Dawson Rorick, USWeb/CKS, 415/369-6719
[email protected]
USWeb/CKS Helps Build Williams-Sonoma�s E-commerce Site
Effort Involves Strategy, Marketing and Technology to Create Intuitive, Elegant Online Shopping Experience
San Francisco - November 10, 1999 - USWeb/CKS (Nasdaq: USWB), the leader in Internet professional services, today announced its work in helping Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM), the premier home-centered specialty retailer in the United States, to launch its E-commerce site at www.williams-sonoma.com.
Bringing �A Place for Cooks� online is the second project in an ongoing relationship between USWeb/CKS and Williams-Sonoma that began with the launch of the Williams-Sonoma Online Wedding and Gift Registry in June of this year.
�We were so pleased with the strategic and technical work that USWeb/CKS did with our bridal registry that we awarded them those projects and thee creative work on our general E-commerce site,� said Pat Connolly, executive vice president and general manager of Williams-Sonoma�s direct-to-customer division. �It has been a pleasure to watch them take our brand and products to the Internet while maintaining the experience that our customers have with our stores and catalogs.�
USWeb/CKS, based in San Francisco, provided the strategic online expertise, creative and user interface design, systems integration and transactional engine for the Web site. USWeb/CKS also handled the strategic integration of Williams-Sonoma�s legacy systems with the Internet and devised the platform that enabled such functions as transactions, order tracking and logistics. Additionally, USWeb/CKS worked closely with Williams-Sonoma�s brand managers to ensure that the site complemented the company�s catalogs and retail stores.
�This has been a fantastic project,� said Krishnan Menon, managing partner, global accounts of USWeb/CKS. �It has been very satisfying to watch our retail expertise help a brick-and-mortar company link their disparate channels in order to service their customers in an entirely new way. For example, Williams-Sonoma customers can now order products online and return them in the stores if need be. We�ve closed the loop between their stores, their catalog and the Internet.�
Robert Shaw, CEO of USWeb/CKS added, �This truly demonstrates the efficiencies of Time-to-Value that only an integrated firm can produce. Our ability to offer our clients strategy, technology and marketing services enables them to move at digital speed instead of engaging several different firms. Independent firms need to learn to work together before they can produce results. We�re already at that point as soon as we walk in the door.�
The project involved 32 USWeb/CKS employees from offices in San Francisco, Cupertino, Los Angeles, Milwaukee and New York.
The new site will offer the following:
- the capacity to ship gifts to multiple addresses on one order;
- the ability to review the status of all Williams-Sonoma orders (catalog and Internet) online and the advantage of real-time inventory, so customers will instantaneously know if an item is out of stock or on back order at the time of purchase; and,
- items ordered online can be returned at any Williams-Sonoma retail store location.
The Web site is also user-friendly. Customers may look for products in one of four ways:
- "Shop"- The Web site presents clear photos and easy-to-read graphics of more than 2,000 of Williams-Sonoma's most popular items.
- "Seasonal features" Williams-Sonoma recipes, tips, and techniques for Thanksgiving, Christmas and the Millennium with links to suggested products. The site will have a full Thanksgiving menu, recommendations for Christmas and Millennium cooking and entertaining, including recipes for soups, a gingerbread house, and more.
- "Gift ideas" Williams-Sonoma recommended products, both by interest (e.g. Italian cooking, holiday baking) and by price.
- "Search" Customers who know exactly what they want may enter the product name and search the entire Williams-Sonoma online product assortment.
About Williams-Sonoma
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is a national specialty retailer of high quality kitchenware and other products for the home. These products are marketed through more than 335 retail stores and five mail order catalogs representing five distinct merchandising strategies: Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Hold Everything and Chambers. The company is headquartered in San Francisco. For more information, visit our corporate Web site -- www.williamssonomainc.com -- or call 415/421-7900.
About USWeb/CKS
USWeb/CKS (Nasdaq: USWB) seeks to transform businesses in the digital economy and create sustainable market leadership for its clients. As the leading Internet professional services firm, USWeb/CKS has created a new standard for success in the digital economy � Time-to-Value. Time-to-Value means USWeb/CKS applies its extensive insight, experience and scale to deliver breakthrough results quickly. The Company is headquartered in San Francisco, with more than 4,000 professionals in over 50 locations worldwide. Additional information about USWeb/CKS is by calling 415/284-7070.