Live From New York: Lands’ End Creates Tight-Knit B-to-B Database Structure
It took Dodgeville, WI-based apparel retailer Lands’ End seven years to build its corporate sales division to a $140 million operation, but only three months to realize that a database based on consumer information gathering was insufficient for B-to-B sales support.
Beyond the recency, frequency, and monetary considerations a consumer file captures, B-to-B databases need to be structured to record the different levels of sign-off within a company. In addition to top-level executives, these can include purchasers, who might place a premium on vendor consolidation; payers, who prefer electronic data interchange systems; and even end-users, who can determine whether or not business relationships continue buy not using the merchandise supplied.
In “Do You Have the Right People in Your B-to-B Database,” a Direct Marketing Days session hosted yesterday by World Marketing Solutions president Cyndi Greenglass, Lands’ End director, national accounts, corporate sales Richard Harney pointed out that all of these elements need to be captured in a suppliers database. Such a file needs other fields not normally found in consumer databases, such as multiple “ship-to” addresses, multiple contacts, and areas set aside to record purchase order numbers.
In addition, customer relationship representatives need to be trained to capture relevant information, as opposed to sacrificing it in favor of completing the order-taking process. Harney uses custom-designed chocolate bars to remind his staff that this information is essential in building the database.
