EXPANDO global

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the export manager for a cosmetics company. We sell skin care products online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with EXPANDO global?

We decided to start selling our products on Amazon. We chose EXPANDO global to help us through the process of setting up and managing an Amazon seller account.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

EXPANDO global set up our account with Amazon’s Brand Registry. They approved each product we chose to sell in our initial portfolio. Currently, the team optimizes each product’s name, description, pictures, and other forms of representational marketing. They merge identical products with different Amazon ASINs and troubleshoot problems we have during the selling process. They even taught one of our team members how to handle Amazon’s ordering and shipping logistics. EXPANDO global also files cases of trademark infringement against accounts that we suspect are selling fake duplicates of our products.

What is the team composition?

We work primarily with Vojtech (E-Commerce Manager, EXPANDO global) who serves as our account manager. He addresses any issues personally or delegates tasks to other team members.

How did you come to work with EXPANDO global?

A consultant—who’s also an acquaintance of EXPANDO global’s leadership—recommended their team to us. We held meetings together and felt they were the right partner to take on our project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2018, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

EXPANDO global met all of our requirements. Thanks to their work, we now have a working selling account on Amazon. They continue to provide valuable support services.

How did EXPANDO global perform from a project management standpoint?

They are organized and fulfill every task on time in full detail. The project has progressed smoothly from start to finish.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team is young, dynamic, and full of excellent communicators. Vojtech, in particular, is highly open, helpful, and accessible. We keep in touch nearly every day via phone and email, and on occasion, we have in-person meetings.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re still a young company that somewhat lacks experience. On occasion, we’d run into challenges that EXPANDO global could not help us with. We’d then have to gather the appropriate information and solve those problems ourselves. They would benefit from gaining more experience and widening their service offerings.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the e-commerce manager of an online store.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with EXPANDO global?

Our company is on the smaller side—there are only about 40 of us, including the owners. We decided to outsource our marketing needs to another company. They needed to be able to directly communicate with our customers in German.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed our e-commerce platform and market technology. We do business with DIY suppliers, so we use an electronic data interchange (EDI) system to collect orders and send invoices. Our customers place an order through Amazon, and the information is pushed through to my email. Once we pack and ship the products, the system sends a closing notification to the customer. All of the tracking and administrative information is automatically transferred from our system to Amazon. It’s a very smooth operation, and they continue to support our efforts.

What is the team composition?

I mainly speak with Vojta (Marketplace Specialist, EXPANDO global), but there are many other people working in the background.

How did you come to work with EXPANDO global?

Their team reached out to see if we were interested in listing our products on Amazon and eBay. We wanted to, but we didn’t have the internal resources to commit to that initiative. About six months later, we completed the projects we’d been working on and went back to EXPANDO global. We met with their team and signed a contract.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2018, and it’s an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We can work much faster with the new automated system. I’m happy with the results.

How did EXPANDO global perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re responsive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They help me with whatever I need. They're willing to explain all of their decisions and processes.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could be a bit quicker in alerting me when customers want to return their products. Then I could refund their purchase sooner.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We manufacture mobile phone accessories in China. We primarily sell B2B.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with EXPANDO global?

We wanted to expand our B2C sales on Amazon. We decided to hire an agency to deal with everything but the shipping.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We give them information about our products including pictures, stock availability, and shipping options. EXPANDO global takes that information and creates postings on Amazon for our products. They manage all orders, reviews, and customer care comments. I get back from them only the data needed to ship the orders. They take care of everything else throughout the process. I believe they do some marketing as well to make sure the products are seen on Amazon.

What is the team composition?

I work with two members of their team.

How did you come to work with EXPANDO global?

We had an e-shop and they reached out to me about their Amazon services. It took off from there.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around €8,000 (approximately $9,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together about a year ago and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Most of what we’d tried before on Amazon wasn't successful. Thanks to EXPANDO global, we’ve now got some revenue coming from sales on Amazon. B2C is still a very small percentage of the business, but without their help we wouldn’t have this revenue stream at all. We’re developing a new product for Amazon for next year based on this early success.   

How did EXPANDO global perform from a project management standpoint?

I don't hear much about what they’re doing on their end, which is actually a good thing. I get brief information to make sure the operation is running smoothly. From what I see, things are working well. We’re happy with them, and we will be continuing with them as a supplier for next year.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have excellent knowledge of Amazon. I was trying to manage sales on Amazon myself but was lacking the know-how. They’ve brought in new orders since day one.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not that I can say.