BOSTON, PARIS, LONDON, March 20, 2017 - Mirakl, the leading Online Marketplace Management Platform provider, has today announced at Shoptalk Las Vegas, a world first with the launch of its revolutionary Mirakl Marketplace Platform for Services product. This enables retailers, brand manufacturers and distributors to dramatically enhance their marketplaces by uniquely offering both products and services to customers in a single transaction. The platform can also be used to run services-only marketplaces, for the first time giving services companies all the benefits of the marketplace model, by using 3rd party partners to deliver services.
By combining products and services on a single platform, Mirakl sees an opportunity for new innovative models to emerge, with customer shopping experiences that have not been seen online until now.
In today's rapidly changing world, services are a key addition to any business wanting to improve their customer experience. For retailers, brand manufacturers and distributors services can enhance the buying and ownership experience for consumers across a number of existing and new categories. Mirakl Marketplace Platform for Services, allows businesses to seamlessly integrate a services and product marketplace, like never before.
The emergence of platform businesses and models, first shown by Groupon offering local services online, will continue to see a wider range of sectors enter the services marketplace. Technology has allowed the transportation and hospitality industries to be heavily disrupted by Uber and Airbnb, both of whom have no physical infrastructure. Following this path are home and delivery services, food & beverage, dining & drinks, health & beauty and goods & services. There is no industry that has not been, or is about to be, affected by the services marketplace model. It's part of an inevitable move towards setting-up broader ecosystems of partners to operate more as a platform. Mirakl has created the standard for all of these industries within the marketplace model.
Philippe Corrot, CEO and co-founder, Mirakl said "In the same way that Mirakl has standardised the experience for retailers and sellers on marketplaces, Mirakl Marketplace Platform for Services will introduce a new standard for businesses launching a services marketplace. Our rich heritage and experience in product marketplaces has meant that we have taken that knowledge and applied it to Services.
"We see a near-term future where businesses can offer any combination of products and services seamlessly to their customers, to perfectly match their lifestyles and needs. This is a very important next step in commerce."
Mirakl's solution will provide all the tools needed to start and grow a services marketplace. Services marketplaces have unique requirements, and Mirakl's technology Labs have developed new standards to help retailers integrate services into product marketplaces. This will ensure new services will blend seamlessly into existing customer experiences, whilst also giving service providers tailored tools to perfectly match their requirements.
The Mirakl Marketplace Platform for Services, includes a number new functions tailored to services provision including:
• Mirakl service provider user interface - Gives service providers the ability to seamlessly manage the services they offer each customer. This is critical, as services differ from product SKUs in many ways and Mirakl's platform now acts as the catalog management tool for service providers.
• Book and pay features for services - Shoppers can book and pay for services at the time of purchase. For retailers with products, this ensures the single great shopping experience that the customer expects when they buy online.
• Calendar scheduling functionality - Allows service providers to manage their availability, and shoppers to book a specific time with a service professional directly on the website, eliminating the need for extra phone calls or emails.
• Standalone or hybrid service marketplaces - A merchant does not have to offer product in order to launch a services marketplace; services can be available for a la carte purchase, or can be paired with specific products if desired.
• Category management - Lets consumers find service providers easily by managing a taxonomy of provider types.
• Tailored service definition - Services can be complex, so the Mirakl platform allows for unlimited attributes so that service listings can be flexible and dynamic.
• Mirakl quality control - The platform allows merchants to ensure third party service providers adhere to quality service levels and that customers are satisfied with the service received.
• Cross-sell and upsell - Allows merchants to link products and services together in Mirakl, allowing them to offer them at the point of checkout combined.
Mirakl's strategy has used the best practices developed from launchin
More Info: https://www.realwire.com/releases/Mirakl-Introduces-a-New-Platform-to-Transform-the-Services-Sector
