This three-part series examines the top B2B e-commerce trends that businesses can take advantage of in 2022. Knowing which e-commerce trends to pay attention to can help your organization make wise business decisions. In Part 1, we talked about business buyers as consumers, customer experience in analytics, and personalized B2B pricing. In this post, we’ll discuss three more hot topics.
Trend #4. Contextualized real-time pricing
There’s no doubt that we’re going through a period of inflation, which means that businesses have to make tough decisions about competitive pricing. To offer customers consistent, relevant, and personalized prices, retailers need to understand customer behaviors, especially as the path to their purchase decisions becomes erratic across touchpoints. Contextualized real-time pricing gives suppliers the power to manage and adjust prices. It also enables competitive price matching for customers in real-time across all channels. The more flexible you can be in keeping your pricing up to date, the more you can claim your share of customer loyalty.
Contextualized real-time pricing will be a game-changer going forward. B2B companies need to offer their customers the best and most personalized prices. But to do that, they must understand customer behavior throughout the entire buying journey. The proliferation of mobile payments, combined with retailer mobile apps, supports our recognition that the adoption of real-time in-store pricing is now mainstream. So, contextualized real-time pricing is best combined with e-commerce analytics and the overall B2B e-commerce trend of personalization.
Trend #5. Faster, easier order fulfillment
Digital transformation, boosted by newer technology and COVID-19 realignment, has accelerated the growth of e-commerce. According to e-commerce experienced . This rapid acceleration has caused surges in orders, disruptions in supply chains, and .
The goal of simplifying and shortening the buying cycle may be the greatest influence on omnichannel supply chains. And customer expectations continue to rise. Buyers, both consumers and businesses, expect ease of ordering and speedy delivery. B2B companies are competing to create faster fulfillment networks. In fact, show that a majority of the top nine factors driving customer value in e-commerce relate to logistics.
You can improve your omnichannel fulfillment by removing friction from parts of your process that matter most to your customers. What do customers care about most?
- Breadth of product selection
- Value for money
- Delivery cost and speed
- Control over delivery
- Product quality
- Good return policy
- Product pricing
- Product availability
Trend #6. Prolonged resource shortages
Supply chain disruption became a reality with the restrictions of COVID-19. Shortages coupled with rising prices mean that you can expect to pay more for available items. We’re already experiencing empty grocery shelves, scarcity of building supplies, and rising gas prices.
With the ‘great resignation,’ there is also a shortage of workers that will continue to impact employers throughout 2022. There has been a significant decline in the labor force, with fewer jobs added each month. Shortages in goods and labor will have a ripple effect, resulting in higher shipping fees and increased tariffs. Because these conditions are global, they will impact B2B manufacturers and suppliers in many countries.
These are complex issues, and business leaders will really have to be on their toes and well-prepared if they want to remain viable. E-commerce can make it easier to stay flexible and offer your B2B customers preferred pricing and customized service.
There are three more e-commerce trends that we’ll explore in the next post. Stay tuned for reshoring, hybrid working, and sustainability/ social responsibility.
Are you looking to get started with e-commerce or considering switching e-commerce partners? our e-commerce experts at Sana Commerce.
to help you navigate the process.
By Sana Commerce,
