Smart B2B Design: Strategy and User Experience Principles that Boost Sales. Presented at the Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition (IRCE) 2014 by Alex Schmelkin, CEO of Alexander Interactive, and Girisha Chandraraj, Head of Digital of United Stationers.

1. June 12, 2014
Smart B2B
Design:
Strategy and
Experience
Principles that
Boost Sales
Girisha Chandraraj
Alex Schmelkin

2. Hi, I’m Alex
Founder, CEO
Founded 2002
Independent
Manhattan
Transactional Expertise
IMA Top 10 Agency
End-to-end Ecommerce
Design & Development
Hi, I’m Girisha
Head of Digital
At United since 2013
Former Management Consultant
Chicago
B2B/B2C Digital and Commercial Strategy
Fortune 500
Leading Wholesaler of Business Essentials
Office, Janitorial, and Industrial Supplies

3. Preparing for B2B Site Design
B2B Experience Principles
Today’s
Topics

4. Preparing for
B2B Site Design

5. Before site design
comes commercial
strategy

6. Site strategy is a function of
your commercial strategyDrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Businesses that strictly sell to
resellers
!
Examples: Distributors (United
Stationers, Broder Bros,
Alphashirt)
Businesses that sell to
businesses and consumers
!
Examples: Amazon, Staples
Businesses that provide
services to other businesses
!
Examples: Consulting firms,
Agencies, Law Firms
Businesses that sell to
businesses that then sell to
consumers
!
Examples: Manufacturers (MSA,
Stihl), Distributors (Audi USA)
YesNo
Yes No

7. DrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Businesses that strictly sell to
resellers
!
Examples: Distributors (United
Stationers, Broder Bros,
Alphashirt)
Businesses that sell to
businesses and consumers
!
Examples: Amazon, Staples
Businesses that provide
services to other businesses
!
Examples: Consulting firms,
Agencies, Law Firms
Businesses that sell to
businesses that then sell to
consumers
!
Examples: Manufacturers (MSA,
Stihl), Distributors (Audi USA)
YesNo
Yes NoComplex B2B transactions
(quotes, holds, on account
ordering, split shipments, etc.)
Site strategy is a function of
your commercial strategy

8. DrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Businesses that strictly sell to
resellers
!
Examples: Distributors (United
Stationers, Broder Bros,
Alphashirt)
Businesses that sell to
businesses and consumers
!
Examples: Amazon, Staples
Businesses that provide
services to other businesses
!
Examples: Consulting firms,
Agencies, Law Firms
Businesses that sell to
businesses that then sell to
consumers
!
Examples: Manufacturers (MSA,
Stihl), Distributors (Audi USA)
YesNo
Yes NoProduct information for
businesses or consumers, lead
generation for businesses
Site strategy is a function of
your commercial strategy

9. DrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Businesses that strictly sell to
resellers
!
Examples: Distributors (United
Stationers, Broder Bros,
Alphashirt)
Businesses that sell to
businesses and consumers
!
Examples: Amazon, Staples
Businesses that provide
services to other businesses
!
Examples: Consulting firms,
Agencies, Law Firms
Businesses that sell to
businesses that then sell to
consumers
!
Examples: Manufacturers (MSA,
Stihl), Distributors (Audi USA)
YesNo
Yes No
B2C in B2B drag
Site strategy is a function of
your commercial strategy

10. DrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Businesses that strictly sell to
resellers
!
Examples: Distributors (United
Stationers, Broder Bros,
Alphashirt)
Businesses that sell to
businesses and consumers
!
Examples: Amazon, Staples
Businesses that provide
services to other businesses
!
Examples: Consulting firms,
Agencies, Law Firms
Businesses that sell to
businesses that then sell to
consumers
!
Examples: Manufacturers (MSA,
Stihl), Distributors (Audi USA)
YesNo
Yes No
Intellectual property,
lead generation
Site strategy is a function of
your commercial strategy

11. Process to prepare before designing a site
6. Determine
appropriate metrics
5. Plan your site
experience
4. Prepare for
Pricing
3. Determine your
online marketing
strategy
2. Deconstruct your
customer service
process
1. Deconstruct your
sales process

12. Deconstruct your
sales process

13. Source: UPS purchasing insights study
In the industrial space
Survey of 1,500 - 63% purchase
from their suppliers website and
over 2/3 prefer going to their
supplier website for information
The importance of a commercial site

14. Buying vs. Procurement

15. Importance of triggers in procurement
Visual Search Category
No Promotional
Banner
Featured
Products
Window
Limited
Assortment
Featured
Products
Window

