Focus on B2B eCommerce User Experience to be SuccessfulIt’s no secret that B2B eCommerce is a huge topic these days. As Forrester found, B2B eCommerce is estimated to produce $780 billion in revenue this year, and is expected to top $1 trillion by 2020. What’s driving this B2B eCommerce growth? In short: customers.
B2B customers purchasing for work are, when it comes down to it, the same customers who also shop the B2C space online for personal purchases. These customers expect the same quality experience across the board, no matter if they are at their desk from 9 to 5, or on the couch at home after work.
While we have discussed the concept of B2B 2.0 before, a recent Magento-sponsored webinar went in-depth on ways to boost the B2B shopping experience.
One of the best ways to give your B2B customer a B2C-like experience is through search and navigation. Take inspiration from the B2C space and figure out where your customer is trying to go. Restructure your navigation and search functions to ensure that your customer can find what they’re looking for in as few clicks as possible.
Searchers are your most valuable site visitors, so be sure to treat them well. Provide relevant results as well as recommendations to help simplify the purchase process. Keeping things customer-centric as opposed to product-centric will boost the user experience of your B2B site.
Regardless of the industry, customers like to feel as though their shopping experience is somehow personalized to them specifically. One great way to personalize the shopping experience is through product recommendations.
Using info gathered through search results and purchase history, provide shoppers with suggested items that might correspond with other products they are browsing. One way to implement this is through the Rule-Based Product Relations marketing tool in Magento Enterprise. This tool also helps promote cross- and up-sell opportunities, helping to boost the average order value of your eCommerce site.
While some aspects of B2B eCommerce may be more complex than those of B2C, it’s still important to help your customers help themselves as often as possible. One simple way to provide a self-service feature to your customers is through quality content and product information.
Catalog info can be difficult to manage, but quality content makes all the difference in a shopping experience. Outfit your site with detailed product images and helpful item descriptions to answer your customer’s questions before they even have a chance to ask them. Another great tip is to provide a product comparison feature so that customers can compare items side by side to determine which is the better fit for their needs.
These tips are just the beginning of all that you can do to boost your B2B site’s user experience. Check out more ideas here, or contact our eCommerce team.
No Comments Yet
Let us know what you think