We share the success story of Scandinavian and Columbia Sportswear and tell you how was their digital transformation in terms of Web Development and Evolutionary Support.
Scandinavian and Columbia Sportswear Case Study: Web Development and Evolutionary Support
The need for a technological upgrade of its sites
By the end of 2021, both brands specialized in clothing and outdoor products needed a technological upgrade to improve their sites. In the words of Ecommerce Manager, Ramiro Sciarra: “We needed to develop the brands’ sites, upgrade them in terms of technology, and also to give them We needed to develop the brands’ sites, upgrade them in terms of technology, and also give them advice, because we reached a point where we needed more tools, otherwise we would be stuck with obsolete technologies.“.
Why Known Online: VTEX experts, flexibility and teamwork
On how they came to Known Online’s agency, Ramiro recalled in the interview: “We met him through the Development of the Tua.cl VTEX Store. from GA.MA (which is the beauty branch of the group we belong to) who had already been working with the agency from Chile and brought it to Argentina. Although we knew them from Chile, we did not have a firm experience in Argentina, but we had no experience in Argentina. We had very good recommendations and we took the plunge. We also decided to change agency because the most tempting thing was that Known Online was working with VTEX and the previous one only worked with Magento and we wanted the upgrade to improve the sites. We also had communication problems or no support, something that does not happen with Known Online. One of the big plus points is that they appointed us a team, there are no intermediaries. Having weekly meetings and a designated team in charge was a big differential when choosing.”
At Known Online we know that no two companies are alike and we define the needs of each client with tailor-made proposals. Ramiro made reference to that agency flexibility: “They were very flexible because although both brands share the same catalog and site base, they are two independent websites so we quickly came up with solutions to create policies within the same account. Then certain modifications had to be made and they were very permeable to my ideas and very flexible because not always after signing a contract you can make this kind of changes and they were taken into account because they are always in favor of improving sites and development“.
Web Development and VTEX Evolutionary Support: How the agency solved your problem
Known Online developed the Scandinavian and Columbia Sportswear websites focusing on usability, speed and user experience. We proposed to work on the user experience in order to improve the conversion rate, as well as the quality of the traffic entering the site, testing functionalities, heat maps and processes to be able to sell more and better. Finally, the launch of the two sites took place on April 24, 2022 and was a success.
“It brought us a lot of stability in the sites and that generated a lot of confidence from customers Because before we had so many crashes and errors in the payment system, the customer was a little hesitant because of the scams that exist nowadays online. We always had problems at check out and that issue was overcome. Today we have a much more reliable site, the navigation and user experience has improved and is much easier to access and navigate, we have much clearer and more applicable filters that have had a significant impact on sales in the online channel. We also he also made good integrations at checkout which made it much simpler for us. because the customer does not have to decide whether to pay on one side or the other. The customer is only in charge of putting “pay“ and then VTEX works out internally where to do it, it is no longer a task for the customer to handle as it used to be confusing. While I say VTEX, it should be noted that there is a lot of Known Online work behind it because there are many tools that although they are native, if they are not well configured, they are not applied. It is to emphasize that there was a lot of customization work by the Development team. “, said the e-Commerce Manager.
2×1, the major milestone and the surprise of developing two sites at the same time
With a smile on his face, Ramiro remembers the day when the Known Online Development team gave him a big surprise: “At the beginning we had planned to develop only one site -the Scandinavian site- and adding Columbia Sportswear was a last-minute request because it was going to be launched later . And in one of the meetings where we were presented with the Scandinavian site, I was told that they were working on the Columbia Sportswear and we were introduced to both sites at the same time. In other words, used all of Scandinavian’s information, took it as their own and developed the Columbia site Sportswear. While we then had to make some logical changes, minimal modifications, they took on the task and presented me with two sites when in fact their task was to present one site.. I was pleasantly surprised because in the time they had dedicated to make only one site, they presented us with two and the truth is that it simplified things a lot because for us it meant going down two sites and working with half of the public.. Because while the brands coexist, Columbia’s public Sportswear is a different elite and we were going to lose a month and a half of revenue from that focus. Going out with both sites at the same time was very productive.“
Development and Evolutionary Support: How is the work methodology?
The Known Online team also advised Scandinavian and Columbia Sportwear in the acquisition of new technologies linked to VTEX in order to increase sales and automate the operation.
As for the work methodology he described it this way: “The aThe attention of the kids in terms of meetings in the evolutionary support is excellent. We have a designated team, we manage with Trello boards and weekly half-hour meetings where we clarify the doubts that arise and a whatsapp group for emergencies. We are very comfortable and we have excellent communication, it is very pleasant to work with them on a daily basis. They are also very proactive in terms of the requests we make. I ask him for something in terms of development and there is never a no, it is always a yes, we see when and how but we work it out.“
The customer above all else, what they value most about Known Online Agency.
The e-Commerce Manager said that they continue to choose to work with Known Online because. “They have an excellent treatment with the client, a lot of respect and they make us feel that as clients we are in first place. The communications we have are always in favor of the client, to improve, there is a continuous help that is noticeable and a lot of commitment. And the fact that they give you a team directly for your project seems ideal to me because you feel you belong, and you don’t have to go through all the areas. While I know that my evolutionary team works with many brands and other projects, they don’t bring it to my attention. We feel like they are just working for us. While the platform and technology they offer is excellent, the work of the team is what makes us belong. “.
