School Books Direct

The Challenge

Schoolbooks Direct is based in Tullamore County Offaly, where it has a retail outlet,  warehouse and fulfilment team.  Emarkable was approached when Schoolbooks Direct wanted to expand its operations, which at the time were concentrated into the two months preceding the start of the new school year. The market for school books in Ireland is extremely competitive.  A number of suppliers offer essentially the same product, and competition therefore revolves around the limited opportunities for discounting, but more importantly the selling points which can be derived from customer service and the building of customer loyalty. 

Schoolbooks Direct needed to develop its customer base; parents, the main buyers, are busy people, and shopping cart abandonment suggested that some of them were finding their system awkward.  This was a problem that needed to be addressed as a priority. The process needed to be efficient and effective for the user who has limited time and could easily switch to another online supplier.

With Emarkable’s help and support, Schoolbooks Direct now has a year-round business, although the July to early September phase is still its busiest time.

Strategy

Emarkable’s strategy was to establish an ecommerce business that was user friendly and efficient, with a speedy turnaround between the time the orders were placed, and delivery.  Existing customers also needed to be supported and nurtured. 

The ecommerce website that Emarkable developed, is now simple to navigate, with a  number of UX enhancements; for example a log-in process for existing customers and a registration method that will be familiar to most users of online shopping venues.  Emarkable also used email marketing to direct customers and potential clients to the website, where search engine optimisation raised its profile on search engines, and social media was utilised to build additional awareness. 

Returns, questions and useful links all had their own pages on the website, which enhanced the user experience. Considerable research went into the planning and the layout of the shopping process

Results

The results have been highly satisfactory, with repeat business being the norm rather than the exception, and excellent testimonials supporting the brand image the company had been seeking.

Richard Coen

With over 21 years of experience in Digital Marketing, 31 years in sales and 25 years in business development, Richard assists companies to develop key growth strategies on a local or international basis. He can assist marketers to achieve balance in their approach to key areas affected by the growth in digital marketing.

An ecommerce business that was user friendly and efficient, with a speedy turnaround between the time the orders and delivery.
Contact us now for more information

Drop your details into the form below and we will call you back for a discussion.

Richard Coen

With over 21 years of experience in Digital Marketing, 31 years in sales and 25 years in business development, Richard assists companies to develop key growth strategies on a local or international basis. He can assist marketers to achieve balance in their approach to key areas affected by the growth in digital marketing.