B2B Digital Commerce: Your One-Stop Shop for Knowledge
B2B ecommerce seems to be complex and expensive. Fortunately, this is just half of the truth. Besides its complexity, digital ecommerce for B2B brings great revenues, provides extensive opportunities, and can be logically enhanced with the use of specific B2B ecommerce platforms.
We gathered all the experience the Virto Commerce team has gathered during our 15-year journey in the B2B ecommerce world (see our success stories with Heineken, Bosch, and others) and collected some useful insights from the official reports in this article to provide a comprehensive guide on digital commerce B2B: from the basic understanding to the actual range of solutions.
TL;DR
Understanding B2B eCommerce
What is B2B ecommerce? B2B ecommerce sells from one business to another online, this is clear. But is everything that simple? In reality, digital commerce (B2B) is more complicated: besides simply selling online, businesses have to track all their processes and control every little step to keep customers’ loyalty, control stock, and more. The bigger B2B ecommerce is, the more it needs to be automated. This is why growing B2B ecommerce companies need specific software.
B2B ecommerce is not that simple from another side either: often playing the role of the middle ground between the manufacturers and B2C retailers, business to business companies affect the whole ecommerce market, designing the environment where other businesses like B2C will also work.
If you wonder, how the whole flow of the B2B digital commerce works, look at the chart the Virto Commerce team has prepared.
The process flow of B2B in eCommerce
Each step is crucial and requires a complex approach. This is why using B2B commerce solution helps a lot.
While being that complex, B2B ecommerce has been gathering pace recently. In 2023, the global B2B ecommerce market size was valued at USD 9,209.33 billion (compared to USD 7,907.07 billion the year before). By 2030, analysts believe, it can reach USD 33,317.37 billion. These are huge numbers! And everyone who enters this market now will profit in the future.
How do B2B companies make money with eCommerce B2B businesses?
Before entering this market, many entrepreneurs wonder if B2B is more profitable than B2C. Despite selling large amounts of very popular and expensive B2C goods, B2B digital commerce wins. Let’s see why:
- Bulk Sales. B2B usually supposes selling in bulk which leads to higher average order values compared to B2C. Bulk sales enable companies to offer greater discounts, which encourages clients to buy more, increasing overall sales volume. All this leads to greater selling results.
- Recurring Revenue. First, working with other businesses requires long-term contracts and recurring sales. Moreover, most of these companies use a subscription model which keeps customers close and ensures a steady income.
- Custom Pricing. B2B business often offers tiered pricing models or individual negotiated pricing based on the client’s buying power and volume. This helps both small and large clients to find value and allows for flexibility and higher profit margins.
- Product Bundling. If you ever used Amazon, you must have met bundles: related products or services sold together at a discounted rate or tailor-made solutions to meet specific buyers’ needs. In the B2B model, this approach significantly increases sales and provides added value to clients.
- Value-Added Services. More about the value for customers. For B2C sellers, it is impossible to connect with each customer and become closer. Providing expert advice, training and support options are key at a B2B sales platform. Offering after-sales services enhances customer loyalty and satisfaction.
- Efficiency and Automation. Digital commerce (B2B) is more complex compared to B2C, but due to the accurate processes, it is easier to automate. And automation always leads to greater revenues. B2B ecommerce platforms reduce the cost of sales operations and improve efficiency, and various CRM systems help make the sales processes more efficient.
- Supply Chain Optimization. Again, thanks to automation and transparent processes, B2B ecommerce offers strong inventory management to reduce holding costs. Moreover, B2B sellers often get their goods straight from the manufacturer which also makes the process more useful.
So as you know these advantages, you can already be sure that the B2B ecommerce selling model is more profitable than B2C. What else can B2B offer?
- Higher Order Values: B2B transactions typically involve larger order sizes, leading to higher revenues per transaction.
- Long-Term Relationships: Business-to-business companies often build long-term relationships with clients, resulting in repeat business and stable income streams.
- Lower Customer Acquisition Costs: While the sales cycle might be longer, the cost of acquiring each customer is often lower compared to B2C due to fewer customers needed for substantial revenue.
- Less Price Sensitivity: B2B customers are often less price-sensitive and more focused on value, quality, and long-term ROI, allowing for better profit margins.
- Predictable Cash Flow: Long-term contracts and recurring revenue models provide a more predictable and stable cash flow.
