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Case
As of 2022, 65% of B2B companies conduct their business exclusively online. In addition, last year—for the first time ever—organisations sold more online than through personal sales.
It is therefore about time for your B2B company to move towards—and reap the benefits of—a digital story. Discover the difference e-commerce can make in a B2B context.
Let's look back a few decades, towhen representatives dressed up to the nines to visit prospects and customers, when orders were written down on paper receipts and when deals were closed with a handshake and signature. These are beautiful traditions that are now long gone.
Today, the B2B sales process looks different. Digitalisation completely changed the way we sell and do business. And the recent global health crisis accelerated this digitalisation.
Companies are therefore looking for solutions to automate and optimise their (sales) processes. Now more than ever, time is money.
Does that mean that you have to set everything up digitally? Will one-to-one business disappear completely?
The answer is no. In B2B business, the personal and physical aspect remains crucial for building relationships, gaining customers' trust and generating business.
But to remain competitive and relevant in the future, you need to move towards an optimised digital ecosystem. And you can do that by focusing on e-commerce.
Many companies see e-commerce solely as a webshop or a technical website with a shopping cart icon. But B2B e-commerce is so much more than that. It is an approach that puts customers and employees at the heart of your business.
Of course, a professional B2B e-commerce platform allows you to offer your products or services online and receive orders. But you can also use it to communicate with your customers.
For instance, B2B e-commerce platforms can be linked to internal systems (CRM or ERP packages). This gives customers and relevant stakeholders one-click access to the right products, prices and stocks.
Another advantage of a B2B e-commerce platform is that it helps you generate more sales and even reduce costs.
For instance, you can streamline orders online and simplify your (internal) administration, reducing risks and error margins. In addition, this kind of automation saves you money and resources, leaving your (sales) staff with more time and energy to foster customer relations.
Would you like to learn more about B2B e-commerce opportunities? Then iO is the right place for you.
We not only help you jump on the digital bandwagon, but also take the reins. iO is your experienced partner and will guide you through your digital issues.
The benefits of B2B e-commerce speak for themselves. So much so that you might be thinking of starting it yourself?
If you want to start with B2B e-commerce, the first thing you need to do is establish a clear strategy and a feasible roadmap.
Ask yourself questions such as:
What are my e-commerce goals?
Which B2B e-commerce platform is most suitable for my business?
When do we want to go live?
In addition, involve your employees to shape and implement your strategy. Your e-commerce solution will come into contact with almost all departments of your company. The sooner and the more you involve the right people, the greater your chances of success.
Once your roadmap is in place and you have found the most suitable e-commerce platform, you need to sell your plan to your employees.
Implementing e-commerce is an intensive exercise that involves a real digital transformation. And for this implementation to succeed, everyone must be on the same page.
Digital must be an extension of all your teams. Only then can e-commerce help you seize opportunities and offer your customers and prospects the service they expect.
A high service level. Fast delivery of products and services. That's what B2B customers expect today. And that is what you can offer with e-commerce.
By betting on e-commerce, you can meet all the requirements and get ready for tomorrow's B2B customers. So the time to start e-commerce is now—even if we say so ourselves.
But starting now does not mean implementing next week. Digitising your sales process will take time and resources. Only then can you develop a strategic multichannel approach. One that puts your customers and prospects at the centre. One that seamlessly connects all online and offline touchpoints. One that will ensure your company's B2B e-commerce success in the future.
To conclude (and thank you for reading), we'd like to share a few B2B e-commerce trends that we think will become even more important in 2023.
Hyper-personalised content for B2B customers.
Continued growth of marketing automation in B2B.
Mobile-friendliness of B2B websites.
Big data and analytics to understand the needs and search behaviour of B2B customers.
Integration of Augmented (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR) in online B2B environments.
Senior digital strategist and partner at iO, Tom Van Mierlo's professional journey started more than 15 years ago at Intracto. Expanding his enthusiasm and experience since Intracto reshaped into iO at the end of 2021. Skilled in business development and growth, he specialises in turning strategic challenges into detailed digital plans to grow your business. An avid trendwatcher, but more importantly a trend implementor.
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