OfficeMax streamlines B2B e-commerce site

NAPERVILLE, Ill. — OfficeMax has launched a new search engine with content and navigation improvements on its OfficeMax WorkplaceSM business-to-business e-commerce site, OfficeMaxWorkplace.com. Since phasing in improvements last month, all aimed to deliver a streamlined online shopping experience, the site has experienced increases in conversion rate, average revenue per visit and positive customer feedback.

OfficeMax Workplace enlisted input from its business customers to help identify and validate upgrades that were most important to help organizations gain greater efficiency and control of their online procurement processes.

"Listening to our customers to help shape these search and navigation upgrades further supports our commitment to being a strategic partner and delivering solutions that help address the needs of their businesses," said John Kenning, EVP and president of OfficeMax Workplace. "Our customers are telling us how much they enjoy shopping on our improved site, and how quick and convenient the shopping experience is."

New site features include re-organized shopping categories to more closely align with how customers shop on the site, as well as type-ahead text which more accurately anticipates customer queries and showcases recommendations on products, brands and other search terms. OfficeMax Workplace also added thousands of product pages and updated thousands of product characteristics to make products more visible and help customers more quickly refine, sort and view their product searches based on parameters such as brand, color and relevant product attributes.

"Search and navigation are key for our customers to be able to purchase what they need quickly and conveniently to get back to the task of running their businesses," said Jim Barr, OfficeMax EVP and chief digital officer. "These improvements are also crucial for our success as an Internet product and solutions provider, and represent our long-term commitment to providing e-commerce solutions for our business-to-business customers."

The search engine and navigation upgrades are among many ongoing improvements that OfficeMax Workplace is making to its business-to-business e-commerce platforms. Late last year, OfficeMax Workplace launched a new site design to make the procurement process easier and more intuitive. Thousands of new products were also added in the first quarter.