The business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce market is still fairly immature in comparison to the consumer retail sector, but for me that’s one of the most exciting parts because I get to play a role in its evolution.
The traditional businesses launching and growing online, such as wholesalers and manufacturers, often have very specific requirements from their B2B ecommerce website due to the nature of their customers. The trade sector they operate in has historically relied upon ordering goods via catalogues, over the phone and even still in person. However digitalisation of these customers is vital for vendors as it will allow them to move with the times and achieve stronger growth. At the same time it can improve the experience of their customers, helping their individual businesses to flourish.
Whilst the traditional B2B industry is going through a revolution in terms of its ecommerce offering, it continues to happen gradually, and progress is still far behind the B2C market. B2B vendors, who are often in the SME bracket, have to get it right for their customers, or they will continue to feel the need to pick up the phone, or drive to a trade centre, to ensure their order is placed. The customer portals on B2B ecommerce websites need to provide a host of specific functions and be integrated with CRM systems such as SAGE, or Microsoft Business Central. However, although directors of SMEs may know that growth in the digitalisation of customers, and revenue achieved online, needs to happen, some find that they are held back from transforming their ecommerce websites because the current platforms are not quite offering the package they need.
This is something we are keen to address at Fluid Commerce, and as the technical director of the agency, part of my role is to investigate and harness the power of any new tech developments that can improve the solutions that we are able to offer to B2B ecommerce companies. This includes looking at AI technology and what it offers to B2B ecommerce companies to enhance their customer portals.
In recent months I’ve looked closely at how we can use our own technology st Fluid Commerce to help traditional B2B businesses to launch their products online more quickly and cost effectively. The result was the development of our B2B accelerator Portal, which provides businesses with the technology for a customisable ecommerce website, with a host of of B2B features that can be turned on or off. Portal enables businesses to launch an ecommerce website in just two weeks, whilst also achieving cost savings for those businesses when compared to other routes to market.
Ready to find out more?
For more information about Portal, how it is changing the B2B ecommerce landscape, and what it could do for your business, please visit the page linked above, or email me on [email protected].
