Although eCommerce dates back to 1949 Germany, it really became part of our everyday lives only after the COVID-19 pandemics.
The lockdowns have greatly changed our society and economy. Most of the changes were negative, however, there were some benefits as well. Apart from swans coming back to the canals of Venice, we all witnessed some industry sectors growing rapidly during the lockdowns.
One of the exploding sectors was eCommerce.
In this article, we will focus on B2B eCommerce businesses, and look into the latest industry trends. Let’s explore the juiciest business improvement ideas for 2022!
B2B eCommerce Is Growing
Thanks to a business model that offers contactless payments and access to the worldwide market, eCommerce is growing rapidly. According to Grand View Research, the current B2B online-store market size was valued around $6.9 billion in the previous year.
And what’s even better news, the market is expected to grow by 19.7% by the end of the decade.
In other words, if you are running a B2B eCommerce business, you are on a winners’ boat.
Furthermore, the consumers’ habits go in favor of eCommerce as well. According to the statistics, almost half (49%) of B2B purchases are done online.
On the other hand, only 18% of revenue for all B2B businesses comes from online purchases and more than 50% of B2B buyers report they are frustrated with the online shopping experience.
In other words, B2B eCommerce businesses still have much to learn in order to provide a quality online shopping experience.
Therefore, we will now look into the latest trends that can help you improve the shopping experience in your online store and successfully beat the competition.
Boosting Content Marketing Efforts
It is no time for cutting funds for marketing. With so many online stores growing like mushrooms everywhere, you need to give your customers the reason to choose you. As a B2B eCommerce, you need to build a strong brand identity.
More than 85% of the surveyed B2B businesses that sell their products online agree that content marketing positively affects sales.
If you’re not sure if this actually pays out, take a look at your competitors. You will see that the most successful among them are those who manage to tell meanigful stories around their products.
The process of conceiving and implementing a successful content marketing strategy is long. But, you need to start somewhere.
Once you hire a team of experienced marketers, they will use tools such as Google Trends and SEMRush. Using these tools, they will learn about your audience and find the right keywords. Finally, they will translate data into an engaging content, that will attract new leads and build your brand image.
Use the Latest Technology to Visualize Purchases
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Virtual Reality (VR) are very promising technologies.
Using metaverse to approach new age customers is a major retail industry trend. In particular, it is relevant if you sell electronics and media or provide services such as e-learning.
These technologies can be extremely helpful for various business processes. For example, using augmented reality (AR) as an innovative and fun way to showcase products will attract a lot of attention and boost sales.
Imagine selling furniture to restaurants, and allowing the owners to “test” the dimensions and ambience before purchase! AR is also useful for fashion, flooring, lighting, and garden equipment stores.
Besides, it is a perfect time to start thinking about moving to metaverse.
Metaverse is a platform that allows users to interact in a virtual environment. Although not so popular yet, it will become a major thing in near future. So, if you need a serious competitive advantage, metaverse can be the card up your sleeve.
Improved Efficiency
In 2022, eCommerce businesses have to be more efficient than ever before.
One of the major challenges this year is to ensure supply chain efficiency. This means your business will have to implement functional solutions for real-time tracking of
- Production requirements
- Product availability
- Inventory
- Shipment status
Businesses don’t have time for errors and have to bring data-driven decisions and streamline the selling processes. Therefore, they are using SaaS solutions such as Salesforce, Conga, and Quickbooks.
For example, inventory report in Quickbooks will give you information on your current stock status, orders and reorders, locations, and incoming stock. In addition, you will have access to historic data. These data will help you learn from your mistakes and avoid over- or under-stocking.
Personalization
Personalization has been a major trend for some time and will continue trending in the future.
According to experts, personalization is one of the most powerful tools for creating leads. Your online store will do better if it generates customized product recommendations.
Furthermore, your eCommerce website needs to apply efficient methods to
- reduce cart abandonment and
- persuade hesitant clients to buy.
Remember, consumers are willing to pay more for a personalized experience. More than 50% of B2B buyers highly appreciate personalization and are willing to pay up to 48% more for such a shopping experience.
So, it’s time to use robust eCommerce personalization software to reap the promising benefits of personalizing customer experience. Setting up a personalization tool can accelerate your return on investment (ROI). Choose the best personalization tool with features such as AI-powered recommendations, actionable customer data platform, A/B testing, and more.
Because tailoring customer experience must be across all touchpoints, adopting a solution that supports different personalization channels is important. Such channels include on-site, text messaging, email, and social media messaging apps. Select an eCommerce personalization software that allows you to unify fragmented data and handle all your personalization efforts in a secure, centralized place.
Another point to consider is which sales channels you use to get closer to your customers. It is not necessarily needed to switch to another sales platform or open multiple stores. There are software that can help you with integrations and reduce your efforts.
For example, if you are running an Amazon store, you can sell Amazon products on Shopify, expand to another market and increase conversions.
Sustainability Is More Than a Buzz Word
Millennials are the economic driving force at the moment. All businesses need to adjust their business models and marketing to millennials’ buying habits. Of course, the same goes for B2B eCommerce platforms.
Millennials love eco-friendly businesses. Even if you can’t be 100% eco-friendly, do your best to introduce as many sustainable practices as possible.
For example, you can avoid plastic wrappings, introduce green consciousness into your brand story, or lower energy consumption in the manufacturing process. Millennials will award this with strong brand loyalty and – you will contribute to a better future of the planet!
Omnichannel Selling
Omnichannel selling or retail refers to a multichannel sales approach. It’s focused on providing positive, fully integrated customer experiences when shopping in physical stores or online from a smartphone or any mobile device. This sales strategy promotes more availability, strengthens the brand–customer relationship, boosts sales and traffic, and integrates digital touchpoints.
In recent years, omnichannel selling is no longer only a trend, but the industry standard. More than 80% of B2B businesses are enabling customers to buy from any location and device. Therefore, in 2022, you should optimize your store for shopping from PCs, tablets, and mobile phones.
Businesses selling products and services to other businesses employ omnichannel for a reason. Buyers seem to enjoy it: one in five people are ready to spend more on platforms that offer multiple sales channels.
Omnichannel is a much more convenient form of shopping and creates true value for them. Thus, customers will award it with brand loyalty and increased spending.
Conclusion
This article on the top B2B eCommerce trends provides you with helpful insights to make better decisions, such as adopting the right tools to boost your productivity, sales, and ROI. With personalization, omnichannel marketing, sustainability, content marketing, and other proven-effective strategies, you can attain your goals sooner for growth and long-term success.
