With 80% of B2B sales expected to occur through digital channels by 2025, embracing B2B eCommerce is essential for businesses to remain competitive. Although B2B buyers increasingly expect seamless, personalized digital experiences, switching to an eCommerce model is not without unique challenges. This guide explores the strategies, trends, and tools required to master B2B eCommerce, and Unleashed’s experience with both open-source software like Symfony/Drupal Commerce and our Platinum-tier eCommerce partner Shopware. Learn how to streamline the buyer journey, leverage the latest technologies, and deliver a superior experience that drives sales and builds long-term customer loyalty.
Understanding B2B eCommerce
B2B eCommerce refers to the online sale of products or services between businesses. In this model, transactions occur between a company and its suppliers, wholesalers, or other businesses rather than between a business and individual consumers.
B2B eCommerce typically involves larger order sizes, more complex product catalogs, and more sophisticated purchasing processes than B2C eCommerce. The key differences between B2B and B2C eCommerce include:
- Target audience. B2B targets businesses, while B2C targets individual customers.
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Purchase process. B2B purchases tend to be more complex, with multiple decision-makers and a focus on value, quality, and efficiency. B2C purchases are typically more straightforward and more impulse-driven.
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Order size. B2B orders are generally larger in volume and value, while B2C orders are smaller and more frequent.
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Pricing. B2B pricing is often negotiated, while B2C pricing is more standardized.
With bulk ordering, pricing tiers, and account-specific configurations to consider, business-to-business commerce, especially eCommerce, necessitates a strategic and unique approach.
B2B eCommerce Strategies
In B2B eCommerce, the purchasing journey is often multifaceted, involving several stakeholders. Streamlining this process is critical to providing a positive customer experience and driving sales. Implementing effective B2B eCommerce strategies simplifies the purchasing journey, reduces friction, and increases customer satisfaction and loyalty. This should include:
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Considering Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
CLV is crucial in B2B eCommerce because it costs significantly more to acquire new customers than to retain and grow existing ones. By understanding the long-term value of each customer, you can tailor your strategies to maximize that value. This could involve offering tiered pricing or service levels, providing personalized recommendations, and investing in customer success initiatives. Ultimately, a CLV-focused approach helps you allocate resources more effectively, build stronger relationships, and drive sustainable growth.
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Implementing Advanced Search
Provide robust search functionality on your business's eCommerce website. This will allow customers to find the products and information they need quickly. Incorporate features like faceted search, autocomplete, and personalized recommendations. Unleashed worked with an industrial manufacturing client to bolster their search capabilities as the company’s SKU count exponentially grew over a short period of time from 6,000 to over 100,000. Advanced search features are crucial to help a client’s distributors navigate an ever-expanding inventory mix of products with precision, while maintaining performant speed to ensure that that the advanced search engine does not slow down due to higher product inventory.
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A Focus on Gateway Buyers and Decision-Makers
Identify the key stakeholders involved in the purchasing process and tailor your messaging and content to address their needs and concerns. In addition to key messaging, B2B eCommerce site rely on Configurators. Unleashed partnered with a manufacturing client to build a configurator in Drupal Commerce to customize individual pipes & valves and assemble different types of pipes & valves together for a larger client project. A "Configurator" on a B2B ecommerce site is an interactive tool that allows customers to customize and tailor products to their exact specifications by selecting various options like size, color, material, or features, essentially creating a bespoke product before purchasing, all while seeing real-time price updates and visualizations of their chosen configuration. A robust Configurator helps streamline complex orders and ensures customers receive precisely what they need.
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Offering Self-Service Portals
Enable customers to manage accounts, track orders, and access relevant information and resources through a self-service portal. This can streamline the purchasing process, support realistic expectations, and reduce the burden on your sales team.
Latest Trends and Industry Impact
The B2B eCommerce landscape is rapidly evolving due to ever-changing consumer preferences and tech advancements. Staying on top of key trends and their potential impact on various industries is critical to remaining relevant and competitive.
Virtual Reality
The integration of VR technology enables B2B companies to provide immersive product demonstrations. This allows customers to visualize realistically how products will fit within their operations.
AI-driven Tools
AI tools like chatbots, predictive analytics, and personalized recommendations are valuable in providing round-the-clock support, improved stock availability, and more nuanced services.
Automation
Automating aspects such as order processing, follow-ups, alerts, order tracking, and inventory management can significantly improve efficiency, reduce manual effort, enhance customer service, and lower operational costs.
Omnichannel Strategies
B2B buyers expect a seamless, consistent experience across multiple channels, including web, mobile, and in-person interactions. The more convenient the purchase process and communication are for the buyer, the more likely you are to drive sales.
Mobile Commerce
Optimizing the B2B eCommerce experience for mobile devices is crucial, as more and more B2B buyers are researching and making purchases on the go. Responsive design, mobile-friendly navigation, and streamlined checkout are key.
Sustainability
Sustainability is an increasingly important consideration for B2B buyers who want to partner with environmentally-conscious suppliers. Sustainable labeling regulations are becoming more stringent, and consumers are driving an increased demand for responsible sourcing. Highlighting your company's sustainability initiatives and eco-friendly products can give you a competitive edge.
Video
Incorporating video content into the B2B eCommerce experience can be highly effective for remote product demonstrations, tutorials, and thought leadership. Video helps bring your offerings to life and can improve engagement and conversions.