16. Informational content to drive awareness

17. 50% of all tools utilized by
marketers to generate
leads are derived from the
company’s website
The importance of digital tools to generate leads
Source: IDG Enterprise 2013 Survey

18. Deconstruct your
customer service
process

19. • Multiple DCs
• Inventory Holds
• Bulk ordering
• Bulk Pricing / Quotes
• Drop Shipments
• Split Shipments
• On account vs. Credit card
• Returns
• Previous orders / frequent
orders / subscriptions
B2B Complexities - transactional sites

20. Determine your
online marketing
strategy

21. 57% of all B2B buying
decisions are made before
a person ever contacts a
company’s sales force
The importance of a B2B Informational site
Source: Half a bubble Out

22. Marketing budgets at B2B
companies expected to
rise by 6% in 2014
The importance of the site to drive traffic
Source: Forrester and BMA

23. 1.How will traffic be generated for
your site?
2.Is your salesforce responsible
for customer acquisition? Lead
Generation?
3.How much can you afford in
digital marketing?
4.Will your site be “open” or
“closed” and how will that
effect the experience?
5.Is your site aimed at conversion
or information?
Acquisition Related Questions
1.How will you use your digital tools
to drive customers back to your
site?
2.How can you drive assortment
awareness through a procurement
mindset?
3.How will customers respond to
traditional site promotions?
4.Will customers using smartphones
require different functionality?
5.What content is required beyond
product details to keep customers
coming back?
Retention Related Questions
Determine the role of the site

24. Prepare for pricing

25. DrivingAwareness
Driving Commerce/Transactions
Price differentiation based
on preferences, customer
size, channel rules, etc.
Price Transparency
Establishing the value
prior to the manual sales/
biz dev process
Focusing on retail/list
pricing, MAP
YesNo
Yes No
Price Transparency vs.
Price Opaqueness

26. Plan your site
experience

27. B2B Experience
Principles

28. Where are B2B
ecommerce sites
spending money
in 2014?

30. B2B Experience Principles
5. Test & Iterate4. Service Sells
3. It’s All in the Details2. Keep it Simple:
Products & Prices
1. Know Your User

31. Know Your User

32. B2B Users Are People Too!

33. But even if they are a
scary dinosaur…

34. Learn everything you can about them.
They’re your customer.
Commercial analysis
Formal personas
Mental models
User journeys
Hire an Agency
Surveys
1:1 sessions
Pilot group
Customer council
Do-it-yourself

35. Involve users as you design and build
Think
Check
Make
Gather
requirements
and invent
Design the
experience in
the browser
Validate with users

37. DROP YOUR SCREEN
RIGHT UP IN HERE

38. Paper
prototypes
help identify
content and
functionality.

40. Only 5 Participants are needed.

41. Mobile isn’t optional.

42. Prioritize for your users.

43. Prioritize for your users.

44. Keep it Simple:
Products & Prices

45. Fast access to
products and pricing
Priority #1

48. • search sahoy
• asdfhkjhasd
• asdfjkhasdf
• adsjfh’
Promintne
tseach

52. Prominent & predictive search

53. Show exactly what you sell in your nav!
? ? ?

54. Robust filtering

55. Shop by brand

56. It’s all in the Details

57. Great photography increases sales

59. Invest in 360s for key products

60. Videos demonstrate authority

61. Invest in specs and manuals

62. Show availability and shipping speed

63. • Auto-Forwarding Carousels
and Accordions Annoy Users
and Reduce Visibility
• Reason #1: Human eye
reacts to movement (and will
miss the important stuff)
• Reason #2: Too many
messages equals no
message
• Reason #3: Banner
blindness
Homepage
rotators don’t work
Source: JAKOB NIELSEN, Auto-Forwarding Carousels and
Accordions Annoy Users and Reduce Visibility

64. Create a consistent system
to establish familiarity
and remove the need to
relearn things

67. Focus on the
Transaction

68. Payment and order options.

70. Service Sells

75. Shipped
Shipped
Shipped
Shipped

77. Customer Service

89. Use your humans!

90. Test & Iterate

91. Monday–launch a promotion
Tuesday–monitor & test
Wednesday–deploy site-wide
Act like a retailer:

92. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

94. Microtransaction Analysis

95. Good ‘ole analytics

96. Key Takeaways

97. What type of B2B business are you?
Deconstruct your processes
Know your user
#1 Priority is finding products
Service sells
Key
Takeaways:

98. and if you think you can wait…

99. Thank you!
United Stationers
Head of Digital
GChandraraj@ussco.com
Girisha Chandraraj
Alexander Interactive (Ai)
Founder, CEO
as@alexanderinteractive.com
Alex Schmelkin
Come visit us at booth #2116
We’re
hiring!
We’re
hiring!