CRM & OMS for a UK-based Corporate Gift Maker
About Printkick
PrintKick is a family-owned business based in the UK, selling print and promotional products to businesses around the UK and Europe.
Maven had been working closely with Printkick since 2016 when they first requested a website update. That original request expanded to become a complete digital transformation of the business and created a long-term partnership.
The Challenge
The goal was to optimize the business’ communication and order management processes.
To achieve this, Printkick requested integration of a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and creation of a new Order Management System (OMS) to replace the existing OMS that was not able to be integrated with the eCommerce platform due to technical incompatibility.
The challenge was to build one solution to solve both problems.
BUSINESS SPECIFICS
It is important to understand the specifics of the merchandise business to learn where in Printkick’s standard workflow the challenges lie. The usual workflow involves a minimum of 3 stakeholders: customer, manager, and supplier.
The customer sends a request for a quote to the manager.
The manager communicates with both customer and supplier to agree on specifics.
The supplier ships the order to the customer.
The agreement process takes some time and requires technical specifications, samples, and high amounts of communication. The communication is complicated by the customer’s inability to speak directly with the supplier, so the manager is forced to act as a middleman.
COMMUNICATION FLOW
Each participant in the sales process leverages different communication tools at different stages.
ORDER FLOW
Order management occurs using an outdated desktop application that requires manual data entry and has no flexibility.
As a result, both the communication and order management processes generate significant paperwork and a complicated mess. The process is time-consuming, highly manual, and affected by human factors.
The Architecture
The unique nature of the Client’s business made it clear – a custom-made solution would deliver the most value.
As a core of the custom solution, Maven advised the Client to choose ORO CRM. This was the optimal choice for several reasons:
This allows us to start with the ORO CRM source code, customize it, add OMS functionality, and integrate with the rest of the architecture.
The enterprise version of ORO CRM includes built-in integration with Office 365. This is critical because many of the client’s business processes leverage Office applications.
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (CRM)
First, we built the CRM system. CRM became the central hub for any communication between the customer, manager, and supplier.
Any data, message, or other relevant pieces of information exchanged between the parties are stored in a single location for access at any time.
The new CRM eliminated most of the paperwork, increased the efficiency of the communication process, and reduced the time to process an order.
ORDER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (OMS)
For the order management system, the key requirement was flexibility. When new categories or products are added they often require a change in the order management flow.
The new OMS is built much like a LEGO® kit. Every component of the workflow can be changed, customized, or optimized within days by a developer, eliminating barriers to a smooth and effective order management process. The system scales in any direction and works with any product or application.
The Results
The Printkick marketplace was released in May 2018 with the completely new OMS and fully functional CRM driving the processes. These systems delivered the following value to Printkick:
BEFORE
Communication was taking weeks and included tons of paperwork.
Due to ineffective process of communication and order management, only a few orders per day proceeded.
Business scales slowly due to inflexibility.
AFTER
The communication process became effective, convenient, and streamlined.
High levels of scalability can be achieved. 10, 1000, or even more orders can be easily processed.
Flexibility for the future as processes are easily customizable at any time.
“When we looked at Maven as part of our selection process and had our first meeting, it was clear that you were the best fit for our company. We looked for people who cared about the project, the mission and had the technical skills to bring it all together. You made us confident we could do it.”
– Aman Brar, Product Owner @ Printkick