All these advantages can lead you to the thought that B2B ecommerce plays a key role in the market. And basically, it makes sense.
How B2B digital commerce affects value chains in the eCommerce market
B2B ecommerce transforms various components of the traditional value chain of the whole ecommerce market. Here’s how e-commerce affects B2B value chains:
- Procurement and Supply Chains. B2B ecommerce forms core supply chains between the main players in the market. Thanks to the mostly automated procurement processes, they reduce manual intervention and errors. Moreover, B2B mobile ecommerce facilitates closer integration with suppliers and easy and affordable sourcing of products from global suppliers, which expands smaller and B2C business opportunities and often reduces costs.
- Production and Operations. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) enhances production planning, inventory management, and order fulfillment processes, and it all started with B2B ecommerce companies. B2C businesses went straight after B2Bs in acquiring their own ERP and CRM systems and using e commerce B2B platforms to meet specific client needs.
- Distribution and Logistics. Following the standardized supply chains, B2B ecommerce significantly affects logistics by offering real-time tracking and efficient route planning. Automated systems manage warehousing, inventory, and shipping, and sometimes allow manufacturers to sell directly to businesses and even the end customers, which can reduce costs and increase margins.
- Marketing and Sales. B2B ecommerce platforms were the first to provide detailed customer insights, enabling targeted marketing campaigns and personalized sales approaches. Sales automation at webshop B2B businesses leads to reducing the need for extensive sales teams and enhances marketing opportunities for B2Cs as well.
- Customer Service and Relationship Management. B2B ecommerce platforms offer multiple channels for customer support, and it helps all levels of the chain (from manufacturers to end clients) get exactly what is needed. With customer satisfaction and loyalty and CRM integrations, B2B ecommerce affects both “upper” levels like manufacturers who save resources on avoiding “unneeded products” and “lower” levels of B2C companies and end customers who get exactly what was expected.
- Innovation and Product Development. B2Cs are often too busy and too weak for innovations, while manufacturers simply do not need them. B2B ecommerce platforms enable businesses to gather customer feedback quickly and efficiently and collaborate on innovation.
- Global Market Reach. B2B ecommerce is powerful enough to use automated platforms for breaking down geographical barriers, allowing businesses to reach a global market with minimal additional cost. This allows businesses on all levels to get 24/7 availability of products to place orders at any time, increasing sales opportunities.
- Avoiding Challenges and Risks. With increased reliance on digital platforms, B2B b2b formation invests more in robust cybersecurity which affects the clearance and safety of all levels of ecommerce.
Explaining the B2B eCommerce Business Model Range
What is B2B commerce business model variety? ecommerce for B2B businesses is represented in various types and models. However, whatever business model you choose, all B2B commerce businesses share the same values: customer-centric approach, personalization, scalability, and customizability. Let’s see what kinds of types and models can be found among successful e commerce for B2B businesses or B2B ecommerce website.
Apart from the standard e-commerce B2B model, where a business directly trades with other businesses, there are many other types of B2B digital commerce, which we’ll look at below.
Webshop B2B: B2B2C (business to business eCommerce to customer)
B2B2C, or business to business ecommerce to consumer, is an ecommerce B2B model that combines a bit of both worlds, that is — business to business ecommerce (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C), and represents a collaborative effort in creating mutually beneficial service and B2B product delivery channels. In a typical ecommerce scenario, companies practicing a B2B2C model reach new markets and customers by partnering with consumer-oriented businesses. For example, an enterprise service provider might buy and assemble a software solution to later resell it to consumers.
One of the good B2B2C ecommerce examples is Nespresso Professional. The company sells to restaurants that resell the product to the end customers.
In this model, the top-tier B2B e business must not only consider their B2B customer, but also think about the end customer while offering purchase methods, sales and logistics chains, and marketing campaigns. Basically, the company sells to the customers, but uses a middleman B2C company to reach them.
B2B2B (business to business-to-business eCommerce)
B2B2B, or business to business ecommerce to business, is a B2B sub-agent model. To better understand how B2B2B works, consider bill.com, the webshop B2B for enterprises to manage their payments to vendors. To use the platform, vendors also create accounts that they can use later for billing their future customers.
In this case, the top-tier B2B company must think about the convenient portals and B2B systems that all levels of B2Bs can transparently use.
