In 2011, Durabrik was the first company in the industry to develop such a platform. In 2016, it was time for a second version. To make this a reality, they partnered with Alistar.
“The first portal, launched in 2011, was very static,” IT manager Vincent Coppije explains to us in the beautiful glass conference room that stands out along the E40 in Drongen. “It basically consisted of a few simple HTML web pages for each client, onto which we then had to manually upload information each time.”. That was labor-intensive and did not allow for extensive communication with the customer.
“But that first platform was ”It's important to open the doors for this second version,", Client Service Manager Sabrine Lammers chimes in. “With that first platform, we saw a clear potential, But we were limited by the technical aspects of the project. While preparing the second version of the customer portal, both customers and employees provided important provided feedback about what they consider to be the “ideal customer portal.” Using this feedback and our experience with the first portal, we got to work and we explored how we could integrate the platform with our back office. ”That quickly led us to Microsoft SharePoint."
A personalized online platform where customers can find all the information about the construction of their home.
Vincent Coppije, IT Manager
Complete transparency
Thanks to the use of SharePoint and its integration with the back office “Compared to the company’s previous version, the current version of the customer portal contains much more information,” Sabrine explains. “It actually starts as soon as a housing development or residence goes on sale.” Once a customer has decided to build their dream home with us, we immediately create a personalized space on the portal where the customer can find all construction-related details and information about their home. We provide them with intensive support at every stage of construction. For example, when we’re in the window measurement phase, we let them know via the portal that it’s normal for them to see less activity on the job site itself during this phase, but that we’re working hard for them behind the scenes. Whereas our clients used to receive that overwhelming amount of information all at once during the startup phase, they now see it appear exactly when they need it. That's much more convenient and transparent for our customers, and it makes the whole process more dynamic. ”Communication is going more smoothly."
A Win-Win for Everyone
Doesn't this new platform require a lot more effort from employees? “Quite the opposite,” Sabrine laughs. “It's also much more enjoyable for our employees to work here. Creating the portals is a breeze, and thanks to SharePoint, everything is linked to the back office. Publishing content on the platform is just a matter of a few clicks. The information on the customer portal is also more personalized. That user-friendliness was an important requirement for the new platform. Not only for our IT department, but also for our employees and customers.
SharePoint is an effective tool, but it looks a bit complicated and dry. That's why we asked our web design agency to give it an attractive makeover. After all, it has to be visually appealing, too.
The decision to choose Alistar as a partner for this special project
That extra touch of design was what made the difference for Durabrik an important reason to partner with Alistar. “Alistar was, of course, first and foremost an expert in SharePoint,” Vincent explains. “But they aren’t just SharePoint experts or purely web app developers. They also have ...as well as considerable expertise in other areas such as ERP and CRM. That solution-oriented approach was the deciding factor for us. Another thing I found very appealing about Alistar was their exceptional openness. For us, it was It was important that our new platform be consistent with our redesigned website. That's why we wanted to We would like to continue working with our current graphic design agency. If you have a solid brand identity and a marketing style that has been managed by the same agency for years, it would be foolish to just suddenly start working with a different agency for this new platform. This wasn't a problem at all for Alistar. On the contrary, ”It turned out that they often entered into these kinds of partnerships and even encouraged them."
From our very first meeting with Alistar, we sensed that they wanted to strive for the ideal situation and listen to our needs.
“Some agencies can be a bit rigid. They’ll say right away, ‘That’s not possible.’ At moments like that, I start to feel bad about myself, you know! (Laughs) That wasn’t the case at all with Alistar. We had very clear expectations, precisely because we knew the shortcomings of the first platform so well. But they went ”always looking for solutions."
A Smooth Collaboration
According to Vincent, everything also went very smoothly during the development of the new platform: “At least two days a week, three Alistar employees came to work at our office.”. That shorter route was a relief. ”It made it much easier for us to test and fine-tune everything.“ Sabrine recalls a minor issue. "There was something about the project that didn't sit right with me. At Durabrik, we're always encouraged to speak up about how we feel, so I do the same with external partners. That was well received at the time, ”And they really listened to me. That's fantastic."
Positive reactions
Internally, everyone at Durabrik is excited about the new platform and Alistar's work. But, even more importantly, according to Sabrine, it’s clearly catching on with customers as well. “At the beginning of this year, there were only a few listings on the new platform. And yet, there have already been more than a thousand logins. The number of views is also very high. People aren’t just taking a quick look and then never coming back. No, The platform is really being used extensively. ”We are very satisfied with the new customer portal, but we are always open to feedback from our customers."
Whether Durabrik would collaborate with Alistar again turns out to be a moot point. “We’re already doing it,” Vincent laughs. “Every now and then, things come up that we want to adapt to the platform, and we can quickly turn to Alistar for that.”. ”But in the meantime, they're also helping us with other solutions within the company, such as the extensive automation of our system updates."
