B2B E-Commerce
in the Meat and Poultry Industry
By
Sundar Rajagopalan
Karishma Sharma
Thiti Wang-Aryattawanich
Miyoung Yoo
Joseph Yu
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Major Players in Meat and Poultry
Major Players
Type of Organization
meatandpoultryonline.com
Vertical portal
Meatpoultry.com
Vertical portal
meatingplace.com
Vertical portal
4meat.com
Vertical portal
National Meat Assoc.
(http://www.nmaonline.org)
Consortium of
members (Non profit)
Usda.gov
Governmental org.
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A Sample Front Page
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A Sample Registration Page
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Basics
• Provides information for red meat and
poultry industries
• Generates revenues through
– classified ads
– Suppliers posting their product information
– Other industries like regulatory services,
university depts.
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Basics (Cont.)
• The industry is heavily fragmented, such as
packaging, processing, special services, safety,
transportation, and rendering.
• The fragmentation is dependent upon the
concentration of the segments in the location
• Location is also a major constraint to
transportation
• A lot of rules and regulations have been set up by
the associations
• Audience is not computer savvy
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Who are the Customers
• The portals are a virtual community for the
industry professionals
– This encompasses various segments of the ‘Meat and
Poultry’ Industry, ranging many job positions
– Based on the type of position and the industry segment
the membership(NMA) is classified as :
• Student:Students majoring in Animal/Food/meat science
• Associate:Person, Firm or Organization engaged in supplying
non-meat supplies and equipment
• Allied:Person,Firm or corporation engaged primarily in
buying, selling meat, animal-by-products
• General:Any Person involved in the industry!
• International:Any of the above 3 categories from outside the
states!
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Who are the Customers (Cont.)
• Other types of Membership(MISA) involve
– Regular Members:Available to business entities
engaged in the sale, lease or rental of products related
to meat and poultry
– Affiliate Members: People in the same fields as
“Regular members”, yet outside the country
– Associate members: Other people in the publishing or
media activities related to meat and poultry industry
• Fees in these different forms of Membership
involve the amount of turnover of the concerned
organization; thus it becomes like a privilege issue
in addition to the information
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How to attract customers
• Contract with the brand name manufacturers in
order to get more suppliers
• Heighten the credibility of the site
– Secure and high quality product
– On time service
– Security and policy information of the site
• Convince that the site can provide the same
products, same quality with the lower price
• Promote the web site in Trader Forum or Business
Association (Journal, Magazine)
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How to attract customers (Cont.)
• Give free membership for a trial period
• Since the supply chain ties with geographical area,
design or customize the website according to the
region (e.g. Northwest Region)
• Provide free stock options for a new member or
referral service
• Provide an easy-to-use interface for the customers
who are not computer savvy
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Value Added for Customers
• Ideal market place for an organization to advertise
their products and also get to know of products of
other organizations in the industry
• Career resources for students and other employees
in the field
• Provision of credibility to the organization to be a
part of the portal which encompasses the industry
• Consulting service of the issues related with laws
and patents and other lawsuits with the
government
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Value Added for Customers (Cont.)
• 1-stop shop to locate various sponsors offering
b2b products and information
• A type of advertisement of organizations by listing
them online free
• Establishment of international contracts
• Discussion about the business and technical issues
with other organizations in the field
• Information on other registered members, helping
them establish contacts
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How to Increase Value added
• An auction type of format can be set up which
brings buyers and sellers together. This will ensure
a critical mass
• Set a type of premium page set up for the major
members which will provide additional benefits
and better service
• Tie up with international partners
• Get the approval of USDA, which will be a good
benchmark for the agency
• Offer the service at free cost or at very minimum
cost to attract organizations
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How to Increase Value added (Cont.)
• Form Strategic alliances with universities or
other job agencies that will provide students
information
• Furnish education through work shops,
seminars, and educational audio and video
cassettes
• Provide management consulting service and
advice on the individual business problems
• Conduct competition or free electronic
coupons on the visit to the site
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How to Increase Value added (Cont.)
• Provides information on the process
involved in various segments of industry
• Provide free downloads of documented
standards(domestic and Intl)
• Create Forums and Marketplace for a
category and its related segments such as
Equipment Provider, Processor, Packaging
and etc.
• Mergers and alliances
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How to Get Repeat Customers
• E-mail reminder, price tracker, or e-mail
newsletter to maintain relationship
• Free advertisement or e-coupons if a
member satisfies a particular tenure
• Different levels of customized service based
on the period of membership
• Update on new products information that is
offered free to members
• Tradeshows and conferences to impart
education
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