B2B Migrates to Digital Commerce
Digital commerce, the buying and selling of goods and services using digital technology, is a core business strategy for the modern organization. And e-commerce—using the internet as a sales channel—is an essential tactic that supports this strategy. Effective digital commerce utilizes technology to provide a superior buying experience for customers while giving companies more ways to differentiate themselves. Increasingly, B2B buyers are demanding flexibility in how they engage sellers, whether in-person or digitally. When properly implemented, this engagement is marked by fast, personalized and consistent buying experiences that are just as good but often better than those provided via in-person service models. Organizations must build their digital commerce strategy around an ability to deliver a superior buying experience that creates a sustainable competitive advantage.
While e-commerce has long been a staple for consumer-facing organizations, it is now also changing how B2B companies buy and sell. Today’s buyers and purchasing departments place greater emphasis on process efficiency and supply chain resiliency and expect seamless interactions with vendors via e-commerce channels. Buyers may still prefer in-person engagement when they think it is necessary (such as when purchasing big-ticket items or during complex sales negotiations), but they have nonetheless come to expect an Amazon-like experience for more routine transactions that can be handled via the e-commerce portal. They want a frictionless purchasing experience that is characterized by fast discovery, personalized recommendations, price transparency and price consistency regardless of how they are engaging. And they may increasingly avoid vendors who do not provide this e-commerce channel as a simple starting point for the buyer journey. B2B vendors are responding by modifying their sales strategies to offer improved e-commerce experiences for their customers.