Spadel: a new CRM to better meet the needs of the field

Jan 10, 2024

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SAP

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Thanks to the new SAP Cloud for Customer CRM, the Spadel group’s sales teams are now equipped with a more efficient tool to carry out their mission. delaware took care of the implementation. Here’s how the collaboration went.

Project details

Client: Spadel, regional leader in natural mineral water brands.
Challenge: The use of a hybrid CRM solution without effective integration between the back and front end, causing issues in data synchronization.
Solution: Implementation of SAP’s CRM Cloud For Customer (C4C).

From Belgian Heritage to Global Success

With well-known brands like Bru and Spa, the Spadel group’s natural mineral water brands have always been part of our Belgian heritage. But the company’s strong positioning, along with its local brands, has turned it into a successful international player as well.

Xavier Broucke, IT Business Partner at Spadel, explains: “We produce natural mineral waters and beverages created with this same mineral water. We are active in Belgium, of course, but also in France, in the Netherlands and in Bulgaria. What makes us special? The quality of our waters along with a local approach to production and distribution. This is why our various production centers are located in the immediate vicinity of our water sources. Sustainable development is one of our core values: all five of our brands have obtained B Corp certification, demonstrating our commitment to combine economic success with positive social and environmental impact.”

New heights in CRM

To distribute these brands in their various markets, Spadel’s sales teams need high-performance tools. That’s why Xavier and his team decided to take their CRM and its 120 users to the next level. ”Until now we were using a hybrid solution, with no integration of the back and front office. This sometimes caused problems with data synchronization. And since the solution didn’t fully satisfy their needs, our sales reps were also working manually in Excel sheets, which wasn’t ideal.”

After scanning the market, the Spadel group chose SAP’s CRM Cloud For Customer (C4C). “This is a unique tool that integrates not only the back and front office, but also Perfect Store. Perfect Store is a system for evaluating the point of sales. A score is given to each store, and the sales rep can analyze its evolution based on criteria defined by the management. This is interesting for our sales team because it allows them to prepare their store visits more efficiently by easily visualizing the levers on which they need to act.”

A natural choice based on competences and existing collaborations

To implement this new CRM, Xavier and the Spadel group turned to delaware. “delaware was already our partner for other SAP tools, which opens the door to potential integrations between these tools and the new CRM. Given the quality of our collaboration, their advanced knowledge of SAP C4C, but also of the realities of the retail sector, they were the natural choice”, explains Xavier. “Right from the first contact, their approach and input quickly convinced our sales teams, because they were speaking their language. Another important point for us: delaware proposed to stick as much as possible to the tool’s standards, in order to limit maintenance time and to evolve more easily. And if this proved impossible, they developed alternative customized solutions… allowing us to fully meet our users’ expectations.”

The seven 3-week sprints allowed us to complete this phase in the project on time and to integrate feedback from key users. They were able to follow the tool’s deployment and evolution almost in real time, thanks to the demos and testing.

Simon Depuydt, SAP Customer Experience Lead

The Agile method and involvement of key users

It was Simon Depuydt, SAP Customer Experience Lead, who led this project on the delaware side. “This SAP C4C implementation had to be done quickly, while also taking into account the specific needs of users. Therefore, the first step in our journey was to organize workshops with key users. The objective was to define CRM functionalities that truly matched the needs in the field.”

In the same pragmatic logic of efficiency, Simon and delaware recommended the Agile method. The ambition? Completing go-live in just 6 months. Simon: “The seven 3-week sprints allowed us to complete this phase in the project on time and to integrate feedback from key users. They were able to follow the tool’s deployment and evolution almost in real time, thanks to the demos and testing.”

Satisfied users

Six months after the project was launched, the sales team at Spadel’s Belgian entity were able to take advantage of their new CRM, which clearly meets their expectations. Xavier: “The feedback is very positive. The integration of different functionalities in one tool is an important step forward for our sales representatives. The sales team can use the CRM online and in real time, using only a laptop equipped with a 4G card. This eliminates the need both for manual synchronization and parallel data encoding. The integration of Perfect Store also simplifies store visits for the sales reps. Another relevant indicator: the number of open IT tickets for CRM has dramatically decreased since the launch of SAP C4C.”

“The involvement of the Spadel team also made a big difference to the project’s success,” adds Xavier. “Each of our employees, from their position, has made an essential contribution. The right skills and enthusiasm have fostered its progression and expansion, influencing all levels of the organization: IT, sales, management, etc.” 

The sales team can use the CRM online and in real time. This eliminates the need for manual synchronization and parallel data encoding. Another relevant indicator: the number of open IT tickets for CRM has dramatically decreased since the launch of SAP C4C.

Xavier Broucke, IT Business Partner at Spadel

Other projects on track

Following this first successful go-live in June 2023 in Belgium, Spadel’s teams and delaware have also deployed the solution in the group’s French and Dutch divisions, in October and November respectively. “The aim of this project was also to harmonize the process between the different countries and to create synergies between our entities. In addition to the maintenance and follow-up operations that delaware continues to provide, other projects are also on track, based on our strategic roadmap and evolutions in the market. This includes the creation of links with other applications, for example with our customer loyalty programs, the pursuit of automation to reduce encoding time, and the reporting of data recorded in the CRM: Perfect Store rating, contracts, promotions, productivity reports, and so on.”