B2B commerce: Lessons from digital leaders.
Selling products and services online can be a highly lucrative move for B2B businesses.
A redefined direction promises stronger customer understanding and relationships, enhanced experiences, and consolidated operational efficiencies and support, all while maximising sales and revenue.
This white paper explores the reasons B2B organisation should implement an e-commerce strategy, the challenges that business will likely face and possible solutions for overcoming those challenges.
Executive Summary.
By defining an approach to ecommerce, B2B businesses can reap significant benefits, including deeper customer insights, stronger relationships, improved customer experiences, streamlined operations, and increased sales and revenue. A well-crafted B2B ecommerce strategy can help businesses overcome challenges and unlock new opportunities for growth.
This transition is complex, with inevitable challenges along the way. Businesses will need to grasp new customer needs and translate them into clear requirements. From there, they must determine what each department will contribute in terms of people and budget, facilitate adoption, and identify the opportunities for growth. Earning company-wide support can be an obstacle—why pivot away from a previously successful business model to the risky, competitive world of eCommerce?
These challenges can be mitigated by careful planning and implementation. There is also a plethora of newly launched and enhanced generative AI tools and processes that can assist at each stage of the process. Early customer feedback will uncover insights that inform strategy, while cross-functional internal teams can dedicate their expertise to individual sections of the initiative. Early on, quick wins should be shared and celebrated to bolster project confidence and commitment. And, as teams grow in confidence, increasing their level of autonomy will ensure long-term ownership and engagement. Businesses should expect a prolonged period of change. There will be hurdles to overcome. But with sufficient organisational alignment and buy-in, B2B eCommerce can yield considerable results.