Do you provide information about your market on your corporate website?
This kind of information helps a visitor to place you in context. Are you the biggest player, or the smallest? What are the forces driving the market? Even: who is your competition? (Why tell us that? Well, we probably have a good idea who you compete with anyway – because we’re researching/talking to/investing in/applying for a job with them as well – and it also adds to your aura of honesty and transparency.)
I talked about the copy used on the Billerud site recently; today I want to highlight their Market section. They provide a pleasing Flash-based tabbed tool to display details of their various product markets.
So, for example, I can find out that
- retailers and distributors of fruit and vegetables are demanding better packaging solutions because the quality of recycled paper has got worse; since Billerud is the quality leader in fluting they are in a strong position. And the fluting market hasn’t been affected by the global crisis as much as other corrugated products because the fruit and veg market is less affected by the economy than by the weather conditions. Fluting makes up 25% of Billerud’s sales volume (in tonnes).
- Billerud are the leading supplier of low grammage pure white liner (which is used for luxury goods as well as for fast foods – now there’s a contrast in end market use) with about 50% market share, but since they’re competing with recycled material, there is some price pressure. In addition, in hard times customers focus more on cheaper products although a quality-leading position contributes to more stable customer relations, less fluctuation in price and more stable demand. Liner makes up 18% of their sales volume.
This is fascinating, even to someone with no business interest in packaging; this section on the packaging market and the issues they face is very informative. I feel I’ve learned something, which increases the value of the site in my eyes.
It’s rare that a corporate site manages to be interesting enough in itself for a lengthy visit.
Lucy is Editor at Corporate Eye
