The internet and ecommerce have been around for decades. And so much has been written about the keys for business success in the digital age that it could, well, fill the internet. In September, I had the privilege of moderating an online discussion with a panel of industry leaders in digital commerce. What I’d like to share are the simple, but profound, themes and observations that were shared by Brian Rowland, VP and GM Automotive for Walmart.com; Jon Sinclair, president of PartsGeek.com; and Todd Leimenstoll, president & CEO of the Auto-Wares Companies.
Walmart has received a lot of media coverage recently because of the restructuring of their ecommerce business and legacy brick and mortar business into a single omnichannel (their word) business. Previously, Walmart had essentially two of everything: two teams of merchants, two networks of distribution centers and two ways of serving their customers. As Rowland explained it, “The website is the front door to the store,” and customers are supported in any combination of online and offline shopping experiences they may choose. Vendor partners are sought who can contribute to assortment expansion and provide next-day or two-day service levels. ACES catalog data files are important to building out the fitment catalog of YMM parts categories. And brand owners are encouraged to take responsibility for their product content, regardless of whether they sell to Walmart directly or not because no one else can do a better job of representing the value and attributes of the product.
With ecommerce sales at Walmart up 97 percent in the second quarter, it’s hard to find any fault with their strategy. With responsibility for a wide assortment of product categories in automotive, tires and powersports, Rowland described the mission this way: “We want to be the premier destination for anything the customer wants to buy. We aim to shift to operate as a specialty retailer with the scale of a mass retailer.” With their current position as the No. 1 retailer in the world, built-in car care centers and a commitment to a “customer first” strategy, Walmart represents a huge opportunity for the automotive supply chain.
After becoming president at Parts Geek in January, Sinclair set out to dramatically expand the product assortment and identify new WD partners with large, unique SKU offerings. Sinclair made a point of explaining the importance of virtual inventory availability. “We want to sell 100 percent of the brand. Not only what a distributor carries in stock. So, a complete inventory feed of what is available for shipment from the brand helps increase total sales.”
Earlier in his career, Sinclair developed an ecommerce fulfillment and shipping management solution. So, it was no surprise to hear him explain that among the attributes he looks for in a strong fulfillment partner are a high degree of automation and systems integration. This leads to the capacity for high parcel volume with low errors and accurate inventory. Nothing can spoil a customer experience faster than taking an order for an out-of-stock item.
Parts Geeks looks for brands that can supply complete ACES (fitment catalog) and PIES (standard product content) data files. Sinclair explained that the majority of their visitors are on mobile devices and multiple product images and video are very important to telling the value story of a product without the need to read a lot of text.
With so much said about the attributes of a good WD partner, it was helpful to also hear directly from a respected WD executive. Todd Leimenstoll stressed the importance of two things in contributing to their success in digital commerce – high-quality data and seamless availability. It’s hard to imagine that in this day, product images and the associated product data cannot be fully linked together automatically. But Leimenstoll explained that Auto-Wares spends far too much time ensuring that the correct image is displayed with a product record. Another example Leimenstoll used was “product labels.” When a product is labeled as a “spin on lube filter” the chance of getting a hit on a search for “oil filter” is very low. He concluded that high-quality product data that followed industry standards and best practices contributed to increased sales and required less manipulation by distributors.
Leimenstoll described “seamless availability” as what is needed to meet the rising expectations of B2B and B2C customers online. Auto-Wares is constantly being compared to the last online shopping experience of their customers. And the most progressive and successful manufacturer/suppliers are those who provide full inventory availability to back up the substantial inventory the distributor carries in stock. With frequent inventory updates, Auto-Wares and their ecommerce partners are able to offer 100 percent of the products from a supplier by seamlessly blending the physical and the virtual inventory sources. Leimenstoll said, “Distributors who are supported by their manufacturers are seeing a 20 percent lift in online sales of those brands.”
Three themes emerged from all of the presentations in discussing the attributes of success in digital commerce: high-quality product data, including images and video, helps sell parts, and brand owners are encouraged to take ownership of their data online; virtual inventory, seamlessly combined with extensive and accurate in-stock inventory, offers 100 percent of a brand and delivers the online experience customers are looking for – infinite aisles. Finally, a customer-first strategy is demanded in this on-demand, real-time, interconnected world. There were no break throughs in the conversation – just affirmation of what is most important to focus on in digital commerce. Rowland said it best, regardless of where you are in the supply chain, the web is the front door to the store. Everyone should look at their customers’ experience from the customers’ point of view and gain a new perspective.
