Company:Sierra Online (Bellevue, Washington)
Position:e-Commerce Producer

Situation Analysis:

While Sierra was a computer gaming company and some of its external customers were among the savviest on the net, the web team had not released an e-commerce site in two years.  Brand Managers and the Marketing Department were outsourcing their e-commerce projects, therefore increasing company cost per project and/or campaign.

Research:

As a recently hired e-commerce Producer, I created a survey and distributed it to Brand Managers and the Marketing Department in order to identify their needs. In addition, selected brand managers and the Customer Service and Marketing Directors were interviewed to gather more in depth data regarding their needs and expectations.

Findings:

The department had been promising a new e-commerce site for two years.  Several hundred thousands of dollars and two years later, they continued to wait and had no hope for having an in-house solution to their problem.  Brand Managers needed to have their products featured correctly on the web in order to support channel sales and special promotions, in addition to increasing online sales.  This was important enough for them to be willing to pay a premium to outside vendors who could deliver a quality product on time.

Actions:

• Requirements: After reviewing the requests on the surveys, a list of requirements was created, including technical, design and marketing specifications.
• Reports: Easy to use online reports were requested from the database programmer so the brand managers and the marketing professionals could track sales and promotions and create their own reports based on their individual needs.
• Content:All existing content was revised and new processes were established to ensure that each product’s data was:
  -Accurate
  -Selling copy was engaging and attractive with no grammar or spelling mistakes
  -Up to date
  -Live as soon as the product hit the market
• Up-sells and cross sells: Through a database program, products were analyzed to include the most appropriate cross sells and up-sells alternatives on each product page.
• Promotions: Brand Managers now had a wealth of promotions available for their products.
• Manuals: Step by step manuals with images and instructions were created for all major processes, to ensure quality, including manuals on how to enter and update products & how to create promotions.

Results:

• A standing ovation: Within a couple of months of having the new team in place, the e-commerce site, along with the new reporting tools and the processes implemented to ensure a strong e-commerce presence for the company was presented to Brand Managers, the Marketing team and upper management.  In an unprecedented display of approval, the new e-commerce site was received with a standing ovation.

• Increase in Sales: Within the first year, e-commerce sales increased by $300,000 in an unprofitable year for the company.  For the first time, the company was able to take pre-sales online.

• Promotions: The e-commerce team created and/or supported all new product launches with e-promotions, in coordination with Brand Managers and the Database Marketing team.  Discounts offered on cereal boxes and other such promotions were also supported.

• Customer Service & Warehouse: Special tools were designed to tend to customer needs efficiently. A weekly meeting was established with these two departments to ensure a smooth ordering process for clients.

Additional web Projects

Company: Holsum of PR

As part of its 50^th anniversary celebration, Holsum launched a new website and an ad campaign. At the website, visitors find a collection of new and retro “You Tube” style Holsum commercials, information about the process of baking bread and cookies, delicious and unique recipes using Holsum products, important health articles, information on how Holsum contributes to the community and more.   Selected articles were also translated into English.

Holsum is Puerto Rico’s leading producer of packaged breads and pastries.  It’s products are distributed island wide to thousands of locations.  The company employs over 800 people.

Visit Holsum’s site.