A deeper look,
Living Spaces decided on a phased approach to address the most significant business problems, launch fast, and iterate afterward. This approach allowed them to quickly get their eCommerce website live, use analytics instead of guesswork for website optimization, and continuously improve rather than trying to tackle every possible business need at once.
They partnered with Luminos Labs and Optimizely to guide them through the transformation of their digital infrastructure and unite the online and offline experience utilizing one of Living Spaces’ most valuable assets—their storefronts.
Phase 1: Launch a New eCommerce Platform
The first step was to use the Luminosity Optimizely Accelerator to launch quickly and migrate from a home-grown, custom-built eCommerce platform to Optimizely. The accelerator allowed Living Spaces to focus on the integration in the first phase, with Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP to ensure accuracy in orders, and Bloomreach Search to create an enhanced search experience.
One critical business requirement was to have a shared shopping cart between the in-store kiosk and the eCommerce channel. It allowed customers to browse online, go into a store, and pull up the items at a kiosk to locate the furniture that initially interested them.
Living Spaces’ development team worked directly with Luminos Labs to speed up development and learn the platform on the fly. As a result, Living Spaces was able to take over the day-to-day management of the site and allow Luminos Labs to continue focusing on more substantial enhancements.
This targeted approach allowed Living Spaces to launch the new website with no downtime, on budget, and on time.
Phase 2: Enable Internal Teams with Improved Merchandising and Product Information
After launching Optimizely, Living Spaces determined that a more robust Product Information Management (PIM) system would further enable the Marketing and Merchandising teams to provide a better overall customer experience.
Living Spaces selected inRiver PIM and worked with Luminos Labs to customize the PIM for the internal teams. The PIM allowed them to dynamically tag products together as a specific type (like sofa or side table) or product collection. Their internal teams saved time by setting up a portal for their vendors to upload information directly into the PIM, allowing them to spend less time manually updating data and more time-enriching products and strategizing to improve the front-end customer experience.
Phase 3: Launch an Improved Product Configurator
Living Spaces integrated Cylindo to its existing systems to enhance the customer experience with a more engaging and visual product configurator. The products now have real-time pricing updates based on variants (like fabric type, color, or style). Utilizing the data in the PIM, Cylindo pulls in high-resolution imagery and reflects it on the existing website.
