Electronic Retailer - June 2011 - 45

ging an Order from Start to Finish
New technology helps agencies collect data that leads to successful campaigns and happy customers

BY JACQUELINE RENFROW process run smoothly to ensure the customer receives his or her order in a timely manor. Technology plays a large role in managing this process, and most agencies have a one-ofa-kind system for collecting the necessary information from customers and moving the product through the entire order. GSI Commerce, a provider of e-commerce and interactive marketing services for the world’s premier brands and retailers, is no stranger to order-management systems. The company plays a vital role for the consumer from the moment an order is received until it is shipped. The company simultaneously works with the client or retailer by providing aggregated data from all sources. GSI collects order information from several web stores or call centers – even brick-and-mortar stores – and then provides the client with the best view of that information. Clients then use this data to spot the strengths and weaknesses in a campaign and make adjustments accordingly. OrderMotion, a direct-to-consumer campaign and ordermanagement platform company that serves the unique needs of direct response and e-commerce businesses with web-based technology, also markets and sells an order-management solution for end-to-end processing. The company’s technology handles all aspects of processing an order and includes tools to turn new customers into highly profitable repeat buyers. The agency’s system includes a powerful media tracking technology called MediaMotion, which was designed specifically for the DRTV marketer. It tracks the customer order through the cycle and allocates revenue back to the appropriate media station, 45

Anything that a retailer can do to simplify the shopping experience – online or off – can increase customer satisfaction. And as all retailers know, customer satisfaction is directly related to sales. In the age of time-pressed audiences, it’s the job of retailers and the marketing agencies that work with them to find a way to meet customer demands quickly and efficiently to drive repeat business. “The vendor must tailor each shopping experience so that a client can create a more loyal customer base that brings in both short- and long-term revenue,” says Rob Friedman, executive vice president of Digital Element. But once a purchase is made, it is just the beginning for the agencies that are processing the orders. Next, all of the customer’s information must be collected, analyzed and shared with the retailer to help improve upon the product, the offer and the marketing campaign. Plus, the data collected – starting from the point of purchase through when the customer receives the product – needs to be managed to avoid bumps along the way. Electronic Retailer spoke with several agencies that manage orders to find out what technology they are using today to streamline this process for the client and the consumer, as well as what information they are collecting and how they report the results to their clients.

Taking Charge
When it comes to managing customer orders, direct response marketers need to have a system in place that will make the

June 2011 | electronicRETAILER

Electronic Retailer - June 2011

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