The B2B ecommerce industry is growing at an unprecedented rate in the market. Gone are the days when the businesses had to look for clients from door to door and advertise using conventional tools such as television and radio. Today, the B2B has grown to a mark where it is predicted to reach $1.2 trillion by the year 2020. With such a huge rise in the number, you can imagine the opportunities that the industry holds for ecommerce sellers. But, if you truly want to make the most of b2B in the coming year, you need to know the B2B ecommerce best practices.
While B2B offers an excellent market and opportunities for sellers to expand their portfolio initially, not many can capitalize on this option. And that is because they fail to understand the distinction between a business to business operations and a business to customer relationship. There are several fundamental differences between B2C and the ordinary ecommerce business in which you sell to the end customer. Knowing these little details as well as the B2B ecommerce best practices can create all the difference for you.
However, if you are worried on how to get started, look nowhere else. We’ve gone ahead and brought together the B2B ecommerce best practices you need to stand out and excel. Read on to find out more!
What is B2B eCommerce Business?
Business to business is a trade practice that happens between two organizations. Therefore, instead of selling to a customer, you sell to a business. When it is taken to the world of ecommerce, it becomes an electronic trade between two businesses. The reason why B2B is such a growing market is because h transactions in B2b are far greater than in business to customer approach. You can understand this from the fact that obviously businesses purchase more and often in bulk for their ventures.
B2B is one of the fastest growing markets in the world. Another reason for it is the potential and opportunities existing in the world of business. Be it the government stimulus or market opportunities, businesses are gaining an upper hand in coming up with their new ideas for others.
One of the simplest examples of a real world B2B business is AliExpress. Even though it is open for everyone to purchase, a lot of businesses source their supplies from Aliexpress. This is because the platform’s visibility is very high and the offers are lucrative. In addition to this, one can bargain the prices of a good based on the quantities that are willing to purchase from the seller.
Why Do You need B2B eCommerce Best Practices?
No matter how much effort you put, sometimes you might not get any results. Your business visibility will remain the same in spite of your marketing efforts. And even through you are able to drive a lot of traffic on your website, chances are that you might not be getting as many conversions. Situations like these can be disheartening for any business. For this reason, you should try to put your best foot forward with B2B ecommerce best practices. Grant the attention of the right businesses who are more likely to invest in your business. Moreover, maximize your reach with efficient delivery practices and low costs. Remember that it all begins with a seamless experience. The more you focus on providing your customers with a seamless experience, the better will they be drawn towards your products.
B2B eCommerce Best Practices
Now that you know about b2B business and how it can take your business idea to the next level, let’s move on. Here you will find the best ideas you need to enhance your business!
Simplify Your Search
Start by simplifying your search results. Remember that if a B2b business is looking for products, it might not be just for a handful. Businesses purchase products in bulk and often come back if they find a good deal. Therefore, if you lose a business because your on-site search capabilities are not enough, nothing will be more disheartening. Start by simplifying your search efforts on your website. Your user should find it easy to search items they are looking for. In addition to this, they must also be able to customize their search as per their needs. For example, if they are looking forward to products from one particular brand, your search should have the option to filter brands. Similarly, if buyers are looking for a particular size, the option should be here.
Provide a User Friendly Experience
One of the most fundamental things to remember in a business is a user friendly experience. This makes even more sense if you’re selling on your website. Most B2B sellers create a website from scratch and list their products, however, in this process, they fail to create a user friendly experience for the visitor. Make sure to adopt the B2B ecommerce best practices for your website experience. Your call to action must be clear and immediate to draw the attention of the visitor. In addition to this, your search options must be simplified and navigation must be simple. Make the experience intuitive for a new visitor. It shouldn’t be as if a person needs a manual to browse products through your website.
Write Detailed Product Descriptions
The impact of detailed product descriptions can be diverse. On one hand, it helps your potential buyers understand what the product is. While on the other hand it also demonstrated transparency regarding the business. For example, if you add details such as product dimensions, weight, color, durability, warranty, washing care, and other such factors, you send out a clear message that you are confident about your products. You don’t have anything to hide. Moreover, when your potential buyers see this, they find you trustworthy and approachable. There is much less ambiguity on what you are providing.
