Whether you are a multi-brand or multi-region global brand, the rise of D2C commerce has changed customer behavior and demands a redefined strategy, a transformed digital experience, and a more customer-centric approach. Data is the most important part of modern commerce, and data-driven decision-making can be very difficult if data is siloed between dozens of different ERP, eCommerce applications, and CRM systems.
The most successful multi-brand corporations, including VF Corporation, Active Brands, and L’Oreal, have consolidated their dozens of brands under simplified ecosystems that enable them to do more with less and be more data-driven in their decision-making process.
Multiple systems and siloed data with high Total Cost of Ownership are typical challenges for multi-brand companies
When one company has multiple teams and multiple eCommerce platforms, including Magento, WebSphere, WooCommerce, or other platforms, gathering data and controlling multiple vendors can be impossible. Multi-brand companies usually have a common goal of growing and being profitable. This strategy requires data, and all the data should be available in real-time to support the decision-making process.
Managing multiple systems and multiple vendors means that the total cost of ownership is often much higher than managing a consolidated ecosystem.
Digital transformation starts with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). We’ve heard how some agencies promote launching multi-brand sites in a very tight timeframe, just three weeks before Black Friday. This is not the best practice and need to be honest. Re-platforming drops organic visibility temporarily, and the best practice is to launch the first site during a season when traffic is naturally low.
If your company has 30 brands in 35 different locations, the best practice is to launch a single brand in a single location as an MVP and gradually extend to different brands and locations step by step, giving you more time to test and train local teams to use new applications.
Salesforce Commerce Cloud is the most trusted Enterprise eCommerce platform
Salesforce Commerce Cloud is a leading cloud-based e-commerce platform for enterprise companies worldwide. It offers dozens of out-of-the-box functionalities that allow brands to engage with customers through hyper-personalized shopping experiences across all touchpoints.
With Salesforce Commerce Cloud’s analytics and Data Cloud, brands can make data-driven decisions more easily and optimize their conversion funnels by leveraging best practices to drive revenue.
There are three different ways to launch multiple brands and/or multiple regional websites on Salesforce Commerce Cloud
Single-Realm Architecture:
The Single-Realm approach streamlines merchandising, development, QA, support, and maintenance for brands. This architecture model is suitable for smaller teams who work collaboratively on schedules, processes, and priorities. In Single-Realm architecture, teams from different brands and regions share an admin, sandbox, and development environment. Creating individual control at the site level is nearly impossible, but smaller teams who work together can be more efficient and streamline scalability.
Pros:
- Smaller teams can be more efficient
- Lower cost to implement and maintain multiple storefronts
Cons:
- Customizing individual sites is hard to do and maintain
- Roll-out or release of global code affects all sites
Multi-Realm Architecture:
The multi-Realm architecture allows unique storefront customization for all websites with separate admin, sandboxes, and development environments for each brand, team, or region. Typically, multiple teams are required to develop and maintain each individual storefront separately. Multi-Realm architecture is optimal for multi-brand companies whose portfolio companies do not work collaboratively, and brands have their individual strategies and teams.
Pros:
- Flexibility to maintain multiple sites separately
- The global code will not affect all brands
Cons:
- Higher maintenance costs
- Dozens of separate sandboxes are required for the development and maintenance
Headless Commerce:
Headless Commerce enables native app kind of performance and reduces maintenance costs in the future. For example, with Salesforce PWA Kit or Vue Storefront, Headless Commerce is seamless to launch but requires a lot of architectural and design work to be successful. With a Headless approach, all brands have their own unique storefront on all devices. Headless Commerce can be implemented using both Single-Realm or Multi-Realm architecture.
Pros:
- Lower maintenance costs
- Native app kind of performance
- Future-proof architecture
Cons:
- Higher implementation costs
- Team and tech complexity
- Products and content are managed separately.
Cross-cloud platforms can significantly improve workflow efficiency by unifying all systems and providing a 360-degree view of customers. All data is consolidated in one place, making it readily available for use by both brands and customers.
Salesforce Sales Cloud
Sales Cloud is a cloud-based Customer Relationship Management (CRM) application that manages B2B and B2C data on a single platform, enabling automated sales and communication workflows.
Salesforce Marketing Cloud
Marketing Cloud leverages real-time data to engage customers and personalize their journey across all channels. With real-time data and automated workflows, brands can make data-driven decisions resulting in a 27% decrease in customer acquisition costs.
Salesforce Service Cloud
Service Cloud utilizes AI to answer customer questions such as “Where’s my parcel” or help customers find the products they’re looking for. Sales Cloud increases customer service teams’ efficiency, allowing them to focus on tasks that require human attention.
Mulesoft
Mulesoft’s Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) allows brands to seamlessly integrate legacy systems like ERP and other software with SaaS and cloud-based applications, using a low-code or no-code approach.
Digital Commerce Advisor is a global commerce consulting firm with expertise in multi-brand implementations on Salesforce Commerce Cloud. Whether it’s Single-Realm, Multi-Realm, or Headless, we can help you find the right approach for your business. Our resources include Mulesoft expertise, which integrates legacy systems with Cloud applications, and Marketing Cloud and Service Cloud capabilities to improve your customer experience across all channels.