IBM Launches New Software and Consulting Services

 

The Smarter Commerce consulting practice is expected to extends IBM’s leadership and investments in business analytics and optimization. The new software and services offerings, supported by global sales and marketing resources, will address the spectrum of enterprise commerce activities – new ways to buy, sell and secure greater customer loyalty in the era of mobile and social networks.

 

IBM estimates the Smarter Commerce market opportunity at $70 billion, driven by demand from clients that must bring new levels of automation to marketing, customer engagement and sales, as well as core processes for production, fulfillment and service for much more immediate responses to changes in markets and buying trends.

 

IBM's Smarter Commerce initiatives draw on its WebSphere Commerce platform and a $2.5 billion investment in on-premise and cloud-based software from IBM's acquisitions of Sterling Commerce, Unica and Coremetrics.

 

IBM will deliver new integrated software building on these capabilities, new services, and an education initiative to arm an extensive ecosystem of partners, suppliers and customers with new skills to connect the entire Smarter Commerce ecosystem. This includes:

 

-- A new global business services consulting practice offering insights into Smarter Commerce.

-- New cloud analytics software that enables companies to monitor their brands presence in real-time through social media channels to better assess the effectiveness of new services and product offerings, fine tune marketing campaigns and create sales initiatives in real-time.

-- Software that automates a company's ability to design and deliver a personalized shopping experience, campaigns and promotions on new services and products online, or through mobile devices.

-- An "IBM University" will provide educational resources for sellers and partners to build the job skills required for the Smarter Commerce marketplace.

 

IBM is working with more than 2000 global and local brands such as global food producer Danone, McKesson, Moosejaw Mountaineering, Staples, US Lumber and 1-800-FLOWERS to ensure they are marketing to the right audience at the right time; engaging buyers seamlessly in all the right channels and mediums; maintaining inventory levels precisely aligned to demand and automating their supply chains for maximum efficiency.

 

“Being competitive today means being a lot smarter about all facets of commerce, from initial marketing efforts to customer interaction in the buying and selling phase to the product delivery and subsequent service that ensure customer satisfaction,” says Steve Bozzo, CIO of 1-800-Flowers. “We optimized our entire order lifecycle and improved the customer experience with a comprehensive solution from IBM that manages incoming orders from multiple channels like the Web and call centers in a timely accurate way.”