elasticpath-报告：解决B2B电子商务难题（英文）25页_4mb

B2B Commerce Study Summary

Core Content

This report explores the challenges and opportunities in B2B commerce, highlighting the need for purpose-built B2B eCommerce solutions to meet the evolving expectations of buyers. It is based on a survey of 300 B2B eCommerce decision makers, revealing a significant gap between current capabilities and desired outcomes.

Main Points

• Seamless Buying Experience: B2B buyers expect a seamless experience that combines digital tools with human interaction. This is more complex than B2C and requires tailored solutions.
• Legacy Systems Limitation: Most B2B companies are using B2C platforms, which are not suitable for B2B transactions. These systems lack features like contract-based pricing, project-based ordering, and account-specific catalogs.
• Digital Innovation Urgency: There is a strong sense of urgency among B2B leaders to improve their commerce experience. 82% of respondents believe that failing to improve within the next year will negatively impact customer retention, and 80% agree the same applies to customer acquisition.
• Sales Technology Importance: Sales representatives need tools that allow them to focus on consultative selling rather than administrative tasks. Only 35% of companies offer mobile support and 38% offer real-time quoting.
• Customer-Centric Approach: The customer experience should drive B2B eCommerce innovation. Companies must understand and prioritize their customers' needs, especially in terms of flexibility, efficiency, and personalization.
• Future-Proofing with Purpose-Built Platforms: Purpose-built B2B platforms are essential to support complex buying scenarios, offer flexible pricing, and provide unified experiences across channels. These platforms also empower sales teams and enable efficient digital interactions.

Key Insights

The Customer is King

• The customer experience must be the focus of B2B eCommerce innovation.
• Outdated systems hinder the ability to meet customer needs, leading to lost sales and customer dissatisfaction.
• 75% of B2B buyers involve multiple roles and teams in the purchasing process.

The Right Tools for the Right Job

• B2B commerce is not the same as B2C. It requires features like account-specific buying agreements, flexible pricing models, and job-based purchasing.
• Only 18% of B2B companies offer job-based purchasing, and 37% offer flexible pricing models.
• 51% of companies offer account-specific buying agreements, which are crucial for enabling seamless buying.

Sales Technology is Crucial

• While most companies invest in CRM and basic tools, fewer invest in advanced sales technologies.
• Mobile support and real-time quoting are underutilized, despite their potential to improve sales efficiency and customer relationships.

The Evolution of Manufacturing

• Manufacturers are increasingly becoming direct sellers to end customers, not just channel partners.
• Implementing commerce-enabled IoT and flexible pricing can significantly improve the buying experience and support revenue growth.

Maturity Curve for B2B Commerce

• B2B commerce is a long-term journey, not a quick fix.
• The maturity curve includes steps such as:
  1. Making the catalog available and discoverable.
  2. Enabling self-service for simple orders.
  3. Securing long-term revenue with consultative selling.
  4. Automating processes to reduce costs and increase efficiency.

Change Management

• Internal friction and unclear ownership of eCommerce initiatives can hinder innovation.
• A well-planned change management program is essential to align departments and drive successful digital transformation.

Conclusion

B2B commerce requires a tailored approach that supports the complexity and nuance of B2B buying. Purpose-built platforms are the key to solving the B2B commerce puzzle, enabling businesses to deliver the right experience, improve sales, and foster customer loyalty. Companies that invest in these solutions and prioritize a customer-centric, technology-enabled approach are better positioned for success in the evolving B2B landscape.