Do you shop on eBay or Amazon? Even if you don’t, chances are your customers do. Practically everyone knows about the big players in the B2C (Business to Consumer) eCommerce industry, but what about B2B (Business to Business)?
68% of B2B buyers now purchase goods online.
Forbes has an interesting article about the psychology behind this, positing that the modern B2B buyer has already been conditioned by the convenience of eCommerce in his or her own personal life.
Millennials have been exposed to the Internet likely since adolescence or even birth, and have little patience for seeking information, thanks to Google’s ability to fetch results in a mere fraction of a second. In fact, we now have an attention span of around 8 seconds, less than even that of a goldfish!
Knowing that, do you think there’s time to spare in getting your business online?
Getting online
Perhaps you run a B2B wholesale distribution or manufacturing company, and you’re wondering if selling your products online is something for you. You decide to Google “ecommerce” – boom. 135 million results*. Your head is spinning. You try to read through some of the pages.
Sadly, the topic is so broad, you’re not really getting the specific wholesale distribution or manufacturing answers you’re looking for. Why is that? Because B2B ecommerce is not B2C, or retail ecommerce. It’s something else.
*Number of results for Singapore as at 27 April 2016
What’s the difference?
It’s true that B2B and B2C web stores both have search, navigation, detailed product information and personal account history pages. But the similarities fade soon afterwards. B2B does not embody the same challenges B2C does: most B2B businesses have complex ordering processes, large collections of attributes and elaborate back end systems. Setting up can seem very long and complex, since a lot more information needs to be processed. But there’s a shortcut!
Smart webshops for the B2B industry
Using your ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system as the start – and center- of your web store makes setting up easy as ABC. Your sales portal can be set up right out of the box, without a big investment. It takes full advantage of the information that is already stored inside your ERP. In short, your web store and your ERP system are perfect partners.
So logically, Blue Ocean Systems (BOS) (BOS) and Sana Commerce have decided to partner up. BOS, as your ERP system’s experts, and Sana, as your web store solution vendors who can leverage it. This gives you the chance to benefit from your ERP, meet the needs of your customers, and even anticipate them.
Why integrate with SAP Business One?
B2B buyers want the freedom to purchase goods whenever and wherever it suits them. They want to see the right stock level, their order history and their own negotiated discounts.
By using your ERP system as foundation for your B2B ecommerce portal, you can, among many other things, avoid having to replicate complex pricing matrices, ordering conditions, or order history. It all leads to greater efficiency.
Your B2B ecommerce setup process will be more efficient. Your sales team will be able to focus on gaining new business instead of being bogged down with repeat orders. And finally, your customers will enjoy more efficiency by placing routine repeat orders with more ease.
So no need to Google any further. E-Commerce is also for you. Want to know how Sana Commerce’s webshop solution works? Check out the 3 minute demo below!
If you prefer to download a free fact sheet, get it by clicking on the banner below. The factsheet includes:
- Sana’s product offering
- Features of Sana Commerce’s solution
- Benefits of working with Sana Commerce
Hold up – I need an ERP solution first!
Maybe you’re not using SAP Business One yet – in which case, keep an eye out for our affordable cloud plans! We know that many smaller businesses are not ready to invest too much time and money into an ERP system due to the heavy capital outflows and risks involved, so we’ve found a way to offer the same big functionality to you at small prices.
We are testing our solutions on several different platforms to ensure it will run optimally for your business, and are keeping our mailing list and blog readers up to speed with our progress. You will want to be in the loop when we launch!
As always, hit the Contact Us button on the right if you have a question or suggestion, or leave a comment below!
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