Tech Leader Award, Customer Engagement
ROB MILLS, SVP & CIO, TRACTOR SUPPLY COMPANY
Rob Mills earned the customer engagement award thanks to a host of technology he and his team have implemented to increase customer affiliation with the brand. Over the past three years, with Mills at the helm, Tractor Supply Company’s IT department has evolved its thinking to be more data and science based. Data-driven insight now guides all major IT initiatives and helps the team focus on the functionality consumers crave, bringing significant value to the business.
The retailer’s newly launched buy online pick-up in-store initiative has helped grow Tractor Supply’s omnichannel business while simultaneously bringing increased exposure to the brand. The solution has helped the retailer achieve several key objectives: reducing freight expense, expanding online assortment, and attracting online customers to shop in-store.
“For Tractor Supply Company, BOPIS is about creating additional convenience options for our customer,” says Mills. “It is part of our customer-centric strategy, allowing our customer to shop anytime, anywhere, anyway.”
By adding the convenience of BOPIS, Tractor Supply has been able to further connect with today’s need-it-now shoppers and engage with and build mutually beneficial relationships with customers who might not have otherwise shopped the brand.
“Our customers need the product now,” Mills says. “They can’t always wait.” The first-ever person to use Tractor Supply’s click-and-collect service is a shining example of the new consumer reality and how the solution is helping the retailer build lasting relationships with shoppers.
Tractor Supply’s first BOPIS customer was in the market for a trailer for his business and wanted to take delivery immediately. He went to the Internet to search for trailers, saw Tractor Supply had a product that could fit the bill, and that it was in stock at a local location. Despite the fact that he had never shopped Tractor Supply before, he placed the order, went to the store, picked up the trailer, and filled up the trailer with incremental purchases while in the store. Obviously not every interaction TSC has with current and prospective shoppers matches the success of its first BOPIS consumer, but it helps solidity Mills approach to building brand awareness and customer engagement and should serve the retailer well as it continues to build out its omnichannel capabilities.
https://risnews.com/2017-cio-year-awards-results-are