Blending Ecommerce and Customer Experience with Twinings Tea
- Sai Varshita Kavali
- 6 nov. 2021
- 3 min de lecture
Dernière mise à jour : 6 déc. 2021
The UK’s iconic tea brand keeps finding ways of reinventing itself and re-discovering teas — with great fanfare and business results.
The company was actually a latecomer to the digital world, launching its first website years after the dot-com boom. But all that changed rather dramatically about three and a half years ago when Twinings engaged the services of London-based digital experience agency Ridgeway.
“When we first met them,” began Stuart Gibson, Ridgeway’s head of production, “Twinings had two sites: one was focused on content, blogs, and recipes, and the other was a fairly basic online shop.” He continued, “Not a lot of attention was paid to the sites after they were put up. Neither site had a particularly strong following.”
Taking a British Icon Digital
On the face of it, the challenge was to merge the two sites, apply more contemporary web design principles and breathe some new life into the redesigned Twinings website. But it wasn’t long before the project took on a life of its own. That’s when it became mission-critical to create a digital world for Twinings that would complement its real-world, iconic brand status.
“As we got to know them, said Vikki Robins, digital consultant at Ridgeway, “we recognized that Twinings was much, much more than a tea company. It was a company with a heritage and a rich history.”
Twinings Creates a Destination Website
“Twinings knew the flavors, the aromas, the history of each blend like no other business. That depth of knowledge, that intimate insight into the tea experience, that passion had to be shared and experienced by customers every time they visited the website. That quickly became our mission,” she enthused.
Even though the commercial goal of the site redesign was to sell more tea, the online store quickly became interwoven into the Twinings story. People started going there not just to buy tea, but to learn where teas come from, how they are made, how they are graded and even the best food pairings to go with specific teas.
Creating a Tea Lover’s ‘Digital Utopia’
There are more than 10 tea flavors to peruse on the Twinings site, from Chai, Darjeeling, and Earl Grey to Mint Tea, Signature Blends, and White Tea. And naturally, tea needs to be served in teaware, from teapots and mugs to tea strainers and tea storage.
That led to recipes for brunch, afternoon tea, and iced tea breaks. Then there are notes posted from various tea tastings. And perhaps most popular of all, there’s a whole section on gifts and confections. The content is fresh, engaging and constantly changing. It’s a tea lover’s digital utopia.
Seamlessly Linking the Real and Digital Worlds
“What they’ve succeeded in doing,” commented Ridgeway production head Gibson, “is successfully linking the real world to the digital world and allowing customers to move seamlessly between them. It really is a fantastic example of a well-thought-out and comprehensively designed digital experience — and one that’s having a very positive impact on the business.”
Mastering the Emotional Experience
Since launching the new, customer-experience-focused website in July of 2014, Twinings has seen a 20 percent uptick in revenue and a 30 percent improvement in conversion rates from its website visitors. And that lift has really allowed the company to spread its wings as a global brand.
“Twinings has been very savvy,” observed digital consultant Robins. “They have moved beyond just selling product. They have begun to master the emotive experience. So when a customer someday walks into their London brick and mortar store, he or she can go and sign up for a Twining's tea tasting course and become a certified Twinings expert. Customers can really be part of that whole concept and the ideology and the excitement and all that exclusivity around the brand. And it all starts with this digital reality that Twinings has now created.”
sources:
http://lovetealoveblogging.blogspot.com/2014/02/why-i-love-twinings.html https://www.marketingweek.com/twining-hails-the-role-of-marketing-in-its-success-as-it-readies-10m-campaign/
Sai Varshitha KAVALI.
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