Top Digital Agency LBi Atlanta Featured by Microsoft for Innovation in SharePoint and Commerce Server

ATLANTA, November 30, 2009 – Top digital agency LBi Atlanta announces it was featured recently for its innovative work with Microsoft Sharepoint, using the workflow and content tool as the backbone for rich, immersive consumer-facing web sites.  The new uses for SharePoint – including fully functional content management systems -- are allowing LBi Atlanta clients to run their web and e-commerce operations much more efficiently and profitably.

“We have customized SharePoint beyond what it was originally intended to do,” said Joe Schab, CEO of LBi Atlanta.  “SharePoint has primarily been used as an internally focused, enterprise level portal and intranet framework.  We’ve taken that basic backbone and created a set of unique interfaces, resulting in incredible new efficiencies for consumer-facing web sites. SharePoint 2010, which will be released soon, will be even more powerful, and we are excited to start working in that system as well.”

Creating this new evolution of SharePoint required more than 18 months of work at LBi Atlanta, building unique application programming interfaces to leverage other technologies such as Microsoft Commerce Server, Biztalk Server, and SAP. “We have extended the Sharepoint platform to enable seamless communication between a variety of backend services, and created a system that combines the robust content management features of Sharepoint with a highly interactive ecommerce front end,” said Ernest Quarles CTO of LBi Atlanta.    

The agency began using SharePoint to create sites for clients, beginning with an integrated platform for client Newell Rubbermaid’s more than 30 brand web sites. 

·         New site designs utilizing SharePoint will potentially save clients millions and allow for enhanced efficiencies across all of their sites.

·         A unique selling point from the client perspective is that the sites don’t look like traditional SharePoint sites.  From the consumer’s perspective, the site looks the same.

·         The new designs maintain SharePoint’s work flow collaboration elements, but now those tools are connected directly to the consumer-facing web site, resulting in greater efficiencies.

·         Companies with multiple branded sites will see additional cost savings, as the new custom code LBI Atlanta has developed can be repurposed across business units.

Case Study: SharePoint and Newell Rubbermaid

Newell Rubbermaid owns some of the world’s more recognizable brands, including Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Graco, Calphalon, Paper Mate and Goody and many more.  But each brand had its own web site, built with a combination of proprietary and open source technologies, making updates and effective economies of scale impossible.  The company needed a content management solution for its brand sites that would be easy and cost-effective to maintain.

LBi Atlanta created a platform for all of Newell Rubbermaid’s brands based on Sharepoint Server 2007, Commerce Server 2007 and BizTalk Server 2006.  The first site built for the new platform, www.Gracobaby.com, went live in December 2008, with www.Rubbermaid.com, www.Calphalon.com and www.Dymo.com launching throughout the summer and fall 2009.  The rest of the brand sites will be launched through 2011.

“We taken SharePoint, a very effective document and work flow management tool, and layered on top of it a set of customizable presentation tools, creating a unique product for companies,” said Joe Schab, CEO of LBi Atlanta.

Recognized by Microsoft

Recognizing the groundbreaking work that LBi Atlanta has done on SharePoint, Microsoft profiled the agency recently in an online case study.  The case study, detailing the business needs, solution and benefits can be found at:

http://www.microsoft.com/casestudies/Case_Study_Detail.aspx?CaseStudyID=4000005682

In addition, Microsoft featured LBi Atlanta’s work at the recent Sharepoint 2010 conference in Las Vegas, highlighting how innovative, flexible consumer interfaces can be created in SharePoint environments.

About LBi Atlanta

LBi Atlanta is a full service global marketing and technology agency and a member of LBi International AB's worldwide portfolio of interactive agencies, providing award-winning strategy, creative, and technology solutions for leading brands around the world. LBi Atlanta’s clients include Bayer CropScience, Roche Labs, Newell Rubbermaid, Calphalon, Graco, and Rubbermaid brands, among many others. Learn more at http://www.lbiatlanta.com.

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