The eXchange platform has been an absolute game-changer for Members of Nationwide Marketing Group since it was first introduced in early 2015. The eXchange has provided our consumer electronics and appliance retailers with a centralized online portal where they can shop thousands of the best-selling SKUs and brands that their local or national distributor may not offer. And, they get to see competing prices on products from multiple distribution sources.
All of this is supported by a sophisticated system that allows a select group of distributors to provide our Members with up-to-the-minute inventory and pricing information, and one that allows our Members to place orders from different distributors all in one transaction. None of this would be possible if it wasn’t for the incredible and constant feedback we receive from Members, and thanks to the active relationships Nationwide continues to develop with our distributor and vendor partners.
But Nationwide has always strived to evolve the platform, based on that Member feedback and our partnerships, in order to make the eXchange as efficient and effective as possible for the end-user.
With that goal in mind, Nationwide recently introduced eXchange 2.0 —  a completely refreshed eXchange experience that’s the result of countless interactions with Members and months of work on the backend. The new launch includes a number of short- and long-term initiatives that will continue to be introduced on the platform in the coming weeks and months. Let’s quickly run through them.
Short-Term Initiatives
- Website redesign. Most notably, eXchange users will notice a completely revamped website. The new design is intended to be cleaner and easier to navigate. Categories will be more defined; featured products will be visible on the homepage; Member testimonials will be scattered throughout the portal; the search function will allow users to more-easily filter down the type of products they’re looking for; pricing and availability will be front and center on product pages; and related items will appear underneath products. The eXchange was intended to be a seamless, one-stop-shop for our Members, and this redesign reflects that in every way possible.
- Addition of new verticals. As was promised at the time of the eXchange’s launch, we’re working tirelessly to expand the number of SKUs and brands available through the platform. eXchange 2.0 will feature a number of new categories and brands. Members can also expect to see new offerings from major brand names like Samsung, Palazzani (kitchen and bathroom fixtures) and TechSmart (a tech support company) in the future.
- New Member incentives. Alongside the addition of new products and verticals, we’re constantly talking with vendor and distributor partners to find ways to incentivize Members to shop on the eXchange platform. Users will find plenty of new reasons to shop on eXchange, including a new rewards program, volume rebates, DFI sales drivers and coupon codes.
Long-Term Initiatives
- B2C transactional website. Looking down the road, there are some big plans in the works for eXchange. Chief among them is molding this platform so that it can become a place where our Members’ customers can shop for product directly.
These are just a few of the major changes that are part of this evolution to eXchange 2.0. We encourage Members to explore the platform and continue to provide us with feedback. At the end of the day, this is your tool, and we want to ensure that you’re able to get everything you expect out of eXchange —  and then some.
Rob is the corporate communications manager for Nationwide Marketing Group.