Provide Multiple Payment Options
More the payment options mean more convenience for your buyers. Some buyers might not be very comfortable in using their cards directly on your website. Therefore, if you provide them with a wallet payment option, things become simplified. In addition to this, there are many situations when payments fail through one mode. So, if you have other options, you will not have to wait for the sale to happen in the future. As you provide payment options, also make sure that it is secure and reliable. Always trust a reliable payment gateway instead of a cheap and new one.
Optimize Your Website for the Search Engine
Make sure you optimize your website for the search engine. Most of the buyers begin their journey through Google. For this reason, you should make sure that your website is SEO optimized. Use the right keywords for your industry. You can do research about them using any keyword research tool. Alternatively, make sure that you monitor your website rankings every now and then. Add as much quality content as possible, and don’t ever forget to add value in whatever you do. While keywords are necessary, the real value is imparted when you try to help the customer.
Attractive Offers
One of the B2B best ecommerce practices is to offer discounts. It is no secret that people love discounts and attractive offers. Not only does it lure them towards the purchase but also provides an incentive to go ahead and purchase more. When it comes to B2B remember that your pricing and discounts can vary with several factors. For example, you can offer discounts based on the number of units someone is purchasing. So, if they purchased 100 units of a product they get an additional 20% off and this increases to 25% as they increase to 150. In addition to this, you can also offer membership discounts to retain your customers in the long run.
Fast and Inexpensive Logistics
No matter what types of business you’re in, cheaper and faster shipping options are always desirable. If you offer low cost shipping your byers will obviously like it. Moreover, if the shipping costs are extremely low you also have the advantage of offering free shipping options to your customers. For this you can partner with a reliable logistics company like Dash101 Logistics that helps you ship at rates starting Rs 23/500 gms. Moreover, people are always looking for faster shipping options. Because business activities are already fast paced, you can’t deliver orders very late. With reliable courier partners you can deliver faster without paying any additional costs.
Email Campaigns
How about some email campaigns to keep your customers engaged? Email might be old school but it is still one of the most popular forms of marketing. It can keep your customers engaged for a longer period of time. Moreover, as many as 59 percent of the marketers believe that email is a powerful source of creating an impact on the buyer. You need to create compelling campaigns for your users so that they feel like purchasing from your store. To execute a successful email campaign begin by collecting the email addresses of users. You can use a pop up option on your website or if you create original content, you can also add an option for the user to leave their email address on your blogs. Once you have email addresses, create a meaningful campaign to address different customer segments.
Push Notifications
Another one of the effective B2B eCommerce best practices is sending push notifications to your customers.push notifications can help you accelerate your marketing efforts by many folds. Push notifications are one liner marketing statements sent to the user’s device such as laptops and mobile phones. They remind the user of your business and are often used to send attractive offers. Remember to include CTAs in your push notifications so that they compel the user to take an action. Since the click through rate of push notifications is higher, it can amplify your marketing efforts substantially.
Optimize for Mobile
Don’t forget to optimize your store for mobile. Most customers love to begin their ecommerce journey through their mobile phones. Therefore, if you provide them with mobile friendly shopping options, they will love to make a purchase from you. However, most sellers make this mistake and keep the same version of their website for mobile and desktop. This creates a bad experience when the store is opened on the mobile. Remember that responsive design can go a long way in maintaining a relationship with the customer. It helps them get in touch with your business anytime and anywhere. So, if you are not optimizing your mobile, you are missing out in a lot.
Testimonials
No marketing efforts are greater than the voice of your loyal customers. So, if you’ve got them, make sure you leverage them for your business. Ask your customers to leave their testimonials on your website. Alternatively, you can also request them for their views through an email. A smart way would be to ask your customers to review your store on several platforms such as Google, Facebook, Playstore etc. this will project your business in the positive light when new customers search for your brand. Moreover, testimonials in B2B can have a great impact because they come from already established businesses, which cannot be faked.
Conclusion
A B2B business can have a lot of opportunities. But only if you know B2B ecommerce best practices that you can excel with your idea. Remember that since there are plenty of opportunities in the area, the market competition is equally high. If you fail to take care of the details, you will not be able to make the mark. Your customers will move to another business because of better experience, price, or other factors. One of the most important things you need to take care of is logistics. Partner with a reliable logistics platform like Dash101 Logistics that can take your business to unprecedented heights. Ship with 8+ courier partners at rates starting Rs 23/500 gms. Reach out to 26000+ pincodes with your products today!
