(or how to be prepared for the economic recovery)
Amongst the first consequences of the Covid-19 crisis, on an individual level, is already the de facto obligation to slow down, to take time to reflect, to reconnect …
We, already, see the results of this crisis and its slowdowns, on the environment: less polluted air in China, clearer waters in Venice, etc …
We can also say that it will impact our buying behavior.
We will pay more and more attention to the origin of the products we buy, the way they are manufactured, transported, under what conditions they are sold, etc …
Another impact, already demonstrated, is the rise of e-commerce and the role of the store.
These last 2 points highlight the fact that we will seek, first of all on the web, more and more accurate, trustable, precise information about the products before checking in store the coherence and conformity of the physical product with the promise of the web.
This first point of touch, on the web between the brand and the buyer and which corresponds to the second stage of the purchasing journey in the below image, is vital for a great customer experience.
Consistent, rich and complete product information allows:
- To answer buyer’s question and reassure him/her;
- To build and consolidate trust between the brand and the buyer;
- Increase the online or offline conversion rate.
Poor contact between the brand and its potential buyer will result in:
- Loss of purchase and turnover;
- Loss of trust in brands;
- Increased investments to restore the bond of trust.
The health crisis we are going through will not last. We should expect a real recovery, hopefully before end 2020
(I invite you to read, it’s in french, the article from the Swiss newspaper Le Temps : https://www.letemps.ch/economie/epidemies-foudroient-leconomie-briser
So Why not take the opportunity of this time to ask questions about the content and product content delivered to customers:
- Are the labels produced explicit?
- Are my photos and other videos contextual both to the tool used for viewing and at the time of viewing?
- Is additional information (techniques, manufacturing conditions, usage conditions, recipes, etc.) easily accessible and available?
- Is my data consistent across all channels / sites?
- Are customer comments clearly displayed?
- Etc…
How to prepare for this recovery?
Organizing the product pages on the web and the various proprietary or customer websites, ensuring the consistency of the content and the information delivered require preparation and investment.
Ensuring a successful presence on the web involves working on 3 axes: processes, organization and IT solution.
The processes:
You need to review your company processes and ways of working for managing and publishing product data. It is not a question of duplicating what already exists, or keeping Excel files, or copy / paste data from a file to a system etc … or even requesting the systems to generate new files.
It’s about transforming the way you work, your exchange and share data, making it available to internal / external customers in a timely manner.
And to devote this time saved time to monitore, analyze and transforme your business.
The organization
New processes and ways of doing things cannot be implemented without real support from company top management.
A committee sould be able to ensure the evolution of the organization, to implement new data quality rules that will impacting your processes and ensure that the information is kept consistent.
Non-qualitative data has a cost: lost time searching for information, products stopped at customs, rjected ones by the customer, etc. For each non-quality, a cost can be calculated. And usually, top managers are sensitive (and especially in these times) to these hidden costs.
Correcting them requires a pragmatical step by step approach : rising awareness, process modification, correction, etc.
Hence the importance of gradually establishing this governance that will guarantee and perpetuate the quality of the data.
The solution
An IT solution that is integrate easily into the legacy systems, based to the principle of “adopt and not adapt”.
Implementing a product data management solution is structuring for the company. This impacts the entire company and not just a department, department or subsidiary.
Anticipate ! Take the lead Now!!
A good organization and product master data management will ensure a good ROI
- By improving internal efficiency
- By ensuring the rise of the turnover
So
BE READY AND MEET YOUR CUSTOMER’S EXPECTATION WHEN IT WILL BE THE TIME
arounData Team is available to exchange with you and understand your needs
Feel free to email us (info@aroundata.com) and require our expertise
Meanwhile, stay safe and in good health.