Sector(s)
Getting big deals for small buyers
There is strength in numbers, especially when it comes to purchasing. Sourcewell (formerly known as NJPA) helps create a purchasing scale for government entities, non-profits, churches, and other institutions, helping them get better deals on the things they need and allowing them to be better stewards of their resources.
Based in Staples, Minnesota, Sourcewell brings together more than 50,000 entities from across the country and matches them to vendors who can fulfill their needs, managing the entire solicitation and bidding process. But while the business served a vital need and created real value for both institutions and vendors, the site was difficult to navigate and maintain as it drew from many disparate data sources.
Finally, when the frustrations created by the site were so great that Sourcewell itself was directing its partners to other resources, the company reached out to Horizontal Integration to develop a new solution from the ground up.
Why Drupal was chosen
Rearchitecting around user needs
Sourcewell chose Drupal and Acquia for its web content management platform, determining that the system would allow for rapid development and enable Sourcewell to offer personalization for site users. As the implementation partner, we designed and built the new site around the needs of the users and Sourcewell, handling the user experience, design, front-end, and back-end development.
Building bridges for organizations and data
With its fresh start, Sourcewell was able to expand the mission for its site, serving as a resource for members and vendors to pursue new leads by incorporating an advanced search feature.
The new site is also directly integrated with Salesforce, so every lead that comes through is efficiently processed and moved into Sourcewell’s customer relationship management system. At the same time, crucial data on Vendors and Contracts is automatically synchronized from Salesforce back into Drupal, keeping that data fresh and accurate.
Launching to rave reviews from vendors, members and Sourcewell itself, the new Sourcewell-mn.gov site is already improving the way businesses and the communities that depend on them work together.
Technical Specifications
Drupal version:
Key modules/theme/distribution used:
Paragraphs
Paragraphs allowed us to easily model and create components around our design work, empowering content editors with a system to create and manage page structure by assembling the components in different ways.
Salesforce
The Salesforce module provided a base for the API, allowing us to build our own custom integrations. From synching content from Salesforce to construct large portions of the searchable data within the site, to lead capturing through the purpose-built Member Application. This site is tightly integrated with Sourcewell's CRM.
