The Global Language of Business

What should you consider when looking for a B2B eCommerce solution?

Jul 11, 2021, by Claire Gibbons, TrueCommerce - Category: eCommerce

B2B eCommerce Checklist

Whilst most of us have become accustomed to online shopping and business-to-consumer (B2C) web stores in recent years, the requirements of a business-to-business (B2B) eCommerce website is considerably different due to the added complexity of B2B sales.

As an increasing number of companies are looking to implement a B2B web store (on-demand webinar) in light of COVID-19, the disruption to their existing sales channels, and the ongoing impact it has had on buyer behaviour and customers’ expectations, our Gold Solution Partners TrueCommerce have put together a useful checklist of items to consider if you are looking for a new solution.

Our Gold Solution Partners TrueCommerce have provided us with a 12 point checklist which you can download here or alternatively, you can view a preview of the first 4 points below.

Increase sales with B2B eCommerce

Often one of the first objectives when establishing a B2B eCommerce presence is to increase sales. With a B2C site, this objective would be closely aligned to general promotions and site visibility, however, these objectives shift considerably when looking at a B2B solution.

1. Can your remote sales team use it to consistently price products?

With most sales teams now working from home, it has become increasingly important for them to have access to detailed and relevant information about their customers. Although most CRMs can provide much of this intelligence, most cannot facilitate the complex personalised pricing and promotions offered as part of a fully fledged B2B eCommerce solution.

This omission often leaves the sales team without consistent pricing information which can lead to confusion and distrust in your pricing model. The order processing screen feature allows telesales and remote staff to process sales and decrease your cost of sale.

2. Can you launch personalised promotions?

Modern sales and marketing processes all revolve around added personalisation to increase the relevance of offering that are being presented to customers. This is an area where B2B and B2C eCommerce diverge completely. In a B2B eCommerce environment, customers need to login to make purchases and it’s this login that allows the whole onward experience to be personalised to that individual in a way that would otherwise be impossible in a B2C arena.

With automatic identification of products that are on promotion your customers can easily take advantage of your most relevant offers.

3. Is there Punchout integration?

In a remote working world, comply with your largest corporate clients’ requirements with punchout, a specialist B2B eCommerce feature which reduces administrative costs for both parties. Punchout seamlessly links your B2B offering to third party procurement systems allowing buyers to browse and add products on your website and complete the purchase via their procurement system. Saving your customers 10% on doing business with you, without reducing your prices.

Remove the barriers of doing business

4. Is there multi-lingual functionality to help you scale into new territories?

Selling online removes many of the traditional barriers associated with expanding your business and the TrueCommerce B2B eCommerce platform helps businesses expand their reach in a cost efficient manner, secure greater sales volumes and gain a competitive advantage by making your product information available in multiple languages.

In GS1 Ireland’s recent Survive Or Thrive? Survey, which focuses on how digital commerce can help manufacturers across the food and drink and other manufacturing sectors achieve their goals ahead of their competition, 20% said they were ‘considering an expansion into continental Europe’ when asked what future markets their business may target.

The TrueCommerce solution is built as a global solution with its core functionality catering for regional differences and automatically presents products in the right language with the appropriate regional tax corrections. This functionality provides the familiarity customers require to make purchasing decisions with confidence and helps businesses expand into new markets without introducing too much risk which could make a move too costly to introduce.

To view the other 8 essential B2B eCommerce considerations, click here to download the full checklist.

If you would like to find out more about the TrueCommerce B2B eCommerce solution and how it can help you increase sales, remove the barriers of doing business and increase customer loyalty, please contact us.

 

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Partner Contributor

Claire Gibbons is a Marketing Director at TrueCommerce. With over 15 years’ experience in the IT sector, Claire’s specialises in market analysis, supply chain strategy and educational articles. 

www.truecommerce.com

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