GROUPE E
New Site, First E-Shop
Groupe E, a leading Swiss energy company, tasked WAX Interactive, SQLI Switzerland's digital agency, with modernizing its digital presence.
While Groupe E's 6 companies each have their own website; the messages and content are sometimes inconsistent. The overhaul had two aims: recreate a genuine shared digital platform for the companies, which includes a pragmatic charter and pertinent ergonomics, in order to combine all the services on a single website.
Alongside this, the company launched its first e-commerce site, which has had to reference several hundred products (from the Groupe E Plus assortment). Accordingly, WAX Interactive Switzerland has been assisting Groupe E for the last year with the UX, design, front- and back-office development, SEO and Analytics aspects, with the aim of implementing a dual Drupal 8 (corporate site) and Prestashop (e-shop) solution.
Bringing together 6 entities with different targets
"Our site was last overhauled about 6 years ago. Additionally, each of our brands (Groupe E, Groupe E Celsius, Groupe E Connect, Groupe E Entretec, Groupe E Greenwatt, and Groupe E Plus) has its own website. The various sites didn't have a global, concerted approach. So, we needed to take a fresh look at our web presence to increase clarity and homogeneity with regards to our domestic and business customers", explains Gilles Allemann, Groupe E Marketing Manager.
New features have been added: detailed product data sheets adapted for each target, a solar panel configurator, a Groupe E reference directory and even a dynamic Jobs page.
During this overhaul, the content was changed, with the aim of enabling Groupe E to offer advice on solutions for both individual and business customers. The site provides lots of advice, for instance, on how to extend the lifespan of household electrical appliances.
In terms of technology, we chose the Drupal 8 solution, which is more modern than the Drupal 6 version used so far. "The Drupal 8 training that WAX Interactive Switzerland's teams gave us, in addition to the user guide provided, enabled us to be up and running with the tool in a blink of the eye", adds Gilles Allemann.
Providing individual and business clients with the same experience.
"Having met with WAX Interactive Switzerland's experts, their skills and expertise convinced us. The Marketing consultants proposed us a genuine digital strategy; not just a website and an e-shop", adds Grégory Rossier, Groupe E Project Manager.
"The User Experience aspect was also central to the requirements we needed to meet. This new website needed to have a clear and intuitive structure, enabling visitors to immediately find the information they're looking for", concludes Gilles Allemann.
To meet client expectations, the UX consultants focused on an approach based on needs, in addition to the products/services on the site. Objective: building up Groupe E's image as an accessible energy trend-setter, providing content understandable by all.
“An e-shop to meet client requirements”
More and more clients look for information on the internet before buying a product in-store: they compare features, read consumer opinions, etc. "Creating an e-shop was the next logical step", says Grégory Rossier.
"Points of sale are generally very popular with a particular clientele. However, the online sales platform opens up to a broader, younger target", explains Gilles Allemann.
"We have more than 600 products to index on our e-shop, without counting colour options, and want to be able to show stock levels in real time", explains Marc Montandon, Groupe E Plus Marketing Manager. He underlinesthat: "The principle of an e-shop as a simple shop window didn't suit us.
We therefore decided to implement an ERP solution in order to connect our site to our points of sale. This allows users to buy a product online, with either delivery or in-store pick-up, according to stocks available in real time in each store".
The Groupe E Plus e-shop has been online since June 2017. "With this additional channel, the objective is to increase our brand awareness, but above all to generate traffic to our site and additional revenue", adds Marc Montandon.
This project has been a long-term undertaking, but has proved a great success. As a result, Groupe E and Wax Interactive Switzerland will be continuing their collaboration on other projects.
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