E-Commerce Solutions
E-Commerce & The Metals Industry, Sales Assisted Simulated E-Commerce, Promotional Ideas

Website Administration
Manage Web Information

Website Utilities
Metals Calculator, Metric Conversion, Materials Data

Metal Suppliers Online
About, Vendor Activity Report, Banner Advertising

Marketing Tools
Your Company Weight Calculator

Informational Tools
MSO Plus!

Consulting
Media Services, Visibility, Newsletter, Broadcast Email

Downloads
Automated Weight Calculator

Contact
Phone, Fax, Email, Address

Appendix II - NAAD Member Websites

Appendix III - Internet Metals Linking Sites

Appendix IV - Recommended Reading

The Internet Today

This year, E-commerce will account for roughly $20 billion in sales. By the year 2000, it is estimated that this number will exceed $50 billion. As impressive as these numbers are and as excited as Wall Street seems to be about the future of Ecommerce, a more careful analysis reveals some interesting facts.

The companies that are now doing big business on the Internet are primarily retail catalog businesses. For companies like LL Bean, J Crew, Tower Records and CD Now, the Internet is simply another way to leverage their existing marketing plans. All of these organizations are retail merchants that already publish their prices and outside of fast delivery, provide little or no value-added service.

By comparison, the metals service center industry lives and dies by value-added service and no one that we know of currently publishes their pricing. Add to this the inherently conservative nature of our business and I think that it's fair to say that the promise of E-commerce for our industry is still a year or two away.

Accepting this reality, we feel that many in the industry might opt to back away from the Internet in general but this would be a mistake. While the market may not be ready for full-blown commerce on the Internet, there is a strong argument to be made for the development and maintenance of a professional and functional website. Further, a Simulated Ecommerce system can be put in place today that will provide the functionality, (without the expense of a full Enterprise server) all the while keeping a live salesperson in the loop.

The Future of the Internet

Source: Purchasing Online Internet Report (available in full text at www.purchasing.com)

Count on this: The majority of purchasing professionals will be conducting transactions over the Internet within a year or two.

That said, purchasing pros who are buying online today are still a minority, but their numbers are growing very quickly. PURCHASING's most recent reader survey reveals that 25% of purchasing pros currently are conducting transactions over the Internet. But within the next year, a total of 59% of polled purchasers will be buying online. By 2002, 90% of survey respondents will be buying over the Internet, according to the results of our survey.

Companies planning to still be around within 5 years, however, should take this information as a call to action and start working TODAY to maximize their efforts on the Internet.

Eight Essential Steps You MUST Take Today

• Get on the Internet and get comfortable with it

• Give your employees access to the Internet

• Form an Internet Strategy Team

• Identify Internet experts and contract them

• Build and constantly improve on your company website

• Promote your company website

• Check your email every 5 minutes

• Respond to EVERY email quickly

Website Essentials

Whether you already have a website, or plan to build one soon, examine these factors closely.

1.) High Visibility - Clients old and new should be able to find your website quickly. If they cannot, all your work is wasted.

Research and understand the search engines

• Yahoo (www.yahoo.com)
• Alta Vista (www.altavista.com)
• Lycos (www.lycos.com)
• InfoSeek (www.infoseek.com)
• HotBot (www.hotbot.com)
• Excite (www.excite.com)
• Go To (www.goto.com)

• Research, understand and utilize Meta, Title, Description and Alt Image Tags

• Construct and implement an aggressive search engine registration schedule

• Examine the Metals Industry Internet Portals and consider a company listing

• E-Steel (www.esteel.com)
• MetalSite (www.metalsite.com)
• Metal Suppliers Online (www.suppliersonline.com)
• Purchasing Magazine (www.purchasing.com)

2.) Attractive Layout

• Website should carry the look and feel of other corporate literature
• Minimize photos, maximize small file size graphics - photos take too long to open
• Work within a 640 x 480 screen size - imagine your website as viewed on a 5 year old laptop.
• Minimize the use of Frames in your site - they confuse the search engines AND printers
• Be careful of links - they can lead to the competition

3.) Tell the Story

• Page One - Who are you, what does your company offer?

4.) Easy Navigation

• Simple and Consistent Navigation buttons to move through the site

5.) Information Rich

• Company Information - History, Policies, Contacts, Products, Services
• Product Information - Machinability, Weldability, Formability, Heat Treatment, Chemistry
• Utilities - Weight Calculation, Metric Conversion, Hardness Conversion

Website Development - Phase One

At phase one, put together an Internet Strategy Team (IST). Pull together key individuals from management, marketing/ sales, accounting and production. Establish a meeting schedule (at least once monthly) and give the team a budget.

Task the IST with examining all areas of the Internet, not just your corporate website. Individual team members should be asked to examine your competition on the web, technology issues and other areas that can be of value to your company, including using the Internet as an information resource for your employees and as a venue for buying and selling prime and surplus metal.

Sections History/ Mission/ Welcome Products Services Divisions - Driving Directions RFQ/ RFL Employment Opportunities Contact

Goals

• Construct a company website/ Examine your company's current website
• Attract new and current clients to the site - Promotion
• Provide visitors with online information resource to free up customer service personnel
• Begin to transact business via online RFQ's

Resources

• Surf the web and see what the team likes and dislikes
• Listen to your team members
• Go to Website Garage (www.websitegarage.com) and subscribe to the Web Site Journal

Website Development - Phase Two

Additions

• Content - Product data, Utilities, Credit Application
• Registration Requirement - With Required Fields
• Cookies - To Track user visits and interests
• Administration Screens - To inform marketing of user activity
• Recommend this site to a friend
• Site Map
• Downloads - Company Catalog (pdf), Calculators, etc
• Site Contests

Goals

• Use the website to gather demographic and user data to empower sales
• Re-examine your phase one website and consider re-design and additional content

Website Development Phase Three

Additions

• Build Simulated E-Commerce

Goals

• Transact business on your corporate website
• Re-examine your phase one website and consider re-design and additional content
• Measure Customer Interest in E-Commerce for better decision making on the timing of Step 4 - full blown E-Commerce

Website Development - Phase Four

Additions

• Full Blown E-Commerce
• Hire a Full Time Webmaster
• Consider Hosting the site in-house
• Consider a Corporate Intranet
• Consider Corporate Extranets with Key Clients

Goals

• Streamline order processing
• Create a more scalable operation
• Create more value for clients
• Use knowledge gained to customize your client's experience at your website

Closing Remarks

In closing, I hope that this presentation will be a call to action. While you have yet to lose much in the way of real business yet, it is only a matter of time before your business will be strongly involved in the Internet.

Taking the time NOW to research the Internet and map out your company's own strategy is key to success. The resources are all around you on and off line. Your employees, for example, represent a wealth of www knowledge.