Skip Links

Web development & the multi-channel approach

Speed, search and living in a web world

Web users are becoming increasingly sophisticated and expect more from the websites they use. We continue to enhance our websites in order to provide design engineers with speed, an improved search function for our products and services, and ensure that the information is relevant and reliable.

Strategic goals for 2008

  • Roll-out a new web front end, globally.
  • Enhance our internationalisation strategy by introducing local language websites in markets around the world.
  • Support electronic design engineers by developing a one-stop shop, complete with relevant and necessary information.
  • Interface with suppliers and customers to develop new online tools.

Achievements in 2008

  • Achieved 33% growth in web sales during the year, and are now receiving an average of one web order every ten seconds in Europe.
  • Introduced five new local language websites, including Mandarin, Polish and Hungarian.
  • Launched a website for EDEs that features news and information relevant to their everyday jobs, including legislation, new products and industry news.
  • Created an Innovation Lab to ensure that Premier Farnell finds unique solutions targeted to our customers needs.

Priorities for 2009

  • Through our newly created Innovation Lab we will work with eCommerce users to gain a first hand insight into their experiences and needs, integrating solutions from their feedback.
  • Support our Knowledge Centres in India and investigate options for Knowledge Centres in other emerging markets.
  • Enhance the tools available to EDEs on our websites, ensuring they have the most relevant information in a timely manner and access to an online community of colleagues.
  • Continue to improve search engine marketing in the US market in order to propel the level of growth in web sales.

Highlights

Speed, service and searchability

A powerful web experience is essential to meet our customers’ needs. Premier Farnell has invested time and money to improve the speed, service and searchability of our websites, making this our most comprehensive channel.

Connecting the world

Electronics Design World further differentiates Premier Farnell in the Electronic Design Engineering market. Now a global website, EDWorld is connecting our customers and suppliers to one another through a huge range of features and content.

Innovation Lab

Through our newly developed Innovation Lab, Premier Farnell is gaining more insight into customer behaviours than ever before. With an initial focus on the eCommerce user experience, the Innovation Lab will ensure unique solutions and enhancements are integrated in our business, seamlessly.

Customers can now access our websites in as many as six local languages, making this the most comprehensive channel available to our customers, globally. From Mandarin to Czech, we are able to meet the needs of our customers in their local language.

The world in which we live is changing at a rapid pace. The web is becoming more important and is a preferred channel for many of our customers, especially the EDE sector. These engineers turn to the web before any other channel and appreciate the speed and searchability that our team has been so committed to improving.

The flexibility of the web as a primary channel has many benefits to the customer and us, as a company. From our perspective, the web has a lower cost to serve, and through applications like TeaLeaf and the creation of Innovation Lab, we are able to gain insight into customers’ web experiences.

TeaLeaf allows us to monitor each customer’s web visit. It is a tool used to gain insight into what customers are viewing, which search terms they use and at which point they leave the website. This capability allows us to add new products quickly and, based on reliable customer data, it gives us the knowledge to modify search terms in order to reflect what the customers are actually searching, and it allows us to gain more information about why a customer may not have completed their purchase.

Our newly created Innovation Lab will work alongside tools like TeaLeaf. The Innovation Lab will work directly with customers and suppliers, gaining increased understanding about what it is they would like our eCommerce channel to offer. Based on an open dialogue with EDE customers and their key suppliers, the Innovation Lab will engage with the web team to integrate unique solutions without disruption to regular business.

Insight is power and we are harnessing the insight we gain through the web to make each visit more powerful than the last.

When we first communicated our business agenda in 2006 we said we were targeting 50% of business via eCommerce channels, however upon seeing the rapid growth already in this area we have modified our target to 50-70% of business via eCommerce channels. The world is changing even faster than we expected and many of our European and East Asian operations have met the 50% threshold or are very close. In light of the progress already made against this target, we will not accept a target that is easily achievable; we will continue to push, continue to develop and continue to grow our web offering in line with customer need.

As the dawn of Web 3.0 approaches we will continue to develop our already leading edge websites.