New First Tunnels website increases sales by 20 per cent

Background

Today, the company is a leading manufacturer of polytunnels, similar to greenhouses but covered in specially designed polythene rather than glass. It counts the NHS, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Alan Titchmarsh among its customers.

He says: “Back then, not many people understood the internet or how it could be used, but I thought we could do something with it.”

“That was us dipping our toe into ecommerce,” says Sean. “The products were straightforward and we soon saw that customers were happy to buy from us online.”

Challenges faced

Although the First Tunnels site was ahead of its time, over the years other ecommerce businesses caught up and in recent years the site began to lack key functionality.

The website was functional but it wasn’t optimised for mobile browsers, for example, which was effectively turning away anyone using a handheld device, and significantly hindering conversion rates. Neat pieces of code that help boost sales such as Trustpilot reviews, where First Tunnels currently has a 9.7 score, weren’t available.

How eBusiness UK helped

We built an all-new ecommerce website for First Tunnels from the ground-up, using modern programming languages.

Improved user experience

eBusiness UK built a configurator which allows a customer to select preferences while a 3D graphic updates to show the user how their combination will look. The price automatically updates, so there are no surprises at checkout.

Higher sales conversion

The Trustpilot reviews give potential customers confidence in their purchases, and mobile optimisation enables the growing number of site visitors who prefer handheld devices to browse the site with ease.

Results

The launch of the new website had an immediate impact on the fortunes of the business.

By the end of the site’s first trading year, company-wide turnover had increased by 20 per cent.

Sustained growth