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Optimizing the Ecosystem: Agencies, System Integrators, Services

and Point Solution Vendors

Charles HunsingerSVP/CIO

Chris SmithDirector of Ecommerce

Optimizing the Ecosystem is Critical

2IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem

Communication Throughout

is Key



• Who Do You Want to Work With (and Why?)

• Discuss Partner Capabilities/Technology

• Contract, Contract, Contract

• The Team and the Plan ARE the Project

• Are You Ready to Launch?

• The Finish Line is Just the Beginning!

AGENDA

Who Do You Want to Work With (and Why)?

Your new partner can change your company - and your career

Due diligence is critical

Discuss among your network – find others who selected or who DIDN’T select (and why)

Use 3rd party validation for larger investments

Can you pilot without commitment?

5

Marry

IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem

Discuss Partner Capabilities/Technology

• How do they address security? Do they meet your security standards?

• What do they do with your (and your customers!) data?

• Where will the solution be hosted?

• What are the performance characteristics of the solution?

• Do you understand your performance budget for the project?

• What partners do they interact with or depend on to deliver to you in real time?

• E.g., cookie management can be an issue if too many downstream providers

IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem 6

SMB EnterpriseMid Market Large

$0 $30 MM $75 MM $200 MM $1 Billion

Customer Tiers Annual Online Revenue

SMB: $0 – 30 SMB, Mid-Market: $25 – 75 MM, Large $60 – 200 MM, Enterprise $200 MM +

IRCE 2018- Ecom Tech Workshop Ecommerce Platforms Considerations and Tactics 7

**Not a complete list**

ECP Landscape by Market Focus

© FitForCommerce

Contract, Contract, Contract

• Define uptime, SLAs/response times for online services

• How fast do you need support or developmentto respond?

• Does your partner win if you lose?

• Especially important on services: are you paying for an effort, or an outcome?

• When do you get money back if the service/product doesn’t succeed?

• What will be kept confidential?

• Under what conditions (and costs) can you leave the project or service early?


The Team and the Plan ARE the Project

• Are you bleeding edge, leading edge, or further back?

• Can your team match-up with the partner’s team?

• Don’t propose implementing in 4 weeks if that isn’t in the cards!

• You always want the partner’s ‘A’ team – ask for it and check their experience

• Ensure you have time to build/implement and adequately test

• Ensure you have the right project management approach for larger efforts


Are You Ready to Launch?

• Did you meet your performance budget?

What are your go-live criteria?

• Do agency personnel test their solutions?

• Do tech partners have a sandbox test area available for external technology?

• Will you A/B test on your site before general release?

Who will test the solution, and how?

• ‘It’s just a pixel on your site – its so simple!’

• Still be sure to test and know how to revert!

Implementing via tag manager –


The Finish Line is Just the Beginning!

• Look at the analytics

• How is the new solution being used?

• Is it generating the expected outcomes?

• You will learn a lot from the launch –

• Success generates new ideas

• Start planning next phase where appropriate!

• If the product/project isn’t working, be prepared to have tough discussions with your partner

• Review and complete any post-project tasks

• Migrate hosting, take on support internally, etc.

• For a successful effort, be ready to compliment your partner

• Be open to case studies, referrals and prospect discussions11IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem

AGENDA


• The New Member of Your Team

• What Are You Buying?

• It’s Never Just a Pixel

• Bad Scope = Bad Budget

• When It All Goes Wrong

The New Member of Your Team

IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the EcosystemIRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem 13

Partner Selection

Approach as diligently as adding a new employee to your team

DO Talk to References and your Network

DO Consider similar use cases from similar

companies

DO Understand the financial viability of the vendor

DO Evaluate others who have selected this partner

14

Food for Thought:

You are partnering with your vendor…

AND your vendor’s clients


Implementation Partners: Understanding the Difference


End-to-end ProvidersPhotography

Operations

Logistics

OMS

WMS

Go-to-Market plans

Digital AgencyCreative Design

Digital Marketing Support

Branding

SIUI/UX Design

Tech Implementation

Integrations

Customizations

Operational Readiness

Hosting

Ongoing Support

SMB EnterpriseMid Market Large

$0 $30 MM $75 MM $200 MM $1 Billion

Customer Tiers Annual Online Revenue

SMB: $0 – 30 SMB, Mid-Market: $25 – 75 MM, Large $60 – 200 MM, Enterprise $200 MM +

IRCE 2018- Ecom Tech Workshop Ecommerce Platforms Considerations and Tactics 16

**Not a complete list**

SI/Digital Agency Landscape by Market Focus

© FitForCommerce

What Are You Buying?

Understanding Vendor Roles

IRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the EcosystemIRCE 2018 Ecom Tech Workshop Optimizing the Ecosystem 17

Understanding Vendor Roles

Different types of vendors impact your team in a variety of ways

High Touch Agencies and System Integrators

Medium Touch Platforms and Services

Low Touch Simple Services and Point Solutions

18

Food for Thought:When consulting is part of the bundleStrong engagement unlocks the value


Eclectic Vendor Mix Supports the Ecosystem

• SI: DMI (formerly Knowledgepath)

• Marketing Agency: Elite

High Touch

• Web Platform: Oracle Commerce (ATG/Endeca)

• Oracle Marketing Cloud: Maxymiser

• IBM Watson Marketing Cloud: Tealeaf, SilverPop (ESP)

• CRM: Oracle CE

Medium Touch

• Affiliate Marketing: Impact Radius

• Ratings and Reviews: BazaarVoice

• Tax and Address: Vertex

• Payment: CyberSource, PayPal, Visa Checkout

Low Touch


It is NEVER “Just A Pixel”Bringing Reality Into the Sales Cycle


Bringing Reality Into the Sales Cycle

It is imperative to go beyond meeting the Sales team

DO Get commitments from tech and consulting teams

DO Meet members of your dedicated team

DO Ask about team projects, not just vendor projects

DO Test or trial before purchase, if practical

DO NOT Sign until after you have made this evaluation

21

Food for Thought:Even if a vendor keeps their promises your tech stack may pose challenges


Bad SCOPE = Bad Budget

SCOPE and SOW


Scope and SOW

Your budget projections are dependent on accurate SCOPEDO Have clear requirements and milestones

DO Build in time for fixing issues found in testing

DO Align the SOW milestones to your team’s capacity

DO Balance offshore savings with onshore leadership

DO NOT Mistake a “fixed budget” as protection from a bad SCOPE

23

Food for Thought:A third-party consultant can save time and money on large SCOPE projects


When It All Goes WrongVendor Agreements


Vendor Agreements

Make your peace with the service agreement

DO Expect clear SLAs, Response Times, Priority

Escalations

DO Include clear monetary penalties for failures

DO Balance lopsided language in agreements

DO Include “out clauses” for performance failures

25

Food for Thought:A successful partnership relationship is more cost-effective than walking away



Key Takeaways…

Partner relationships are an extension of your team. To get full value of that relationship, you need to put time and energy into developing it… and it starts DAY 1.

You will not be working with the sales reps once you start the project… get to know the people you will actually work with.

Without a clear project SCOPE, it is nearly impossible to accurately compare vendor bids.

A perfect agreement will not fix a bad partner. If you have to walk away, you can never get your lost time back.

Charles Hunsinger

SVP & CIO, Oriental Trading Company

Chris Smith

Director of Ecommerce, Big 5 Sporting Goods

For additional questions: [email protected]


THANK YOU!

optimizing the ecosystem - fitforcommerce › wp-content › uploads › 2018 › ... · your new...

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