For decades, the Bossard sales team used an expensive 1000-page catalog as its main sales tool. However, despite its size, the fastener technology catalog didn’t include the company’s entire product range, including screws, nuts, and bolts. Therefore, several additional brochures were developed to be used during conversations with customers and prospects. In addition, salespeople could only follow up on appointments and send additional documents to their main points of contact once they returned to the office.

Although the catalog was reprinted every few years, the content quickly became outdated shortly after printing. In addition, creating special content for each sales unit, and not having a centrally organized digital filing system to house this content, led to additional work for central marketing and local sales. 

In addition, it was difficult for the marketing department to understand the impact of the content produced. Although there was a feedback loop between marketing and sales, it was rudimentary. Driven by marketing leadership, Bossard needed a way to align more closely with sales and help them be more agile and productive. At the same time, communication needed to improve between the two teams to break down silos. The goal was to set up a central platform for sales activities and marketing materials that would allow the teams to measure success and continuously optimize based on data.

“We analyzed how current employees were using Showpad and saw where significant improvements were made,” says Dorothee Rembold, Head of Digital Marketing and project manager for implementation. “We then realized we needed to boost adoption and encourage other employees to use Showpad so they could see the same results.”

Of course, communication between marketing and sales departments cannot be solved by technology solutions alone. In addition to implementing Showpad, Bossard also designated dedicated sales contacts in marketing and marketing managers in each sales unit. At the same time, each salesperson was equipped with an iPad to easily access the content now stored centrally in Showpad, regardless of whether they were online or offline.

Initial experience showed, however, that habits and scepticism toward new technology prevented some Sales staff from using it. For this reason, Bossard organized company-wide training sessions to help sales reps understand the devices and how to use Showpad. In addition, the next global internal sales and marketing meeting was organized so that all content, including the agenda and location of the event, was stored on Showpad. This guaranteed all employees had to use with the platform. 

“After the employees had personally experienced the advantages of the iPads and Windows Surfaces in combination with the Showpad platform, the use increased rapidly. The feedback after the kick-off was very positive,” adds Rembold.

Thanks to the implementation of Showpad as the central sales enablement platform, marketing and sales collaboration at Bossard has dramatically improved. All sales staff can now access up-to-date materials quickly and easily via Showpad. Since the sales enablement platform supports different media, it now also includes videos that are especially helpful for complex
products.

During conversations with customers, the sales department can send personalized content. sales and marketing both have visibility into how shared content is used and use this information to optimize content. “Showpad is the key to digital sales today. Thanks to Showpad, we can provide added value for our customers, which has a lasting effect due to the degree of digitization. Thanks to Bossard’s digital way of thinking, we are able to act in accordance with the customer’s needs and wishes in our conversations with them,” noted Olivier Baier, Sales Manager at Bossard Germany.

Communication between sales and marketing is now much more direct. As soon as a new brochure for a product has been uploaded by the marketing team, the sales team is alerted via Showpad and can use the asset immediately. The usage data from Showpad shows which content was used, how often, and when. Not only is new material created at the request of the s ales department, but it’s also optimized based on data available through Showpad.

“Showpad has given us back the control over our own content in marketing. With the usage data, we can continue to evolve from a pure service center into a strategic partner for sales that helps them sell better,” Rembold continues. “In addition, we have first ideas to tighten the connection and collaboration between sales and marketing, thereby shifting to a focus on holistic customer experience.”

What happened to the catalog? Today, it is used much less by the sales team. However, there are customers who use the “fastener technology catalog” as a reference book and actively ask for it, so it will continue to be printed in significantly smaller print runs. Some Bossard employees like to use it as a monitor extension or as a decorative souvenir.