Case Study: Baart Industrial Group

The Challenge: Meet Customers’ eCommerce Expectations and B2B Complexity

Baart Industrial Group sought to increase sales by focusing on growing its B2B eCommerce activity.

“There’s an increasing expectation in the B2B world that customers can buy easily from your website, and that they can find out which products you have, the prices, and place an order without having to talk to someone,” said the strategic projects manager at Baart Industrial Group.

Baart’s goal was to gain a beautiful, easy-to-navigate site that was fully integrated with its ERP system. Customers would have visibility into the full range of products, see inventory counts and get accurate pricing.  It was also important for the site to include detailed shipping logic that was based on carrier choices, third-party considerations, and whether partial orders could be shipped.  

The Solution: A Vendor with Stellar References and Skills

Baart discussed its site goals with four B2BeCommerce companies. “Channel Software’s ability to build the shipping logic, plus their customer references, pushed them over the top,” said the manager. “Everyone we spoke with had a positive experience with them, and that was a big factor.”

Channel Software’s CSX eCommerce platform is purpose-built to manage the complexities of B2B eCommerce. Its robust tools and responsive design deliver a superior shopping experience for customers and easier site management for administrators. With the ability to smoothly integrate with any ERP, the CSX eCommerce platform updates and automates inventory and sales information accurately and quickly.

The Results: Lighting-Fast eCommerce Growth

Baart Industrial Group’s eCommerce site went live in late 2021 and nearly hit its overall sales goal in the beta testing phase.

“We were surprised at how quickly the site took off!” said the manager. “We’ve hit a higher dollar volume than we expected at this point…in other words, we’re ahead of where we thought we’d be.”

Baart reports that supply chain issues are likely driving some companies to seek out new suppliers, and so the new site was good timing. With an eCommerce site that clearly displays inventory counts, pricing, and shipping information, customers know exactly what they can order and when to expect it.

“We’ve been really pleased with the way our business is growing online, and we haven’t had to hire anyone on the sales side,” said the manager. “It’s all growing faster than we thought, thanks to the website.”  

Flexible new automation tools

Prior to the new eCommerce site, Baart didn’t have the ability to load order tracking numbers into the system and communicate tracking information to customers. “Our warehouse was shipping out hundreds of packages a day and manually entering tracking numbers,” said the manager. “Channel Software gave us the recommendation to fix that and now it’s more automated. That’s been a big improvement.”

In addition, Channel Software built out the site’s check-out page to include drop-down menu choices for shipping dates, complete or partial orders, and deadlines. These details help prioritize tasks and ensure customers get orders on time.

Easier PIM system

With a modern product information management (PIM) system, Baart employees have had an easier time managing data and customers. “Some customers use different names or terms for products than what we use,” said the manager. “Channel Software helped us get the search functionality to be expandable, which helps the customer find what they were looking for.”

Easy ERP integration, easy-to-do business

Baart emphasized extensive testing to ensure the site was ready for customers at launch. ERP integration was smooth and Channel Software has been ready to help with any issue.

“The Channel Software team has been very receptive and willing to look for answers,” said the manager. “When we were making reference calls to find our eCommerce partner, Channel Software seemed big enough to be relevant but small enough to not be bureaucratic. They’re honest and easy to do business with. They felt like us.”