Enhancing Distributor Experience for Lubricant Manufacturer with a User-Centric Portal

For companies that rely on a network of distributors to deliver products to market, maintaining efficient communication and streamlined processes is essential. A global leader in lubrication solutions saw that their distributors were facing challenges with managing order placements, tracking deliveries, and quickly resolving issues. The company also knew that prioritizing Customer Experience (CX) and user-centric design would be key to delivering distributor demands.

The company engaged SPR for two phases: 1.) understand and educate on customer-focused design principles and 2.) modernize their distributor experience with a user-friendly, digital portal. The company reached out to SPR to collaborate on these initiatives and on designing a platform that would bridge the gap between distributor needs and internal workflows, fostering stronger and more seamless partnerships.

Though small groups within the lubricant manufacturer championed user experience (UX), the organization wanted to foster a broader understanding of customer-focused design principles. To kickstart this cultural shift, the company partnered with SPR to educate its teams on the value of CX during a national sales meeting.

SPR’s educational workshops were designed to inspire the company’s sales and operations teams by providing a comprehensive understanding of CX and its pivotal role in developing effective customer-facing solutions. The sessions began by defining CX and emphasizing its significance in creating products and services that resonate with users. SPR highlighted the critical value of user feedback, demonstrating how it not only shapes impactful design but also reduces the risks associated with misaligned product features. Through engaging, hands-on activities, participants learned practical methods for gathering actionable insights from customers, equipping them to translate feedback into meaningful improvements.

We also underscored the long-term value of continuous user engagement throughout a product’s lifecycle, showing how this approach fosters sustained value and strengthens customer relationships. By the end of the workshops, attendees were aligned on how to embrace customer-centric principles in their roles. SPR’s presentation was later repurposed for broader use, extending its impact beyond North America and helping establish UX champions across the company’s global teams.

As digital expectations evolve, companies must seek out solutions that provide their distributors with the tools needed for smoother interactions and faster access to information. SPR partnered closely with the company to understand their distributors’ experiences, pain points, and expectations. Together, they engaged in a multi-phase research and design process, which included in-depth user interviews, workshops, and iterative prototype testing. This user-centered approach allowed the team to tailor the portal concept specifically to the company’s goals, building it from distributor insights and direct feedback from real users.

The team adopted a structured, multi-phase approach, placing priority on user insights and iterative design. The project began with defining clear objectives and gathering in-depth understanding of distributor pain points, aligning the portal’s features to real-world distributor needs. By incorporating user feedback at each stage, the project ensured that the final design would offer streamlined workflows and valuable features to enhance order management, delivery tracking, and issue resolution.

1. Initial Research and Discovery
   • Goal Definition: Early on, a clear set of project goals was defined, focusing on operational efficiency, real-time data access, and self-service options for distributors. The team was able to leverage insights gained through workshops with the sales and operations teams from a prior, Thought Leadership engagement at the company national sales meeting. Through collaborative discussions, SPR and the company established a vision for the portal to streamline key functions and improve user satisfaction.
   • User Research: To capture authentic distributor insights, SPR conducted interviews with a cross-section of the company’s distributors, who shared their day-to-day challenges, preferred digital tools, and desired portal functionalities. This feedback provided a strong foundation for understanding key areas, such as speed, transparency, and ease of issue resolution.
2. Concept Validation and Design Iteration
   • Persona and Journey Mapping: Using insights from initial research, SPR developed user personas reflecting the diverse roles and responsibilities of the company’s distributors. User journeys were mapped to identify essential touchpoints where the portal could reduce friction and enhance user interactions.
   • Prototyping and Feedback Loops: SPR created an initial prototype of the portal, which distributors tested in usability sessions. In these sessions, users interacted with design mockups and shared feedback on elements like dashboard layout, order placement, and communication tools. This feedback informed adjustments to the prototype, leading to a streamlined design that prioritized ease of access, one-click order tracking, and a dashboard for quick updates.
   • Interface Enhancements: In response to feedback, the portal’s interface was refined to include frequently used functions, contextual error messages, and an activity log to track order updates in real time. These improvements contributed to a portal experience that was more intuitive and responsive to the needs of the company’s distributors.
3. Deliverables and Strategic Roadmap
   • High-Level Strategic Roadmap: A phased roadmap was developed to outline the company’s short- and long-term goals, prioritizing features based on user impact. This roadmap provided a structured approach for rolling out the portal, enabling the company to address distributor needs in stages while gradually building a more optimized platform.
   • CX Framework: SPR delivered a Customer Experience (CX) framework tailored for the company, including key performance indicators (KPIs) like customer satisfaction (CSAT) and time-to-value (TTV). These metrics established a baseline for tracking the portal’s impact on distributor engagement and operational efficiency, enabling the company to adapt and evolve the platform based on real-time usage data.
   • Executive Presentation: SPR worked with the business sponsor to author a presentation that could be used with regional executives to share the approach, further instilling the importance of CX, insights gained, and final outputs that will ultimately become a part of the distributor portal as the company transitions into build.

This collaborative, user-centered approach allowed the company to gain a comprehensive view of its distributors’ needs, expectations, and pain points. The company gained valuable insights and actionable steps to improve distributor engagement. Key takeaways included:

• Prioritizing User-Centered Design: Engaging users throughout the design process ensured a tailored, impactful experience. This approach underscored the importance of gathering user insights early to prevent costly adjustments later and produce a portal that truly aligns with user needs.
• Adopting a Phased Development Approach: With a phased roadmap, the company is well-positioned to address high-impact features, such as order management and real-time data access, in early stages while building toward a fully optimized portal experience.
• Measuring Success Through CX: The CX framework and KPIs empower the company to track and continuously enhance its distributor portal. Metrics like CSAT and TTV allow the company to refine the portal in response to user behavior and ongoing feedback, setting a foundation for sustained improvement.
• Establishing a reusable framework: The CX framework that we utilized for the distributor poral design, can be re-used in other engagements. The approach, templates, and value gained from strengthening customer relationships will now set the tone for other initiatives in the future.

This project demonstrates how SPR’s strategic, user-focused approach to digital transformation can create meaningful results. For businesses facing similar challenges, SPR’s process provides a blueprint for leveraging customer experience insights to drive impactful change. the company’s journey underscores the transformative power of putting user needs at the center of design, paving the way for stronger distributor relationships and more efficient operations.