The Real Knowledge Base · from our own projects
What should you manage centrally in a configurator for your dealers?
Manage the product data and the possible combinations centrally. Let each dealer set their own prices, logo and selection. That selection stays within the range you can deliver. That way you update the range in one place, and each shop retains its own identity.
Two interests that clash
As a manufacturer you want every buyer to see your range in the same way. A dealer wants to show their own shop, with their own prices and choices. If you manage everything centrally, the dealer does not recognise their shop. If you leave everything to the dealer, dealers start showing different versions of the range as soon as something changes. What matters is where you draw the line.
What to manage centrally
Manage product data, models and available combinations centrally. That applies to fixed specifications and to what changes often. If a new tabletop, colour or base is added, that happens in one place. A change in the central product data then carries through to the configurator of every dealer.
What the dealer decides
The dealer decides what makes their shop their own. Their prices, their logo and which models they show. That is how they stand apart from other retailers.
How it works at Koopmans
Koopmans Meubelen sells made-to-measure tables, not directly to consumers but through more than 400 dealers. The range is large and keeps changing, with new tabletops, colours and bases. All dealers work with the same configurator. The product data is held centrally. Prices, logo and available models are set per shop. The buyer puts together their table and sees the result in 3D straight away, with the chairs shown alongside it. When something is added, we supply the 3D models.
Where it goes wrong
- Each dealer with their own copy of the range. After the first change, everyone shows something different.
- Managing too much centrally. A dealer who does not see their own shop has less reason to use the configurator.
- No agreement on the central data. Set down who adds new products and when.
Frequently asked questions
Who keeps the central data up to date?
Agree that in advance. At Koopmans the configurator is under a service contract with us. When something is added, we supply the 3D models.
Does the buyer see the same thing at every dealer?
The same central catalogue, with each dealer choosing their own selection. With the logo and prices of that dealer. That way the buyer chooses from what their dealer can deliver.
Sources and accountability
- The example comes from the Koopmans Meubelen case. The configurator runs on jouweigentafel.nl.
- The figure of more than 400 dealers comes from that case.
- Our advice on these trade-offs is based on this project.
- These sources give no measured result for what this yields in sales per dealer.
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