Virto has two examples of customers in this segment: Heineken and Bosch Thermotechnik. Both run their B2B2B projects on the Virto Commerce platform, providing all levels of B2Bs with opportunities to control all sales steps in one B2B ecommerce system.
B2M (Business to many)
B2M, or business to many, is a business model where a company sells products or services to both businesses and consumers. Similar to both of the models described above, it can be targeted at both B2Bs and B2Cs.
At this point, Virto Commerce has helped B2M business Lavazza by Bluespresso to establish their ecommerce for B2B platform. What does business-to-consumer (b2c) e-commerce replace? The company sells both in B2B and B2C segments.
B2E (Business to employee)
B2E, or business to employee, is a business model where a company sells its products or services to its employees. An online insurance policy management application within an organization can be a good example of a B2E model.
This case is like B2C as employees are usually end customers. However, this model requires a B2B approach too, as employees sometimes act as a part of a company.
B2G (Business to government)
B2G, or business to government, is a business model where a company provides goods or services to governmental organizations. An example of B2G is the U.S. General Services Administration, or GSA, which provides the US federal agencies with an online portal to manage the procurement of goods and services they need for their jobs.
Virto Commerce works with this segment, too. A good example is the US Government Supply Chain Participant, who also used the Virto Commerce B2B-e-commerce platform for building their processes.
Difference B2B eCommerce types explained
Besides the standard models explained above, ecommerce B2B supposes various types of businesses that have different goals. Here, we provide just several examples, and the differences between them.
Marketplaces and trading platforms
Such platforms gather many sellers and a huge audience of buyers. While we easily imagine a B2C marketplace, the B2B one works almost the same. The customers (B2B or B2C companies) act as standard users: they have to offer their products acting as “manufacturers” or choose from all the vendors acting like “sellers”, and the vendors compete for customers’ attention.
Besides seeming tailored for B2Cs, this is a very useful option for B2B companies. If you are working in a B2B2B or B2B2C model, sooner or later, the business will grow, and the number of customers will also grow. And one day, managing everything via the massive portal or a single marketplace becomes much more convenient as it allows for more personalization and easier B2B management.
Procurement portals
This business model supposes that the platform is integrated with the company’s ERP and helps businesses source products, request quotes, place B2B orders, and more.
Using this type of B2B, businesses ease up their logistics and supply chains, making the management of the whole supply chain easier.
Direct selling (from manufacturer to retailer/wholesaler)
This B2B model in ecommerce is sometimes called D2C (direct-to-customer). Here, we mean the model where manufacturers do not use any intermediary to sell products directly to the businesses that will use them. A good example is a tech company that sells their machines directly to plants.
This doesn’t mean that it must be B2C. In the example above, a B2B business sells to B2B, however, as it doesn’t have an intermediary, all the logistics and marketing should be held by this initial company, which inevitably leads to purchasing a robust B2B sales platform that would allow building all this with a small effort.
Distributor/wholesaler to retailer
This is a classic B2B2B/B2B2C type of ecommerce when the wholesaler sells large volumes to the retailers through a distributor B2B ecommerce platform that further sells them in individual units to end buyers. Many large corporations use this model to avoid processing all the details related to direct sales and B2B online shop marketing.
Subscription-based models of B2B online commerce
This B2B ecommerce model is about providing the same level of services or amount of goods periodically, paid by subscription payments. In the digital world, we can name SaaS companies like Salesforce that sell their services on a monthly basis. As for the physical product, imagine a wholesaler who delivers cups in the cafeteria through their B2B wholesale ecommerce platform every month and charges this buyer every month.
Managed services and outsourcing
This happens when businesses prefer to outsource particular services to the vendor. Many IT companies would make a great example: e.g., when the business outsources hardware but builds software, this can be called managed services.
While it seems that this type doesn’t necessarily need a specialized B2B ecommerce platform, it is easier to ensure the quality of services or to offer personalized discounts to different customers, as managed services are usually not standard, and require deep personalization, including personalization in documents.
Manufacturing supply chain (Supplier to manufacturer)
This is the model where the supplier of some raw materials provides their product to the manufacturer.
Again, this is a B2B model that looks simply. It is like the wholesale type and intends huge amounts of documentation and requirements. Moreover, the logistics of such materials are also complex. This means that the comprehensive B2B ecommerce platform would help a lot.
