B2B eCommerce: Beginner’s Guide
In this day and age, an eCommerce presence is an essential component of leading successful businesses. The internet has transformed the traditional sales funnel for B2B businesses beyond recognition. This has made an of-the-moment approach an absolute necessity for businesses hoping to continue to grow. If however, like many businesses, you aren’t completely familiar with the ins-and-outs of B2B eCommerce, you’re not alone.
There are a whole host of things you need to consider before committing to a B2B eCommerce offering. In this piece, we’ve tried to tackle some of the questions that are likely to be troubling business owners considering taking the plunge.
What are the advantages of eCommerce for B2B?
The advantages of embracing eCommerce are too great in number to cram into this bite-sized entry into the topic. But, we’ll give you a general idea of some of the most crucial benefits.
The first – and potentially most significant advantage is that an eCommerce presence gives you a platform that is built to produce results today and well into the future.
Research conducted by Forrester has demonstrated something substantial. Business owners who blindly stick to historical B2B sales methods such as email, footfall and telephone orders are going to struggle. Not only that, they are also likely to continue to struggle moving forward.
The advent of the internet has toppled conventional B2B sales funnels. When businesses themselves were the only source of information about their company, the B2B sales funnel was linear and straightforward.
The realities of the internet age have transformed this forever.
Potential customers have the ability to access a wealth of information about your business online (including how other customers felt about their experience). The accessibility of this information – combined with the growing decision-making power millenials have within companies (research has shown that millennials are more likely to self-educate before making important business decisions) has meant that key decision-makers are more likely to join the sales funnel further down the line, making the relative independence that eCommerce platforms afford more valuable than ever.
Ecommerce can also help your business drastically improve efficiency. By shifting the burden of responsibility for fulfilling orders from a human within your business to an automated process, eCommerce platform eliminates time-consuming admin tasks.
Accuracy benefits from the introduction of eCommerce too. By embracing an eCommerce platform, you can eradicate the errors that continue to plague businesses that rely on those antiquated, historical sales models.
How can I sell my B2B products online?
There are a number of different ways you can sell your products online. Third-party sites like Ebay and Amazon are online marketplaces that are simple and easy to use for people looking to get rid of stuff they don’t need quickly and easily. But, for fully-fledged businesses that have more complex requirements than simple product listings – and don’t want to sacrifice a percentage of the final sale value – these online marketplaces aren’t comprehensive enough.
You could develop a bespoke option using developers but financial demands and time constraints can be stumbling blocks that are too large for many businesses to overcome. An eCommerce platform like Magento meanwhile, is a proven, ready-made option that gives businesses everything they need for a reasonable price.
What is a B2B eCommerce platform?
A B2B eCommerce platform gives you the ability to sell your products/services online. By working with a specialist B2B agency like Yoma, you can craft a solution that is simple for potential customers to get to grips with and works quickly. With an extensive range of features and strong SEO, the Magento eCommerce platform has separated itself from the competition and established itself as an increasingly popular option for businesses.
Speak to us today to find out more about creating a B2B eCommerce solution that links with your internal systems, and grows your business.