B2B buyers are becoming more and more like B2C customers

Today’s B2B buyers are much more digitally savvy, accustomed to finding highly customized products in minutes and getting them delivered to their doorstep in even less time.

The reasons for this are twofold:

• First, millennials are beginning to make the majority of business decisions, with 73% of millennials involved in the B2B buying process today.
• Second, the impact of the pandemic means that people now expect to receive the same level of convenience both at home and at work, whether they’re buying a toy digger for their child or a real one for their construction crew.

Meeting the demands of these new buyers is absolutely crucial to your success in 2022 and beyond. But what exactly are those expectations? And how do you prepare for them?

If you break them down into four main categories, then the answers become a lot clearer.

#1 Customization

Make every buyer feel unique

Every buyer wants to feel special. They want a highly curated experience which is personalized to them from the minute they start their search to the moment they receive their order. And they want this personalization even more now that Amazon has shown them they can get it.

The good news is that customisation isn’t just a gimmick. It has a real impact on conversion. Research suggests that 80% of shoppers are more likely to buy from a company that offers personalized experiences. The problem is, only 22% of B2B customers say they are receiving that level of service.

So, what can you do to make your buyers feel unique and encourage them to spend more?

• Provide a flexible range of payment options. There’s nothing more frustrating than getting to the checkout and realizing you can’t pay for what you want. A diverse range of payment options will enable your buyers to pay through their preferred methods, boosting satisfaction and speeding up transactions.
• Offer contextualized real-time pricing. Customized pricing not only lets you offer better deals to loyal customers, it also allows you to stay competitive with the prices of your competitors - and in real-time too.
• Introduce a headless solution. Headless eCommerce is an API driven eCommerce solution that operates without a front-end delivery layer. Why is that good for personalization? As your B2B consumers change over time, you can quickly adapt your site to suit their new needs and requirements.
• Integrate a Customer Data Platform (CDP). A good CDP is the brains behind customer personalization. Collecting data from a wide range of touch points to create unnervingly accurate customer profiles, a CDP will allow you to better predict customer decisions, and to influence them too.

#2 Fulfillment

Deliver above and beyond expectations

Logistics and fulfillment aren’t the sexiest side of B2B eCommerce, but the truth is that it's a non-negotiable trend that cannot be ignored. In a recent report from McKinsey on what customers value in omnichannel retail, five of the top nine factors were related to logistics - with delivery cost and speed a clear priority.

And although the global supply chain is a little shaky right now, there are still a number of strategic steps you can take to deliver above and beyond expectations:

• Update your legacy systems. If you’re still operating a sub-optimal eCommerce platform, then it’s time to move on. Streamled operations, fewer tech constraints and an improved customer experience are just a few of the logistical benefits of modernizing your legacy systems.
• Move your ERP into a modern eCommerce solution. If you want some real firepower under the hood, then an integrated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system will give you complete control over all aspects of your business.

• Reshore your supply chains. With global supply chains under strain, bringing production closer to home might be a safer strategy than sourcing it overseas - even if it comes with higher labor costs.
• Sell through third-party marketplaces. Not only do third-party marketplaces give you access to a whole new segment of customers, they can also take some of the delivery pressures off your hands too.

#3 Omnichannel

Be everywhere, all at once

Modern consumers have an endless number of channels at their disposal when it comes to buying clothes, listening to music or watching films, and it seems this oversaturation of choice is now the case in B2B too. On average, B2B buyers interact with vendors via an average of ten or more channels, compared to just five channels in 2016.

In order to meet the omnichannel demands of their buyers, B2B businesses need to be everywhere, all at once. That’s no small feat. So, how do you do it?

• Invest in social commerce. Social commerce is the process of selling products directly through a social media platform. It’s also a major trend of 2022, with sales from this avenue expected to triple by 2025. Start looking at ways you can ​​establish your own eCommerce store directly onto a social media platform, and stay ahead of the competition.
• Optimize EVERYTHING for mobile. It’s predicted that 73% of eCommerce sales were made on mobile devices in 2021, and that figure is only going up. If your eCommerce platform isn’t optimized for mobile, then you can kiss that 73% of sales goodbye.
• Modernize your ERP. We’ve already mentioned this, but it’s worth mentioning again. Attempting to stay on top of every channel will be almost impossible without a modern ERP behind the scenes to oversee it all. So if you’re still operating with an old ERP, make the move to a modern eCommerce solution - and fast.

#4 Sustainability

Showcase your green credentials

Unsurprisingly, sustainability is a key factor which millennials consider when making decisions, which means being ‘green’ is just as good for your business as it is for the planet. Research from Net0 suggests that customers are 4.3 times more loyal when dealing with an eco-friendly business, as well as 20% more likely to convert.

But being green is more than just a case of saying the right words. It’s about taking the right actions too:

• Use eco-friendly packaging. Eco-friendly packaging is one of the best ways to reduce your carbon footprint while still delivering quality products to your customers. It’s also easier than ever, considering the world’s first B2B marketplace for sourcing plastic-free packaging just launched in 2021.
• Go cloud-based. Another method of reducing your carbon footprint is to move to cloud-based servers. Storing your data in the cloud eliminates the energy and physical demands of on-premise servers, while also reducing your reliance on paper.
• Invest in greener delivery solutions. Your business is a reflection of its supply chain. If you work with companies that refuse to take sustainability seriously, then you’ll become guilty by association. So partner with companies who share your green ambitions instead.
• Become a B Corp. Want to prove beyond doubt that your brand is committed to the sustainability of our planet? Then becoming a B Corp is the way to go.

Focus on today in order to build tomorrow

There are plenty of exciting developments just around the corner for B2B eCommerce. But before you start thinking about the likes of the metaverse and virtual reality, you need to meet the basic needs of today.

Much like music and social media trends are being influenced by the demands of Gen Z, the majority of trends taking place within the B2B eCommerce space right now are driven by the demands of the millennial workforce.

Your success in 2022, and for many years to come, depends on whether those millennials like your style, the full online and offline experience and the steps you take to ensure that they do.