Group purchasing organizations (GPOs)
GPOs might be the most interesting model to learn about. Several businesses come together to purchase some cheaper products and use them together or somehow split the goods. A nice example is medical clinics that buy equipment at a cheaper price together.
This works just like a marketplace, but backwards. GPOs need to control all their requirements on the same platform, this is why B2B capabilities are essential.
The difference between webshop B2B and B2C eCommerce
We talk a lot about B2B ecommerce's importance, but how does it differ from B2C? For a clear picture, we have gathered our insights into the table:
|
|
B2B eCommerce
|
B2C eCommerce
|
|---|---|---|
|
Target Audience
|
Businesses and organizations.
|
Individual consumers.
|
|
Transaction Volume and Value
|
Higher transaction volumes and values, bulk orders and long-term contracts.
|
Smaller transaction volumes, often one-time or short-term purchases.
|
|
Sales Cycle
|
Long sales cycles and decision-making.
|
Short sales cycles and quick decisions.
|
|
Purchasing Process
|
Complex, with RFQs and many documents.
|
Simple and straightforward.
|
|
Customer Relationship Management
|
Long-term relationships and personalized service.
|
Transactional relationships, although there is a growing emphasis on customer loyalty and personalized marketing.
|
|
Pricing Structure
|
Variable, includes volume discounts, tiered pricing, and contract pricing.
|
Generally fixed and transparent, may include discounts, promotions, and sales.
|
|
Marketing Strategies
|
Focused on relationship-building. Content marketing and thought leadership are also important.
|
Marketing strategies are geared towards reaching a broad audience. Include social media, email marketing, SEO, online ads, and influencer partnerships.
|
|
User Experience
|
Designed to cater to complex purchasing processes.
|
Prioritize ease of use, attractive design, and seamless checkout processes.
|
|
Payment Methods
|
Various payment methods.
|
Credit/debit cards, digital wallets, and payment services like PayPal.
|
|
Customer Service
|
Dedicated customer support.
|
General customer service.
|
Besides obvious differences like the target audience and sales volume, B2B and B2C ecommerce significantly differ in the whole process flow, structures, customer management and marketing.
Trends and Stats
B2B eCommerce Market Size and Growth
With growing popularity and promising financial results, the B2B ecommerce market keeps expanding. For example, in one of the largest markets (the USA), the digital commerce B2B market is expected to significantly grow by 2027. As for the global state, Straits Research supposes that the CAGR will be an astonishing 19,2% between 2023 and 2031, and the total market value will be almost 5 times bigger (from USD 7,432.12 billion to USD 36,107.63 billion).
Amazon, Alibaba, Rakuten, Unite, Global Sources, Walmart, and IndiaMART will keep their positions as the key world players.
B2B eCommerce market stats
B2B ecommerce market forecasts 2031
Key B2B eCommerce Trends
As B2B ecommerce is trending, businesses must be inevitably ready for the transformation of the market. Here, we have gathered some of the key trends that already exist, and will persist for at least some years:
1. Significant growth in ecommerce marketplaces
We have already said a lot about why B2B marketplaces provide greater success, but still this trend never stops. A B2B marketplace is the ready solution, or an extension usually based on the B2B ecommerce platform that provides all the needed B2B functionality while ensuring B2C client experience.
2. More transparent sales chains
While the number of transactions and communications grows, more and more businesses prefer not only using marketplaces, but also tracking everything clearly. For these purposes, straight-through ERP systems for all transactions, logistic points and services are needed. With new demands, B2B ecommerce platforms must be ready to provide easier control, better manageability and great transparency.
3. Unstoppable automation
By 2030 about one-third of all B2B ecommerce, or $8 trillion, of all transactions will be automated, says Digital Commerce 360. Looks like it’s a new reality, and B2B ecommerce company will have to adapt to it. Purchasing a strong and efficient platform that is ready for any innovation like total automation is already a must.
4. Really fast time-to-market
First, time-to-market is relatively short for marketplaces. Another reason for such speeding up is that more and more businesses use automation and ready-to-use B2B ecommerce platforms that provide easy start and simple growth. For example, Virto Commerce allows you to grow in minutes, not weeks, when sudden expansion is needed.
