The Dutch company, Kraaijeveld's gastronomical division is growing fast. This department has taken significant leaps in the digital area. After years of preparation, Kraaijeveld recently launched a completely new online ordering and service portal. An ordering system tailor made for clients. "It is more than just a webshop," says Kraaijeveld's Commercial Manager, Jan Doorn.
"The department has grown rapidly. The sales team was busy all morning - entering many, mostly small orders into the system. There must be a better way, the company reckoned. So, they set to work developing a new ordering system."
"It is an environment where clients can order and create order lists. They can find their order history and report package returns. People can request certificates, submit claims, and do so much more," explains Jan.
See the system at https://www.kraaijeveld.com/en-gb/digital.
The Commercial Manager says, ‘’We noticed not only the gastronomical clients were ready for a new ordering environment and service point. Clients from the retail division and processing industry were also interested. They were switched to online services."
There was a significant run-up to the launch. Two years ago, this fruit and vegetable company introduced a digital price list. Clients could order directly from this list. The system worked well. After some time, it was, however, taken offline.
"Our clients kept calling, and our sales team would help them. As a whole, we were not yet ready for it internally. We had not included our clients enough yet," reflects Jan. Kraaijeveld, therefore, put a stop to the system. Sellers could call their clients in the afternoon to chat or do trade. But, the ordering was done online.
Focus on young talent
"Internally, this was a big change. It was the older employees, especially, who had trouble with this new strategy. That is why we focussed on young talent. They were taught the tricks of the trade. In this way, we were able to keep offering expertise to our clients. But we believed the trade sector was moving in a certain direction. We had to make our move."
"The market demands efficiency, transparency, and convenience. This is what we will offer with this digital environment," says Doorn. "However, it demands a different way of thinking from the sellers. They had to get used to it quickly. But, they are starting to see the advantages. Now, when the computers are switched on in the mornings, the orders already start coming in."
Effectiveness, speed, overview, convenience
Being effective is central to this new digital ordering environment. "Many new webshops try to present their products with many photos. We listened carefully to our clients' wishes. That is not at all what they wanted from a B2B platform," says Joost Eggebeen. At Kraaijeveld, he is responsible for e-commerce.
"Clients know what a box of bell peppers looks like. They want to have a clear overview of the assortment. This saves a lot of time when it comes to ordering. The list is divided into categories. This provides an overview of the products. The client can quickly scroll through the range. They can then place an order."
Kraaijeveld's entire assortment is on offer in the webshop. The system is linked to the Navision ERP package. This link means current prices and availability are always used. The webshop updates every 15 minutes. If a product is unavailable, it is, therefore, automatically, removed from the range of options.
About 30 clients tested the system recently. "This is our biggest challenge, after our staff. We need to bring our users along on this digital transition. We, therefore, put a lot of effort into demonstrations at clients. With their feedback, we made a go of it again," says Joost.
"We see the clients who are now working with the platform are very enthusiastic. It is our job to create a community atmosphere. We have to use good content for this. People must want to keep coming back."
Jan does not expect to miss out on the benefits of telephone sales. "Software is much smarter than a salesperson. You can use data to serve your clients in a much more focused way. A salesperson can make mistakes, especially in a stressful situation. A computer does not. There are also far more opportunities. People can place orders 24/6 a week, wherever they are."
"This changes the salesperson's role. They become more of an account manager or field employee. So, it is not at the cost of personal contact. The salesperson gets more time to grow the relationship with their client to a higher level. As a result, you do see the purchasing and marketing departments functions becoming increasingly important," he says.
Rest of the sector to follow
"We developed this system with Incentro in record time - just eight weeks. They have since received a lot of inquiries from other Dutch fruit and vegetable companies. I am not surprised. The fruit and vegetable sector has been lagging for a long time when it comes to digitalization."
"Certainly compared to the flower industry, for example. But, in the next five years, things are going to change rapidly. We expect that, within five years, we will be trading 80% of our goods online," Jan predicts.
Over the past two years, Kraaijeveld has been developing an industry-specific solution, along with Addition Solutions. They used Microsoft Dynamic Software (also known as Navision). This collaboration is in addition to their partnership with Incentro. This software ensures that the wholesaler can function optimally. This has been the basis on which the online platform had been made successful. The online platform's back end connects seamlessly with the NAV systems. This seamless connection makes for an optimal process.
Read more about the advantages of online on https://www.kraaijeveld.com/en-gb/digital or register as a client at https://www.kraaijeveld.com/en-gb/registreren.
For more information:
Jan Doorn
Kraaijeveld
27 Herenlaan
3155 DC Maasland, NL
Tel.: +31 (0) 107 504 333
jan.doorn@kraaijeveld.com
www.kraaijeveld.com
Duco Zitman
Incentro
20 Van Deventerlaan
3528 AE Utrecht, NL
Tel.: +31 (0) 307 670 180
duco.zitman@incentro.com
www.incentro.com
Edward Venema
Addition Solutions
100 Berk Street
7572 CD Oldenzaal, NL
Tel.: +31 (0) 541 760 040
edward@additionsolutions.nu
www.additionsolutions.nu