The project was kicked off with Wonderful’s Tech Discovery phase. This involved mapping out all current systems and taking requirements of the new system in order to work out the best approach within time and budget.
During our scoping it became apparent that integrations were going to be needed from Exchequer (their stock management system) with the new ecommerce site, Ebay listing Syncing, Royal Mail Click & Drop and Sage’s payment gateway. Wonderful needed to remap the entire process in order to replace their legacy “Intelligent Retail,” system which handled all of this previously in one single location!
As the Discovery process was followed it also became apparent that Wahl required a brand new telephone ordering system which too, fully integrated with both the ecommerce site and their stock management software. Very quickly the website brief developed into a whole new infrastructure revamp that would change the way the heritage business operated.
User journey flows were mapped out and aligned to a technology suite that would deliver on all the requirements. The result of the Discovery phase was a fully scoped system and roadmap to develop it. For those interested we recommended a custom WooCommerce build which integrated with Exchequer via an intermediate database. This controlled the sync between the website and stock management. Following this a custom telephone ordering system was developed in Vue.JS that also doubled as a CRM. With the ability to take payment and manage orders on behalf of customers all data is securely stored and managed within the system.
Enough of the technical detail, the next part of our process dealt with the user experience and visual interface of the website. Wonderful’s UX & UI creative team completely recreated the website’s look a feel. A modernisation of colours, imagery and interactive elements brought the website into the modern age. Following our UX sessions products were recategorised and the checkout process revamped all the enhance the online customer journey.
With detailed technical specifications and brand new website visuals all agreed and signed off the next phase was to bring this to life. Wonderful’s inhouse development team worked closely with our design team to ensure the new website system was built to design but also matched the technical requirements. Content population of over 1,000 products was successfully managed in collaboration of both Wonderful and Wahl’s team.
Once the website was built and populated vigorous testing was undergone to ensure the online business was fully operational. User stories were followed to test different aspects of the bespoke system and to ensure the whole process worked from an order all the way through to delivery. Once both parties were happy the site was migrated from staging into a live environment on their own personal VPS.
Staff training of the system was critical to the success of the project. Wahl’s entire sales and marketing team requiring training on the system and its new processes. Walkthroughs of the new system were conducted on site and via screen sharing software to ensure all questions were answered and that staff could effectively adopt the new system. Wonderful then continued to support and maintain the site ongoing.
Transforming the digital presence of a heritage brand is a challenge we relished.
Wonderful delivered a new e-commerce solution that integrated the ability to order products both online & offline with legacy stock management systems, and provided an enhanced digital experience to effectively compete with competitors.
Through utilising best-in-class tracking & analytics implementations, the measurable impact was almost instant on go-live and delivers insight Wahl had yet been able to achieve.
The longevity of this will be demonstrated over the coming months and years, as Wahl have now partnered with Wonderful to expand on their multi-channel digital marketing activity.
