Diamant
Implementation and technical support of eCommerce for a sugar producer integrated with SAP
About sweet e-commerce and our task
For the Diamant brand, one of the most recognizable sugar brands in Poland, we designed and implemented eCommerce in Magento 2.0 technology integrated with SAP. After implementation, we have been providing comprehensive SLA support and carrying out development work for over 6 years.
eShop before changes
Initially, eCommerce was built to serve individual customers and orders from the beekeeping and agricultural markets using Magento 1.0 technology. After several years of use, it required refreshing both in terms of UX and technology. It was as a result of this need that we were invited to cooperate.
Advisory Process
When starting work, we “recreated” the list of functionalities based on the working eCommerce in Magento 1.0. In addition, by analyzing the source code and integration methods, we learned the key principles of the platform’s operation before the changes. In the preparatory process, we conducted an analysis of purchasing behavior and processes on the platform in order to better adapt solutions to the specific needs of users. In particular:
- we discussed strategic and sales assumptions
- we discussed product trees and product specifics
- we analyzed the types and needs of personas based on historical events on the e-shop
- we developed a list of views and development functionalities in the context of servicing large business Clients
Strategy Workshops and Creation of Functional Specifications
In the next stage, we conducted a series of strategic workshops with departments involved in eCommerce support at Pffeiffer&Langen (including the logistics team, customer service team, IT team and marketing team). During the meetings, we gathered detailed guidelines for new functionalities and necessary integrations.
Among the unique and at the same time difficult functionalities that we have prepared for implementation, it is worth mentioning:
- Advanced system for selecting types of bulk packaging depending on the type of product, types of collective packaging and the related logic for selecting the type of forwarding company (including bucket logistics, mini packaging logistics)
- Shipments carried out from different warehouses in different sugar factories throughout Poland
- Changes in the native operation of the Magento 2.0 basket
- Advanced price list management system for individual customer groups
- Extensive system of temporary promotions, combining products into packages together with the analytics of these promotions
- Extensive system for publishing information for users in the form of a pop-up with the possibility of setting publication times, display length and “assigning” to specific subpages or product types
Analysis of SAP integration and external integrations
Integration with SAP is always a big challenge. In the case of the Diamant project, the exchange of information with SAP takes place in real time (including inventory levels, issuing documents, exchanging orders). Price lists are updated on request or once a day. The key difficulty we faced in the project was converting the product price from Euro in the SAP system to PLN prices (it seemed trivial, but in sugar prices 4 decimal places are important and this is where the problems started :)). Thanks to the joint work with the Client’s IT team, we managed to solve this problem.
Designing
and creating clickable desktop mockups
We designed 82 unique desktop views and 23 additional screens. As part of the documentation, we first prepared low-fidelity mockups, then fully clickable prototypes of both user views before and after logging in. The implementation documentation was supplemented by the SAP integration specification – with the Client’s IT department playing a major role in implementing endpoints on the SAP side.
Design and creation of
clickable mobile mockups
For most desktop views, we also made mobile designs – as standard, we prepare a separate, clickable prototype in Figma showing the behavior on iOS and Android systems. Due to the significant mobile traffic, mobile views are often even more important than desktop. In the case of Diamant, due to the specificity of orders, the traffic came mainly from desktop devices, which is why we arranged the design in this order.
- Integration specification – here, Diamant’s internal IT department played a major role by preparing endpoints on the SAP side, including solving a major problem regarding price conversion (with many decimal places)
- Content specification for the Client – guidelines on how to prepare the content
- Test content – in this case, we had an easier task because the test content could be the content contained on the “old” e-shop
Implementation work of the platform
The implementation of the platform took about 1 year, with the key problem we encountered being the need to change the native functions of the basket in order to meet the specific expectations of the Client. Among other things, we made changes to the structure of the basket, changed standard shipping methods and developed a module for downloading dedicated price lists. For the implementation, a test version of SAP was launched, which we connected to by integrating it with our test environment.
Preparing for publication
Before moving to LIVE, eCommerce underwent a process of supplementing content and rigorous testing.
- Manual testing in a test environment – we performed testing work according to purchase scenarios prepared by the Diamant service department
- Load testing – our server administrator performed speed tests and load tests, also in terms of information exchange with SAP
- Checking prices and product exposure
- After moving to live, we conducted another scenario testing on LIVE
Sweet words about our cooperation
Nice words about our cooperation were expressed by the members of the team with whom we implemented the project. At such a moment we feel that we work not only for money ?
Post-implementation
support
We have been providing technical support for the system for over 6 years. During this time, there have been several failures caused by external factors, which were however detected by our team and urgent corrective actions were taken. In addition, due to technological changes, we have upgraded the Diamant platform to the next version in the meantime.
During the work, we maintain high standards of work culture and continuity of knowledge, i.e.:
- Development work is carried out in a 1:1 test environment in relation to the LIVE version integrated with the SAP test environment
- All graphic changes are first introduced to clickable mockups in Figma, the so-called master, and checked for their impact on UX e-commerce
- We have implemented a key function monitoring system that tests e-commerce operation every 1 hour
- We maintain a code repository
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