5. The rise of Vertical marketplaces
Specialized marketplaces start trending as people need a B2C-like experience and do not want to search a lot anymore. So, the businesses building Vertical marketplaces for their own customers will definitely win over their competitors by still trying to sell domestic goods along with the machine parts.
Main trends in B2B market
Main trends to observe in the nearest future
Key principles of how the B2B market works
Any business entering the B2B market must comply with its key principles. While some think that being B2B and innovation-ready is enough, this is not true. Let’s see what to expect when starting your B2B ecommerce journey:
- The B2B market implies relationship-driven transactions. Every business aims to attract new customers, retain the existing ones and build long-term relationships between buyers and sellers.
- Most of the B2B ecommerce sales include complex decision-making processes. It happens due to multiple decision-makers and stakeholders. The formal approval process also adds to it.
- Customized solutions win. Tailored products and services meet specific client needs, while scalability and flexibility help businesses accommodate the varying needs of different customers with their unique B2B journey.
- Big volume and overwhelming value. Transactions often involve large quantities of products, and each transaction typically involves a higher monetary value compared to B2C transactions.
- Very specific pricing and negotiation: prices can be negotiable and may vary, they are often governed by contracts that outline terms, conditions, and pricing agreements over specified periods.
- The extended sales cycle is explained by the complexity of products, the need for customization, and detailed proposals and bids.
- B2B ecommerce puts a huge emphasis on value and ROI. B2B buyers are more focused on the value, and decisions are often made based on detailed cost-benefit analyses.
- Deep technical expertise is a must. Sellers must have a deep knowledge of their products and industry to provide high-range technical support and after-sales service.
- Readiness to innovation and digital transformation. Designed to handle complex transactions, B2B ecommerce platforms are used to streamline procurement, inventory management, and other processes to increase efficiency.
- Must-have regulatory compliance is the key: B2B transactions often need to comply with industry-specific regulations and standards.
Key Components of B2B digital commerce
Based on these key principles, B2B ecommerce platforms usually offer particular modules to ensure the company can create new modules and close the ones they never use. For example, Virto Commerce is an innovative platform with a focus on customization and extensibility through its Virto Atomic Architecture. Virto Atomic Architecture™ provides the capability to turn any minor feature into a separate module. Let’s see what B2B ecommerce features are usually included in B2B ecommerce.
Pricing
- Customer-specific pricing
- Integration of multiple price lists with ERP and price engines
- B2B account-based pricing
- Contract-based catalogs
Promotions
- Promotions and B2B ecommerce marketing campaigns
- Product, customer, and shopping cart promotions
- Coupons
- Personalized banners
Merchandising
- AI-powered personalization
- Upsell/Cross-sell functionality
- Rule-based recommendations
Corporate Account Management
- Account granularity
- “Login on behalf” functionality
- Access levels, roles & permissions
- Invoicing
- Account-based personalization
- Real-time B2B financing
- Guest user accounts
Catalog
- For buyers: B2B personalized catalogs
- For sellers: account-restricted catalog management; required login functionality
- B2B catalog search
- Personalized customer experience
Order Management
- B2B inventory management
- DI/Punchout and dropship
- B2B order management
- Warranty support and RMAs
- Facilitated communication between sellers & buyers
- Saving and retrieval of multiple shopping lists
- Quick reorder functionality
Order Draft (Cart) & Checkout
- Payment method control & Purchase Order management
- Quotes & Request for Quotations (RFQ)
- Saving and retrieval of multiple shopping lists
- Quick reorder functionality
Integration with Different Apps and Tools
- ERP Systems, CRM, CMS, PIM, SAP
- AI recommendation systems
- Configure Price & Quote (CPQ) solutions
- Search engines (Elastic, Azure Search)
- Google ecommerce analytics
- Payment processing systems
- Tax automation systems
- Logic Apps, among others
The process flow based on the modules
Surely, all modules serve the main goal of the B2B ecommerce — selling as much as possible. All this happens to a standard process flow that shows the need for each module described above:
- Research step. Businesses start by researching potential vendors online. They assess them, visit demos, and compare them. At this step, companies should prepare everything for customers to choose them.
- Request for quotation. In the B2B ecommerce website world, prices can differ significantly depending on the niche, volume, and customer. This is why it is essential to provide reasons for your prices. Be ready to reply to frequently asked questions.
- Negotiation. There's often a negotiation phase on prices, delivery terms, and other contractual details.
