Whether it’s at B2B industry events or on semi-viral LinkedIn videos, there’s a pesky myth that we hear repeated over and over again: B2B ecommerce isn’t innovative. Industry thought leaders say B2B needs to catch up to the innovations of B2C lest it fall behind on evolving customer expectations. While it’s true that some B2B companies were slower in ecommerce adoption in comparison to their B2C counterparts, it is our expert opinion that B2B ecommerce is now blazing its own path.
We know that B2B ecommerce can be incredibly innovative because our customers are leading the way. For a decade, we’ve helped manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers implement innovative ecommerce technology, including custom solutions tailored to their unique needs.
Myth 1: B2B Should Adopt B2C-Like Experiences
Industry gurus urge B2B organizations to adopt B2C-like features and experiences for their ecommerce operations. While many B2B ecommerce websites lack the flashy design of your average B2C site, a sleek design isn’t as important as usability. As we discussed recently, outside of the add-to-cart experience, B2B and B2C ecommerce are fundamentally different at every step of the journey.
Of course, B2B ecommerce leaders need to make it as easy as possible for their customers to purchase from them, but that still looks very different from a B2C shopping journey. In B2C, an easy buying process might be a one-click impulse purchase while they’re watching TV at night. In B2B, an easy buying process may mean auto-reordering or a customized merchandizing experience. You can also find ways to make your customers' jobs easier by helping manage projects or offering a simplified billing process.
Myth 2: B2B Organizations Are Lagging Behind
We often hear that B2B organizations are lagging behind when it comes to ecommerce and innovation, but we haven’t found that to be the case. While some companies may have been slower to implement an ecommerce operation due to lack of demand, we also have clients that have been in the game for more than 20 years. The companies we work with are implementing AI-powered solutions and custom software that helps solve their toughest challenges.
From the very start of their ecommerce journeys, B2B organizations have always had to be innovative due to the complex nature of the buyer journey, order management, and the buyer and seller relationship. They must integrate their ecommerce operations with their ERPs. They must manage large volumes of complex product data. They must offer segmented experiences at every step of the journey.
In our opinion, B2B organizations aren’t laggards – they’re trailblazers.
Myth 3: B2B Ecommerce is Only About Pricing and Inventory
Another myth we often hear is that B2B ecommerce is primarily about pricing and inventory: How much will it cost and when can I get it? While those factors are certainly important, we feel it ignores many of the reasons your customers choose you over your competitors.
Your customers have a job to do, so they want to work with your site as efficiently as possible. You have to offer more than just pricing and availability – and sometimes that means making it easier for your customers to not even need to visit your site in the first place. That may look like auto-reordering or vendor-managed inventory services. One of our clients offers a detailed, customized buyer guide for their customers that compiles all of the products they’ll need on a monthly basis to make procurement as simple as possible. We’ve also built solutions for our wholesale clients to offer planogram purchasing, allowing their retail customers to easily purchase inventory for entire aisles at once.
That doesn’t mean that your website is obsolete. These sites are vital to attract new customers and offer new solutions to your current customer base. So how can you stand out? You need to bring your expertise to the online experience. When they’re on site at a job, your customers should be able to quickly and easily understand if a certain product will solve their problem and work with their other parts and solutions. They need real-time suggestions, and that may mean implementing an AI-powered agent who can understand complex problems and offer smart solutions. Your customers could use pictures, video, voice, or text to communicate with the agent to find exactly what they need based on complex specifications.
Innovation is at the Core of B2B Ecommerce
When you attend B2B industry events, you might come away thinking that manufacturers and distributors are racing to catch up to the rest of the ecommerce world – but that’s simply not the case. In many ways, we believe that the challenges and complexity of B2B necessitates innovation and always has.
At Xngage, our clients are fully embracing AI-powered solutions, using custom software to address their unique challenges, and finding innovative ways to better serve their customers. If your B2B organization is ready to innovate, Xngage’s free ecommerce assessment is a great place to start. Our experts will evaluate your ecommerce technology, performance analytics, goals, and challenges. We’ll provide custom, no-obligation recommendations for technology, strategy, and innovation.