in advance are also common in industrial markets.

Lead generation and marketing

While the purchasing requirements for many industrial marketers may be exceptionally complex, marketing and lead generation can often be accomplished with relative ease. Most industrial markets are easily defined by industry segment or interest area, and you can reach your prospects by advertising in specialized publications, using targeted postal mailings, or by exhibiting in specialized industry trade shows. Once a new account is captured, it may be profiled by industry, size range, product usage and other factors, with a focused account development program using a combination of e-mail, postal mail, telemarketing and/or sales rep contact.

The SalesPro^TM on-line sales and marketing system provides a toolset ideally suited for developing a program for acquiring and developing industrial accounts. SalesPro is structured around a customizable customer/prospect database that allows you to profile existing and prospective accounts across multiple dimensions, and to launch outbound marketing efforts based on the account intelligence stored within the database.

Our E-Commerce Suite includes an e-commerce website and SalesPro, with a common database that makes information captured from web visitors immediately available for sales/telemarketing follow-up, outbound lead generation and market analysis.