How Could B2B Digital Commerce Impact Your Bottom Line?
Global eCommerce growth has transformed attitudes about digital modernization across a wide range of B2B companies. B2BecNews polled 218 manufacturers, wholesalers, and distributors in 2018. While 61% of manufacturers and 38% of wholesalers were not interacting online, 75% of these surveyed companies planned to build their own eCommerce platforms over the next two years.
Organizations that are averse to integrating eCommerce are doing themselves a disservice. Not integrating eCommerce into your business is placing them behind competitors who are aggressively adopting new technologies. To persuade key decision-makers of the advantages of digital commerce, a compelling argument must be made that appeals to business aspects such as strategic outlook, cost-savings, and revenue growth.
Even if a major digital player has not yet entered your business, it is only a matter of time before one does. When this occurs, your reliance on phone and email ordering methods will have a detrimental impact on consumer loyalty. Indeed, Amazon Business and other digital-only firms are directly targeting several B2B industries.
Amazon is anticipated to take 10% of the US B2B market and 5% of the international market by 2023, with sales of $33.7 billion. Amazon continues to spend extensively in refining its B2B services, providing corporate purchasers with a wide range of simple features and capabilities.
- Competitive “business-only” pricing
- Integration of an e-procurement system
- Purchase cards, credit lines, and tax breaks are all supported.
Digital Leaders Succeed
Embracing change and investing in digital leadership provides your organization with real, measurable benefits.
Cost Savings Visualization: Going digital eliminates drains on business resources.
The most effective approach to save money is to avoid losing it in the first place. Costs related to order processing, human entry errors, and customer assistance costs are negatively impacting your bottom line right now. Today’s eCommerce technologies can automate internal operations while also fostering a self-service client experience, freeing up staff for more productive company goals.
Order processing costs are reduced thanks to eCommerce.
Providing a quick, frictionless ordering experience is one method to cultivate client loyalty. By enabling self-service transactions, faster quote management, and assisted selling, a digital commerce platform can drastically lower order processing expenses. Freeing up the internal resources that were previously required to manage orders manually will provide the added benefit of allocating those resources towards growing client relationships and revenue.
Quote Management Simplified
Customer quotation creation can be managed using a streamlined, fully documented process that tracks all important parts and allows purchasers to check out online after an agreement is reached.
Online ordering reduces error rates, resulting in increased profitability.
Throughout the manual ordering process, errors are common. These errors not only waste time and resources; failing to deliver on time has a negative impact on client satisfaction and trust. By implementing a digital self-service option, for those clients that prefer the efficiencies and convenience of digital self-service.
Automated SKU Verification
Before an order is placed, each SKU is checked to be genuine, in stock, and available, eliminating errors and minimizing time spent managing returns.
Self-service for Customers Ordering
As the customer can enter and evaluate an order before confirming it, it eliminates transcription errors, sales rep confusion, and the selection of the incorrect address, among other things.
Support costs are reduced by using an online customer portal.
Investing in eCommerce results in savings that go beyond the transaction processing. You can dramatically reduce inbound queries across many regions by providing your clients with a consolidated service portal to manage their most typical tasks. With less support demand, you can cut operating costs and devote more resources to growing your business faster.
Customers can use a self-service site to:
- Access invoices and return products.
- Check inventory levels by stock location.
- Check the status of the order and the status of the shipment.
- View overall spending reports and data for the company.
Including eCommerce Increases Customer Satisfaction and Retention
Understanding and resolving your clients’ pain concerns before they get vocalized is part of revenue growth. Inefficient B2B processes such as delayed purchase procedures, lack of responsiveness, and limited account control are addressed and corrected via digital commerce. Companies can improve customer happiness by simplifying these components, which has a significant impact on retention and financial performance.
According to McKinsey, the most common service complaint among B2B buyers is dissatisfaction with delayed response times, which is expressed by 40% of their buyers.
In their research with IT infrastructure buyers, Harvard Business Review discovered that responsiveness is a top three loyalty factor.
Customer Spending Increases Due to Omnichannel Commerce
Omnichannel provides additional channels for clients to interact with your business and purchase the products they require. Customers are driven to spend more overall when they engage with numerous channels, according to Forrester. You can begin implementing features that drive client spending by establishing a digital commerce channel.
- Conveniences such as 24-hour purchasing, simple purchase list set up, and no wait times to connect with sales are available.
- Quote requests are processed quickly, stock levels are visible immediately, and order status updates are provided in real-time.
- Sites intended for browsing and discovery make it easier to find products than scanning spreadsheets or hardcopy catalogs.
- Cross-sell and up-sell options enable you to promote additional purchases in advance.
- Offers such as free delivery or other incentives for greater buys are more likely to be targeted.
Last Thoughts
The majority of business-to-business (B2B) commerce projects revolve around the concept of change management. Even after the recommended methods have been approved by the leadership team, you must continue to promote the benefits of digital integration throughout the firm. You want to lay the groundwork for ongoing, critical investment in this channel.
It’s human nature to be cautious about change. However, by regularly sharing your vision and combining like-minded individuals who can assist share the value of change, you can lessen the fear of change. Most crucial, keep the consumer experience at the forefront of your mind at all times during the planning process. Focusing on the greatest approaches to exceed client expectations will draw attention to the significance of your activities.
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