The future of B2B ecommerce is all about innovation and differentiation. It will be all about providing unique features that help your customers do their jobs faster, easier, and better. You may even be able to bring some of your unique offline offerings – like your product or industry expertise – into the digital experience.
While your ecommerce platform and any additional technology systems are necessary for the foundation of your ecommerce operation, they won’t be enough to give you a competitive edge against your competitors. Each of your competitors has access to those same platforms, so you’ll need to look beyond these platforms for solutions that help you stand out.
That’s why we believe that custom software development will be what powers innovation in B2B ecommerce. Customized solutions can help your organization provide a better customer experience, streamline your internal processes, and stay ahead of your competition.
High-Quality UX Can’t Be Bought
Providing a high-quality user experience online is all about tailoring your offerings to the unique needs and challenges of your customers. You won’t be able to do that with standard, out-of-the-box ecommerce platform features. With custom software development, you can bring your organization’s differentiators to your online experience. It might look like a tool that helps your customers build out complex product configurations or complete calculations related to product installation.
For example, our customer StoneAge offers high-pressured water blasting tools used in industrial cleaning. Because of the high-powered nature of these tools, the company’s customers need to be precise with the combination of products they use. With custom software development from Xngage, StoneAge offers a calculator that allows its customers to configure the right combination of products for the pressure they need with specific product usage guidance.
Streamline Your Internal Processes
Every company is looking to be more efficient. Instead of wasting hours on tedious tasks, leaders are looking for ways to help their employees focus on the initiatives that drive their business forward.
For example, one of our customers offered corporate gifting services. They would fulfill orders with hundreds (or thousands) of unique shipping addresses, often each with its own unique product order. Processing these orders would take many hours, verifying addresses and products. With Xngage, the company was able to take a process that would have taken all day down to just a few minutes, saving them extremely valuable time.
Stay Ahead of the Competition
In order to stay ahead of their competition, manufacturers and distributors can’t wait around for ecommerce platforms to implement the innovative features they need. Speed will be critical when it comes to reacting to your customers' needs. Custom software will empower them to leapfrog ahead of the competition.
Ecommerce leaders need to understand what their customers will need to be successful in the coming years and be proactive in adopting new technologies to help them get there. For example, we’re helping our customers implement agentic AI solutions to help their customers find exactly the products they need quickly and easily. Their customers can chat with an AI agent while they’re out in the field, use pictures or videos to search for products, and ask questions in order to find the right solution and place an order.
Get Your Free Ecommerce Assessment
With custom software development, the possibilities are endless, so it can be difficult to know where to start. Xngage offers a free, no-commitment ecommerce assessment that can help identify your best areas for opportunity. Our team of experts will evaluate your ecommerce operation including tech stack, analytics, and current goals and challenges. We will provide custom recommendations for technology, strategy, and your opportunities for innovation.