Best Practices for B2B eCommerce
Understanding the unique needs of the different types of customers using your B2B eCommerce site is crucial for providing a tailored and practical shopping experience. Some key B2B customer segments to consider include:
- Agents: Resellers or distributors who purchase products to sell to end-users. They may need features like bulk ordering, custom pricing, and white labeling.
- Manufacturers: Companies that use your products as components or raw materials in their own manufacturing process. They may prioritize features like detailed product specifications, custom ordering, and integration with their supply chain systems.
- Installers: Professionals who purchase products to install or integrate for their clients. They may value things like product compatibility information, installation guides, and streamlined ordering for project-based work.
- Wholesalers: Businesses that buy products in bulk to resell. They may need features like tiered pricing, large order capabilities, and robust inventory management.
Unleashed has worked with an industrial coolant manufacturing client to build a Find-a-Representative search engine to identify the key territorial sales representatives to support deal flow. This software tool ensures that our client’s agents (resellers or distributors) and end-clients work with the right technical sales rep across different domestic and global jurisdictions. Thoroughly researching customer segments—their pain points, purchasing behaviors, and preferred shopping experiences— and leveraging the right software tool will allow you to tailor your B2B eCommerce site to best meet client needs.
General Best Practices
In addition to segment-specific features, the following best practices should be implemented across the board to ensure a cohesive B2B eCommerce customer experience:
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Provide a user-friendly, intuitive interface that makes it easy for customers to find products, compare options, and complete purchases.
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Offer a range of payment methods and shipping options to accommodate different customer preferences.
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Gather customer feedback regularly and use it to continuously improve the buying experience.
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Collect and analyze customer behavior, sales trends, and marketing performance data to make informed decisions.
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Use predictive analytics to anticipate customer needs and optimize your product offerings and marketing strategies.
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Integrate your eCommerce platform with other business systems like your ERP and CRM to gain a holistic view of your operations.
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Implement robust security measures to protect customer data and prevent fraud, such as SSL encryption and two-factor authentication.
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Ensure your eCommerce platform and processes comply with relevant industry regulations and standards, such as PCI DSS.
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Regularly review and update your security protocols to stay ahead of evolving threats.
Navigating Digital Transformation
The transition to digital commerce can be challenging as it requires balancing the needs and expectations of both traditional and digitally savvy customers. It requires a thoughtful, phased approach.
- Assess current capabilities and infrastructure. Evaluate your existing systems, processes, and data to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement.
- Prioritize customer needs. Understand your target buyers' pain points, preferences, and purchasing behaviors to inform your digital commerce strategy.
- Adopt a modular, flexible architecture. Leverage headless applications for greater agility and scalability.
- Automate key processes. To improve efficiency and the customer experience, automate tasks like order processing, inventory management, and customer support.
- Continuously optimize and iterate. Regularly gather feedback, analyze data, and make incremental improvements to your digital commerce platform to stay responsive to evolving customer needs.
Benefits of Headless and Automation
Headless applications are a modern architectural approach in which the front-end user interface is decoupled from the back-end systems and services. This allows for greater flexibility, scalability, and faster time to market, as changes can be made to the front end without impacting the underlying infrastructure. Using a decoupled approach employing the Symfony tech stack as the Back-End and Reach in the Front-End, Unleashed developed a highly custom B2B eCommerce platform for North America’s largest sporting goods distributor.
In B2B eCommerce, a headless approach enables businesses to create custom, omnichannel experiences tailored to their buyers' needs while leveraging the power and reliability of their existing ERP, CRM, and other core systems. By adopting a headless architecture and automating key processes, you can:
- Improve the customer experience with personalized, responsive, and consistent touchpoints across all channels.
- Increase operational efficiency and reduce manual effort through automated order processing, inventory management, and customer support.
- Gain greater agility and the ability to quickly adapt to changing market conditions and customer needs.
- Leverage data-driven insights to make strategic and well-informed business decisions.
Custom vs Off-the-Shelf Solutions
Choosing a custom-built eCommerce platform or an off-the-shelf solution depends on factors such as your business goals, target customer profile, and the complexity of your eCommerce needs. At Unleashed, we can do both. As noted, we have developed a highly customized B2B eCommerce platform for large enterprises using the Symfony and React technology stacks. We have also partnered with Europe’s fastest-growing, off-the-shelf B2B eCommerce platform in Shopware as they grow their presence in the US market.
Custom-built eCommerce platforms enable complete customization to your specific business requirements with advanced features and functionality. While they can be more costly and time-intensive to develop, they offer greater flexibility and the ability to scale as needed.
Pre-designed eCommerce solutions like Shopify are generally faster and more cost-effective to launch. These platforms require less technical expertise to manage. However, they may not meet your specific business needs. There are fewer customization options, and scalability may be limited.
Assessing your objectives and customer needs can help you determine the right option for your B2B business. An off-the-shelf solution may be sufficient if you have a relatively simple eCommerce model focused on existing customers.
However, for more complex, ambitious eCommerce goals like targeting new markets or offering advanced features, a custom platform is likely the better choice. Consider factors like the sales/purchasing experience, product catalog, order management, integrations, and post-purchase support when evaluating your needs.
Unleashed technologies can help you decide the best path to boost your online sales success. As a thought leader in B2B eCommerce and digital transformation, we provide digital strategy, custom software, and web development services. Our full suite of website services is designed to empower businesses to thrive in an evolving digital landscape. Unlock the full potential of digital commerce for your B2B organization. Let’s chat.