Saint-Gobain: Optimisation Strategy

Introduction

Saint-Gobain is the parent company of dozens of household name brands in the UK and Ireland, including Jewson’s (builders’ merchants), Graham the Plumbers’ Merchant, Artex and Bassetts bathroom specialists.

Saint-Gobain have recently rolled out a new digital e-commerce platform to allow their customers to buy products online – something that wasn’t possible on their legacy website. As part of their digital strategy, Saint-Gobain were looking to optimize and personalize their online platform to provide the best user experience for customers and chose Adobe Target to fulfil this need.

The impact of coronavirus has led to an increased demand for online retail, so having the ability to optimise the digital user journey and enhance the user experience on the website has become even more critical for the business.

The Problem

Saint-Gobain wanted to create a robust, forward-looking optimisation strategy to drive customer loyalty and ROI.

With their recent investment in a new optimisation tool, the digital team chose Station10 to provide consultative support on building out an effective testing and personalisation strategy and framework, as well as assisting with the launch of the first few tests.

Our Solution

Why did they choose Station10?

Station10 were already Saint-Gobain’s chosen partner for analytics and insight, having previously implemented their web analytics tracking across multiple brands. With the knowledge and understanding of Saint-Gobain’s business, we were in the perfect position to support the creation of a comprehensive optimisation strategy.

What did we do?

Initially, we implemented Adobe Target on the Jewson website via Saint-Gobain’s tag management solution, Adobe Launch.

Following this, we proceeded to provide recommendations for their optimisation strategy, facilitated the creation of a testing roadmap, and supported the team in the launch of the first few campaigns.

What was our process?

• Station10 engaged with key stakeholders across a wide variety of teams (such as marketing, product and UX) who would input into the optimisation programme, in order to identify and document the business requirements.
• We took these requirements and translated them into a strategy proposal. This provided tailored, specific recommendations for an effective programme delivery, addressing key areas such as measures of success, key operational processes, and team enablement.
• Following this, the Saint-Gobain team were able to create a list of initial test hypotheses. We worked in collaboration to refine the ideas, and Station10 created a prioritisation scoring model which enabled the visualisation of a testing roadmap. We also ran prioritisation workshops with key stakeholders.
• Station10 led a half-day training session with the team members who would be involved in managing and delivering the test execution process using Adobe Target. This covered topics such as key terminology, test creation, audiences, QA and reporting.
• The final step of the project was to provide kick-start support for the Saint-Gobain team for the launch of their initial tests. We created a test planning template and built these out for the first two tests, assisted with campaign setup within the optimisation tool, monitored the test progress, and delivered conclusion reports with a full analysis.

With our existing knowledge of the analytics implementation and how this integrated with the optimisation solution, we were able to provide recommendations and easily implement additional tracking that would be useful for both optimisation and insight purposes.

Business Benefits

As a result of this project, Saint-Gobain have a strong optimisation strategy in place for testing & personalisation on the Jewson website, with a framework that is easy to apply across Saint-Gobain’s multiple brands.

Using Adobe Target in conjunction with their existing technology stack, Saint-Gobain are able to provide an optimised experience for their customers. They have the ability to test and personalise content to find the best combination of messaging and design in order to drive conversion. With the detailed documentation, process and training delivered during this project, the team are enabled to kickstart the programme with confidence.

The Future

Adobe Target enables Saint-Gobain to take informed action to optimise their website based on how their customers behave within the customer journey. Now that the tool is implemented and integrated with their tech stack for the Jewson brand, the team’s next steps are to roll out Adobe Target across other brands. This project has provided a firm foundation for planning and executing an effective optimisation strategy from the outset.

Through the capabilities of the optimisation tool itself, the creation of a robust strategic and operational plan, and delivery of tailored training, the Saint-Gobain team are empowered to build and execute data-driven tests that provide actionable insights based on a statistically solid foundation.

Following the initial implementation on the Jewson website, Station10 are involved in the rollout of Adobe Target across other key brands, ensuring a standardised and consistent approach.

As Saint-Gobain evolve their optimisation and personalisation capabilities, we will continue to provide ongoing strategy and execution support to assist their ambitions in delivering the optimal customer experience.