Issue 6/2004
11/02/04
Sales support using computer-based tools such as a website, online engineering programs and an online shop
Hansjörg Kramer (LiftEquip GmbH)
It is possible for vendors with a wide-ranging line to serve the global market for elevator components only with the support of expert advise and consulting. An essential aspect here is that, in addition to face-to-face consulting, the customer have access at all times to current product information, technical descriptions and certificates. Elevator assemblers today no longer seek just individual components; they expect their supply partners to provide system competence and in-depth consulting.
Category: Issue 6/2004
Posted by: Editor
Only in this way can good and complete elevator planning be effected, always in close dialog with partners. This begins with defining the project together with the customer, on site, and concludes with providing a technical help desk to field questions about commissioning and troubleshooting. Being able to access the staff by phone, fax, e-mail and cellphone are among the standard tools used by any sales organization that operates at global scale.
website
For some time now the Internet has been gaining in importance a means of business-to-business communications. But this medium will be accepted by customers only if the information is not just complete, but also kept up to date at all times. The prerequisite here is, as always, that the website be clearly structured so that the emphasis is not on searching for, but on finding information. Finally, the medium should be used to simplify making contact with the vendor and his experts. Important here, in addition to giving employees’ names, is to specify their function in the company and provide complete data on how to get in touch with them.
Responding to this requirement, LiftEquip GmbH had an entirely new web-site created and completely updated the information it contains. The www.liftequip.de platform was created to provide ’round-the-clock access to all the technical documentation and information. Here not only sales literature and photos are available for downloading; a wealth of technical materials such as dimension sheets, CAD drawings, operating instructions and test certificates are at the user’s fingertips. It is possible to send an e-mail to the appropriate staff member with just a single click. To make the whole thing just a little more personal, a photo of each employee was included. That way clients can also see who they’re dealing with.
Calculation programs
In addition to simple Web presence, customers today also expect technical aids such as product configurators or cost calculation programs. Programs such as this help the customer to make calculations independently, and then to inquire about specific products. By their very nature such calculation programs not only offer a selection of the required components but additional information, as well, such as specifications for power levels and the inspection and approval documents which are needed. An engineering program for elevator drives, for example, will also provide drive shaft and traction calculations.
Ideally it will be possible to download calculation programs such as these directly from the Internet. The LiftEquip company, for instance, makes the WinKalk program available for download; in its latest version it can calculate for drives with gearing and for gearless drives.
Online shop
Further support is found more often today in ordering the desired components directly, via the Internet. In the ideal situation the component vendor will provide an online shop – a virtual store located on the Internet. This makes it possible for customers to submit orders directly, even outside normal business hours, directly through the Internet-based order system. That saves valuable time. This is of interest to the vendor since employees are freed up during the day to call on customers and visit elevator construction sites and can then take care of their paperwork evenings or on Saturday. Another factor of importance for companies operating on a global scale is that, because of time differences, the vendor’s and buyer’s businesses hours might overlap by only a little, or not at all. Consequently it must be possible for the online shop to interface directly with the design programs so that, once calculations have been completed, the user need not enter data a second time.
Naturally parameters specific to the customer will have to be stored for access by the online shop. This will include the billing and delivery addresses and any terms that may have been agreed upon with the customer. All this makes it very easy and fast since an order can be placed with just a few clicks of the mouse. That enhances acceptance of any online shop. Access to the online shop and thus to the stored data about the customer will have to be protected by way of secure access with a unique user name and password. On the other hand, logging in at an online shop such as this should be possible quickly, easily, and without a lot of red tape.
Here, too, LiftEquip GmbH is in tune with the times and has integrated into its new website a completely revamped online shop where not only safety equipment but – and this is also new – drive units can be ordered.
Service and expertise
Thus, in support of sales activities, the customer has access at all times to all the information and aids that might be needed – including the website itself with the option for downloading documents, and the tools needed to select the required components, and the online shop itself, where the components can be ordered direct.
And in spite of all these technical capabilities, the staff at LiftEquip, with all its expertise, continues to be available to customers so as to provide the best possible service for all the components and systems the firm handles.
6/2004
