Grolsch digital platform supports the hospitality industry with self-care and data

Grolsch digital platform supports the hospitality industry with self-care and data

Region by region, Royal Grolsch is rolling out an innovative online portal. The platform is entirely devoted to self-care and the provision of data analyzes to hospitality entrepreneurs. This greatly relieves account managers, because there is more room for their actual work. In addition, the platform offers hospitality companies the insights to grow their business, and work more focused. 

With a broad portfolio of brands and beers, Royal Grolsch is entering a fairly traditional market in which hospitality and retail are the most important channels. However, the role of digital and e-commerce is gradually growing. "Expectations are noticeably increasing in the B2B world," says Jasper Rekers - Digital Marketing Acceleration Manager. "Just as hospitality entrepreneurs are used to arranging everything with self-service solutions, so in our B2B environment we could hardly ignore a digital platform on which all our internal disciplines come together."

The context that the brewer has to deal with is quite complex. The account managers and the relationship they have with their customers are always leading. And those relationships are all unique in, for example, the agreements made. Prior to the development of the final platform, we, therefore, together with Grolsch, looked extensively at the "journey" they go through together and what needs therein. Grolsch already had a clear picture of that context, TRIMM made the digital translation to optimally support stakeholders through digital solutions. This approach ensures that no technology is chosen because of the technology itself. The value for the stakeholders is central.

"Leads to additional customer value"

It is very striking that account managers, during their visits to cafés and restaurants, hardly ever get to what they actually made an appointment for. Instead of giving entrepreneurs insight into business performance and advising them on how they can sell more beer, for example, they first receive numerous smaller questions. It often turns out to be actions that the hotel and catering entrepreneur has been tackling for several months: having a minor technical problem rectified, ordering print work or requesting other promotional material. Matters for which different departments were previously involved, but just as easy to organize in your own digital environment.

By developing a self-service portal to which all back-end systems are connected, there is now one digital counter. Of course for the online sale of beer, requesting merchandise, following training courses and other functionalities that fit the reduction of the administrative burden. But the bundling of internal services and thus adding convenience is, according to Rekers, only one side of the added value. "Even more important is that we achieve additional customer value with the platform."

Rekers continues: “The data insights and visualizations are a very good example of this. By means of data mining, we can provide proactive and substantiated business advice in a dashboard. ”Benchmarks with other own branches or companies make it clear where there are still opportunities to grow as a company. “It allows us to transform. From a place where you come as a customer for support to a consultancy portal. ”

Create a complete customer journey together with account manager

A big advantage is that he is now much better able to complete their journey together with the account managers. While most companies choose to place email marketing only with the marketing department, Grolsch uses this in a conscious and individual way. In this way, account managers are given every opportunity to issue certain notifications to their customers themselves. One goal is to use artificial intelligence to enrich and cluster personas so that they can be approached automatically and personally through an appropriate channel.

“If that person thinks it is a good idea to inform a specific customer group about a new product, then communication is simple and focused. They are pre-eminently able to determine where value can be added in the relationship. The platform facilitates this. ”

"Grow into a digital ecosystem for the hospitality industry"

Rekers' main objective is to increase "customer satisfaction" among the three types of users - account managers, the further internal organization and the entrepreneurs. That is only possible if the digital environment provides extra business. The first experiences are so positive that the testing phase has been completed and the brewer is gradually rolling out the platform nationwide. “Both account managers and entrepreneurs feel supported in their work. They see the potential on the one hand to work more efficiently internally and with customers and to save costs, on the other hand it is a possibility to use the insights to come to better advice. ”

The first pilots and user experiences have already provided the necessary new mindsets. By connecting other Grolsch online expressions to the platform, it is theoretically possible to bring consumers and the hospitality industry into contact with each other.

And because the platforms are "open" and modular, it is also possible to connect other relevant partners. Rekers would prefer to see the information and data flows of other relevant companies appear in the long term.

This article appeared earlier on Emerce.nl