SDS Drives are the world’s largest certified distributor of Parker SSD products alongside many other brands. Established in 1996 and based in Avonmouth, they are specialists in motor driven and process control systems, with an experienced team of industry professionals.
WooCommerce, Business Central and Dynamics integration for SDS Drives.
How we helped
- WordPress development
- Business Central integration
- WooCommerce development
- Website design & UX
Challenge
SDS were undergoing a huge digital transformation project, implementing a new ERP and business management system, alongside a revisit of their website.
Their existing website was a custom-built solution that integrated with their product database of over 500,000 SKUs and as the database had grown, 30 second load times were not uncommon. The challenge for Appeal, was to develop a new site that integrated ecommerce functionality with their chosen ERP system – Dynamics 365 Business Central.
The vast number of SKUs presented challenges in terms of how products would be managed for the team internally, as well as UX challenges for how products would be discovered by customers.
Solution
To solve these challenges, we integrated Dynamics and Business Central into the WooCommerce and WordPress website, and developed a ‘Drive Configurator’.
The integration between WooCommerce and Microsoft platforms ensured that leads and sales were accurately recorded in the correct place, and stock levels remained synchronised.
The Drive Configurator enables customers to select the attributes and specifications required so they can build the correct drive they need for their system, simplifying the over 500,000 possible SKU permutations.
Results
The site has steadily grown as a revenue generator for the business, cementing their knowledge and experience in their sector, while also increasing the number of inbound leads generated through the website. Appeal continues to work with SDS Drives on further optimisations and improvements to continually drive further gains.
