The Challenge
Build-A-Bear is a multi-generational global brand focused on its mission to “add a little more heart to life,” appealing to a wide array of consumer groups who enjoy the personal expression in making their own “furry friends” to celebrate and commemorate life moments. Nearly 500 interactive brick-and-mortar experience locations operated through various formats provide guests of all ages a hands-on, entertaining experience, which often fosters a lasting and emotional brand connection.
The company offers multiple e-commerce/digital purchasing experiences on www.buildabear.com, including its online “Bear-Builder” configurator, the animated “Bear Builder 3D Workshop,” and its age-gated adult-focused “Bear Cave”. In addition, the brand recently announced its first steps into Web3 with an NFT offering as part of the 25th-anniversary celebration and the metaverse with developing a digital game for a leading platform. Build-A-Bear’s success in the digital space has been recognized, having been named to lists that include America’s Best Online Shops, America’s Fastest Growing Online Shops, and America's Best Trending Online Shops, all awarded by Newsweek and Statista.
"We believe that expanding our strategic partnership with Salesforce can be transformative for our digital business," said Sharon Price John, Build-A-Bear Workshop President and Chief Executive Officer. "By leveraging Salesforce's data-driven and intelligent Customer 360, we anticipate accelerating our growth by delivering highly personalized consumer experiences for every guest across every channel."
Build-A-Bear needed a single source of truth about its customers across marketing, commerce, sales, and service, including a complete view of every guest's interaction with its brand.
Implementing Salesforce Service Cloud was essential in Build-A-Bear having a single view of the customer.
The Solution
Build-A-Bear partnered with Merkle to implement Salesforce Service Cloud. Using a phased approach, Merkle and Build-A-Bear developed a single Guest Profile that records all calls to the call center, email inquiries, web form submissions, and online and social interactions for Guest Experience management. Merkle also implemented AI-powered chatbot Einstein and Social Studio as additional customer service support channels.
With a new Salesforce ecosystem implemented, Build-A-Bear can track the number of guest inquiries and the nature of the inquiries, identify patterns in guest feedback, and optimize efficiency for resolving issues and addressing complaints. A few keys to success include:
- Streamlined ticketing system with inter-department communication
- A single view of guest interactions across any touchpoint
- A launching pad for better loyalty experiences
- The ability to answer guest email inquiries in near real-time
- Leveraging Einstein Chatbot to free up Guest Services by enabling self-service for simple inquiries
“Merkle is a trusted partner that has been a critical part of Build-A-Bear’s digital transformation.” Art Huggard, VP of Digital Technologies
A snapshot of the integrations with Service Cloud include:
- Commerce Cloud
- Marketing Cloud
- Social Studio
- Deck Commerce
