SMA

As a digital pioneer in the solar industry, e-commerce is a key factor in digitizing SMA’s core business. However, the previous system could no longer meet technological requirements to ensure maximum process efficiency and provide an optimal customer experience.

This project marks the beginning of consolidating four existing web presences and 17 touchpoints into a single digital customer platform that can encompass all processes. The main objectives of this consolidation were to optimize scalability, reduce backend process resource consumption, and break down data silos. Additionally, the focus was on expanding strategic opportunities for further development and internationalization. The functional expansion of the e-commerce platform is now significantly faster, and rollouts in new countries and regions can be executed much more efficiently.

During the conceptual phase, the first two sprints were specifically planned and prepared. The focus was on the UI/UX aspect to ensure that the new platform could be implemented and used as quickly as possible. For the new technological approach, existing business processes and technical workflows were partially redefined to merge previously separate processes into a unified solution.

Thanks to the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) approach, initial results could already be presented in the first sprint. The MVP approach involves developing a basic version of the final product with only the essential features, allowing for early identification of optimization potential. This ensures a strong focus on the target audience throughout the development process.

Alongside ongoing development, UX/UI and conceptual work continued - always with a time offset to create an efficient and targeted synergy between design and implementation. The initial conceptual phase aimed to execute the first sprints effectively while setting the right priorities.

Traditional and time-consuming country rollout projects are now a thing of the past for SMA—along with constant adjustments to evolving business processes in SAP & Co. The new IT architecture enables a much more customer-centric representation of SMA’s product landscape and services.

After nearly 15 months of planning and implementation, SMA successfully launched its first pilot shop in South Africa. Since then, distributors have been able to order products online or pick them up on a preferred date. In addition to the B2B e-commerce solution, SMA is currently working with diva-e on further projects set to launch soon.