- Purchase step. Once terms are agreed upon, businesses proceed with the purchase.
- Order processing. To ensure you consider all the details, read about how to choose the digital commerce B2B platform that controls most of the processes.
- Shipping & Logistics. Tracking and timely delivery are crucial. This is why you will need a logistics control app.
- After-sales support. Customers crave help. Ensure you organized this step well.
Step-by-step process of B2B eCommerce: how the big companies are built
Startup
In the startup phase of B2B online commerce, the company focuses on establishing its online presence and defining its niche in the digital marketplace. Challenges include developing a user-friendly platform, ensuring secure payment gateways, and creating initial traction. However, businesses can identify underserved market segments and offer them unique products.
Growth
B2B ecommerce company experiences increasing online traffic, bigger sales, and more repeat customers at this stage. The main challenge is to scale seamlessly and affordably. This is a moment when companies can expand their product or service range. A great example is how Virto Commerce focuses on CX. Suitable to customers with digital maturity and a clear B2B CX vision, it enables businesses to grow continuously.
Expansion
Now, it’s time to move to the expansion phase. Businesses can diversify their offerings, target international markets, and navigate to new ones. Entering new markets horizontally and vertically can be challenging, but this is the moment when business has a chance to grow rapidly as never before.
Maturity
At the maturity stage, the business has a robust ecommerce platform and a stable customer base with consistent revenues. The challenge is staying innovative and relevant and avoiding disruption. Opportunities, in turn, may arise in growing revenues or pivoting into new areas of B2B commerce.
The growing value and core strategies for B2B commerce success
Core principles and strategies for success
All these types and models are different. However, they all share the same values of caring about the customer. This is why here are some general core principles B2B electronic commerce businesses can use to achieve their success:
- Understanding the buyer's needs. The company should always analyze its target audience and consider its customers' needs.
- Sellers should offer personalized experiences based on the business type, size, and purchasing history.
- B2B buyers require convenience. They need detailed technical specifications, product manuals, and other in-depth information before making a purchase.
- Mobile Optimization. With many business decisions being made on the go, having a mobile-optimized platform is crucial.
- Multi-channel Sales. B2B online shop shouldn't be restricted to a B2B ecommerce website. Consider integrating with marketplaces, direct sales, and more.
- Customer Support. Robust customer service and dedicated account managers are crucial.
- Integrations. B2B buyers must be ready to integrate with customers' CMS, ERPs, and other business systems.
- Readiness for innovation. All customers develop, and their demands grow. Businesses should be ready to grow with them and offer new B2B ecommerce features continuously.
Improving marketing strategies
With all the principles and strategies said, there is always room to improve and enhance your B2B ecommerce results: let’s see how B2B online commerce businesses improve marketing strategies for each business case.
As there are several key driving industries in the modern world — Wholesale and Retail, Manufacturing, Software, Electronics and Health, we will provide examples of the businesses working in these industries. Let’s begin.
1. Cost reduction and efficiency
B2B ecommerce automates various business processes which leads to significant cost reduction and greater operational efficiency. Another point is that comprehensive B2B ecommerce platforms like Virto Commerce offer a lot of integrations via API with other useful systems like ERPs and CRMs or even building your own B2B ecommerce system internally.
All this and direct sales due to the opportunity to avoid middlemen in sales provides businesses with wide capabilities of providing everything the user needs in one stop. Integrated solutions save a lot of time and money, and it particularly makes sense for big industries like Wholesale and Retail. So, choosing automation and a comprehensive B2B sales platform for these industries is the key.
2. Enhancing user experience
User experience was always of great importance. It particularly makes sense for retail and sales, but suddenly we find the need for greater CX in all industries, from Retail to Manufacturing and Distribution: the integrated platforms enable manufacturers to respond to the market changes quicker offering their customers greater experience and acquiring more loyalty. According to the IDC report, this is particularly true for the businesses that choose the journey of being CX leaders.
3. Winning the competition and disrupting the market
Latest technologies and modern B2B ecommerce architecture enable all industries from Retail to Health and Pharma to quickly build new B2B solutions responding to the market needs. These capabilities force the transformation of the B2B market. For example, Health-related businesses start creating their own specialized platforms and embrace more customers around the world, which reduces the risk of disruption and allows companies to win over competitors and maybe disrupt them instead.
