November 02,
2006
Component
Websites Grow in Popularity
A
growing number of component buyers are shifting to websites to specify or
purchase components. While component sellers have long presented their parts on
the internet, many buyers have favored the paper catalog. In recent years,
however, more and more component customers are shifting to websites to find
their parts. “We now have over 50 percent of our orders coming from the
internet,” says Steve Tsukichi, vice president of
marketing at Digi-Key. “The percentage of customers using the website has been
growing each year, and we don’t know where it’s going to stop.”
Tsukichi notes that many of Digi-Key’s customers use the print
catalog as well as the website. “We believe there is a lot of synergy between
our print catalog and the website,” says Tsukichi. “Our customers have told us
they don’t want the print catalog to go away.” He explains that many customers
will find something they like in the print catalog, go to the web for more
information on the component, then pick up the phone and call in the order.
One of the reasons Digi-Key’s website is popular with customers is
because it offers a wider range of components than the print catalog could
possible hold. “Our print catalog has 270,000 parts, while our website has 700,000
parts,” says Tsukichi. “Plus we don’t stock all of the parts we offer.” So the
non-stock parts can be found on the website only. Plus, the website offers
parts that have been added to Digi-Key’s line in between paper catalog
printings.
Newark InOne has also
experienced a substantial surge in web usage in recent years. “We have
continually monitored the number of unique visitors to our website and it has
increased over the last year. We’ve seen probably a 100 percent increase in the
past two years,” says Susan Fischer, senior vice president of marketing and
ecommerce at Newark InOne. She notes that many of those who buy through
channels such as e-procurement, use the website to specify their parts.
She notes that part of the reason the website is getting increase
use is because it presents more information on the parts than the catalog.
Customers also use the website and catalog in tandem. They will find the part
they want in the catalog, then they will go to the website to check price and
availability.
The website has also gained in popularity because new products are
introduced on the website between catalog printings. “We recently announced
Analog Devices as a new line card, so we feature their products on the
website,” says Fischer. “Since the catalog comes out annually, the new lines
are not always in the catalog.”
Fischer explains that buyers tend to choose the website because
it’s faster than the catalog. “Design engineers may not know the existing SKU
of a component because they’re building something new,” says Fischer. “They can
find what they want faster on the website, so they are less dependent on the
catalog.”
Those buying maintenance and repair products also favor the
website these days. “When maintenance and repair people look for a part, they
have the broken part in their hand and they’re paging through the catalog
trying to find something that looks like it,” says Fischer. “In focus groups
they tell us that the quickest thing to do is pick up the phone and go to the
website.”
In past years, websites were favored by younger buyers, while
those in their 50s and 60s tended to prefer the print catalog or the phone.
Fischer says the days when younger workers were more tech savvy are over. “A
couple years ago our focus groups and analytics showed that younger people’s
use of the web was higher, but what we see now is that it comes down to
convenience,” says Fischer. “If the web is easier to use, anyone will use it.”
Both Newark InOne and Digi-Key emphasize their commitment to
producing a print catalog. “Newark InOne will continue to increase the catalog
circulation because it reinforces the brand,” says Fischer. “The catalog paints
a beautiful picture. If you open up the pages, it tells you who we are and why
you should buy from us.”
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