Shell Helix’s prime objective was to sell more volume of Shell Helix passenger car engine oil and services in Egypt via a new website. Their existing marketplace website didn’t offer the consumer experience they needed to grow their online sales. At the same time, they wanted to capture direct consumer order and behavioural data, optimise media and cross-selling opportunities based on the data and deliver an enhanced customer experience, while also sharing their learnings with other markets.
Shell Helix's first ever D2C website
First ever direct-to-consumer website that's already a multi-award winner!
Client
- Shell Helix
Challenge
Solution
VML Commerce developed and debuted Shell Helix’s first-ever direct-to-consumer (D2C) website in Egypt, using the Shopify platform.
From inception to full implementation, it took just 12 weeks to develop the site for Shell Helix, Shell’s passenger car engine oil brand. Consumers in Cairo can now purchase and schedule an oil change service using the Online to Offline (O2O) experience, another first for Shell Helix. Outside Cairo, consumers can have their products shipped directly.
Following a proof of concept, the website was rolled out to the Egyptian market in both English and Arabic, by three cross-functional teams from London, Cairo and Melbourne, who leveraged insight from Shell’s global distribution centres.
Shell Helix’s first global direct-to-consumer website is providing the business with a wealth of data, and the tools to create, execute and manage our digital marketing campaigns. We are now able to serve our customers more efficiently with the addition of this new and exciting channel
Marwa Salem
Brand Manager Egypt, Shell Helix
We adopted a multi-agency approach which leveraged the global and strategic capability and local in-market delivery capability.
Our Cairo office focussed on using and applying data insight and were able to liaise with both the Shell Cairo and Aramax teams to make the necessary changes to the website. They provided website updates and changes, business intelligence and ad-hoc analysis.
Continual management of the media plan was the responsibility of MediaCom Cairo and the VML team in Cairo. Using a predictive measurements framework and combining business results, media performance and brand health data, they were able to obtain a fast read on the relative success of different elements of the communications mix, in order to build fast business cases for shifts in media investment and to maximise returns.
Growth
Shell’s Shopify platform now allows the business to connect and directly assist more consumers using data-driven insights at every step. It’s exactly the kind of individual experience that will surprise and delight consumers and help the oil and gas industry continue to innovate and reinvigorate their services in line with other industries.
The Shell Helix website in Egypt has been a great success, winning numerous awards:
- 2020 Davey Award - Obtained GOLD in the “automotive website” category
- 2020 WMA Web Award - Outstanding Achievement in Web Development in the “automobile standard of excellence” category
- 2020 Global Communicator Awards - Silver Award of Distinction
This is now the 6th award we’ve won for our new website and validates a great partnership that we have developed with VML Commerce. Although it’s still in its infancy, integrating our online and offline channels is certainly helping to accelerate our product development and marketing communications, with the ultimate goal of improving our brand growth and additional sales.
Jie Qiao
Global Associate Brand Manager, Shell Helix
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