4. Data-based decisions
Choosing the data-based decision B2B ecommerce strategy enables businesses in all industries, for example, Electronics, to make more accurate decisions on business development, marketing, customer communication. optimized logistics and more. The key is the platform that collects data and provides the almost ready B2B ecommerce strategy to go. AI and B2B platforms technologies let businesses understand what is really going on, and go along with the real tendencies, not only expectations.
B2B eCommerce myths and challenges
Challenges businesses can encounter starting digital commerce B2B
Obviously, there are very few things that can give you a fast and effortless result. B2B ecommerce is the thing that has its own challenges. Here are only a few of them:
Control over all processes
B2B online shop commerce implies many various processes. Controlling all of them manually can be devastating. To improve your operations, all you need is a robust ecommerce platform like Virto Commerce that would allow you to constantly develop and innovate while keeping all your processes in order.
Regulatory and compliance issues
Specific industries face strict regulations concerning online sales and data handling. To avoid these issues, ensure you have a good lawyer who knows your niche and all the regulations, and ensure your B2B sales platform vendor guarantees security and data protection. The vendor can be certified; for example, Virto Commerce has a SOC certification. Another option is to provide real-life cases of data protection.
Challenging choice and implementation of B2B platforms
We have already discussed how to choose a B2B ecommerce platform based on your needs, risks, and ecommerce capabilities. With a great variety of platforms on the market, all you have to do is to base your choice on analytics.
These and other challenges are usually easily resolved with the help of B2B ecommerce platforms that provide flexible access to all the modules needed.
10 myths and misconceptions
10 Myths of B2B eCommerce
General myths about B2B eCommerce
Myth 1: B2B ecommerce is just about selling online
Myth 2: B2B ecommerce is only for small and medium-sized businesses
Myth 3: eCommerce is secondary to traditional B2B sales platform
Myth 4: B2B pricing is too complex for ecommerce
Myth 5: B2B catalogs are too complicated for online sales
Myth 6: Composable commerce is only for tech-savvy companies
Myths about B2B eCommerce customers
Myth 7: B2B buyers are not interested in personalized experiences
Reality: The reports emphasize that B2B buyers expect personalized, Amazon-like experiences with tailored content on B2B ecommerce website, product recommendations, and self-service options. Meeting these expectations for personalization is a key success factor for B2B ecommerce platforms.
Myth 8: B2B customers don't want to order online
Reality: Millennials are a major force in B2B buying decisions today, and they're accustomed to researching and purchasing online. In fact, studies show a high preference for self-service options and online research before making B2B purchases.
Myths that restrict companies from making the right choice
Myth 9: Trusted, well-known vendors are always the safest choice
Reality: The reports challenge the notion that large, established vendors are the "safe bet" for B2B ecommerce. They highlight that smaller, more innovative vendors can often provide more tailored, flexible, and future-proof solutions, even if they lack the brand recognition of larger players.
Myth 10: B2B ecommerce platforms are too expensive
Reality: The cost of a B2B ecommerce platform is not the most important thing. What matters is TCO: how much you are going to pay for overall platform functioning and the results you get. For example, the platform cost can be really affordable, but it can lead to greater spending in the future. On the other hand, platforms like Virto Commerce offer great flexibility and affordable TCO for the whole lifetime of the project.
Successful B2B eCommerce projects
We have already shown some examples of B2B ecommerce companies and webshops B2B who got success in B2B ecommerce: besides market giants like Alibaba and Grainger, there are more smaller examples that can inspire you to start a B2B ecommerce journey even if your business is small.
Picky Bars
This is a great example of the marketplace built for B2B with B2C principles in mind. Picky Bars provides their B2B clients with great experience while offering all the needed B2B functionality.
Heineken
This is a Virto Commerce use case. Heineken has built a great portal B2B ecommerce system with transparent logistics and stock for all its clients and many restaurants around the world. Everybody controls everything and conveniently grows sales all the time.
V-Belt Guys
The company has created their own client portal with search filters, various applications and more. The company constantly optimizes its offering according to the market needs and keeps its positions.
Lavazza by Bluespresso
This company used Virto Commerce to build their own B2B and B2C sales among European customers. Now, it responds to both the needs of B2B and B2C clients and keeps growing.
Chocomize
The company was a kind of B2C and individual B2B reseller. Since Chocomize decided to build their own B2B portal, the sales grew while providing more freedom for growth, and the startup skyrocketed immediately.
Tools and Platforms for B2B eCommerce
In this article, we mentioned specific B2B ecommerce tools and platforms a lot and compared them all to the best ecommerce platforms requires another investigation. But how to choose the right solution that will be able to facilitate your B2B ecommerce operations?
Just as we discussed, the most demanded ecommerce B2B models are B2B marketplaces, B2B portals and loyalty portals, Purchasing platforms, and eProcurement systems. There are plenty of specific solutions for each of these needs in the market, but there is something that can embrace all these needs in one: a B2B ecommerce platform. Let’s see, which ecommerce platforms are the most popular today.
Rigid platforms for those who don’t need innovation
So what is B2B ecommerce? Does it make sense to purchase a platform that is too rigid to help you innovate? Sounds like not the best idea. However, there are two reasons why people still use Salesforce, SAP, Oracle and Bigcommerce.
First, businesses might have bought the solution long ago and are afraid to replatform so they have to build their B2B ecommerce based on the options available, with no flexibility.
Another reason businesses purchase these solutions is their world-known name. However, the brand doesn’t mean much as purchasing something not innovation-ready will inevitably lead to huge TCOs.
Best eCommerce B2B platforms for small businesses or beginners
In case you need to try out how B2B ecommerce works or have a limited budget due to the short time in the market, the following solutions might fit you well:
- Open marketplaces like Amazon or Grainger are good for those who want to see how marketplaces work and do not have enough budget and B2B ecommerce resources right now. They will provide you with everything needed, but once you start growing, the price will significantly increase too. Add various marketplace restrictions, and soon you will want to replatform to something that you can control more.
- Medium-quality platforms like DHGate, Woocommerce or Shopify. Great beginning for small businesses, or those with a very limited budget. But as you grow, you will realize that these platforms are not powerful enough, and middle-range businesses or enterprises need something bigger.
Great options for those who need scaling
Surely, there are plenty of good solutions that provide openness, a headless approach, readiness to innovate and more. Good examples are NopCommerce, Znode and Magento. You can work long with these solutions and get all the results that you need. You might even scale easily until you encounter the need for sudden extra growth or the need to build something completely yours with an open code. Once you reach the enterprise-ready level, it’s time to consider Virto Commerce.
Virto Commerce for enterprises and those who dream about growing their business
Virto Commerce is the best option for almost all industries: from manufacturing to small retail businesses. Thanks to its modern architecture, this .NET-based B2B ecommerce solution, first tailored for large enterprises, fits all sizes of businesses that aim to develop and grow. Meeting enterprise needs Virto Commerce caters to the segment of enterprise-level B2B buyers with its scalability and ability to handle complex business logic.
It is a comprehensive platform that offers ERP, CRM, CMS, PIM and any other solution connected via API or created with an open code. An open-source approach provides code transparency and ensures easy growth.
The reasons why Virto Commerce is right for you:
- Open-source Approach: transparent code available on GitHub makes it possible to quickly develop any module you need.
- Modular Atomic Architecture: logically connected and distributed modules are built for faster innovation and easy feature management.
- API-first Approach including xAPI (GraphQL) and Rest API (OpenAPI) aims to help businesses connect all their needed solutions on the same platform.
- The headless architecture ensures independence of the front end and easy errorless process flow.
- A great focus on CX makes Virto suitable for customers with digital maturity and a clear B2B CX vision.
Conclusion
Though there are many myths and considerations about what B2B commerce solution is, it obviously plays an essential role in all the global sales processes and significantly affects global value chains. And this tendency will persist. This means that entering the B2B ecommerce market today is a challenging but auspicious task: the ones choosing innovation-ready B2B platforms and starting B2B e-commerce now will reach great revenue soon.
In this article, we have shared many insights and ideas on how to enhance your B2B ecommerce, as we usually do in our other articles about B2B ecommerce, B2B marketplaces and more. With great experience and many success stories, we also share our expertise and useful third-party materials at our B2B Experts Portal.
In case you want to get more insights on what is B2B commerce or need a B2B ecommerce guide straight from our experts or learn more about how Virto tackles every challenge the B2B market provides, reach out to our team and we will provide you with a deep consultation or a free demo.
Book Your Discovery Session with Our Digital Experts
