11 Best B2B E-Commerce Websites: The Spice and Secrets of Success
Best B2B online retailers have been experiencing a strong growth due to the brisk migration of manufacturers and wholesalers to online platforms. By all recent reports, analysts have forecasted that revenue, generated by global B2B ecommerce websites is expected to reach US$6.7 trillion in sales worldwide by 2020.
And with almost 50% of B2B buyers claiming they prefer work-related purchases on B2C websites, there’s no other option for business to business ecommerce but to adapt as fast as possible. To adapt and to start offering customers a significant online shopping experience.
Almost 9 out of 10 U.S. consumers say they would pay more to ensure a superior customer experience (HelpScout)
(HelpScout)
Well, doing so, is far from an easy task. Business to Business e-commerce is more complex than a Business to Customer model. Specifically in terms of fluctuating prices and high order volumes. Nevertheless, for those B2B online businesses getting it right, there are rich rewards in store.
Let’s dig a bit deeper and check out the key features a B2B ecommerce website should have to serve visitors and customers well. Our list of the best B2B e-commerce websites will help you see it implemented in practice.
For its “Realize Real Results” campaign, Blackbaud wanted to show its target audience, non-profit organizations, the benefits similar organizations have seen leveraging Blackbaud University, which offers training programs to customers.
Having a vivid collection of customer success stories, Blackbaud website offers its online shoppers to “try on” other companies’ successes. This is how customers can see how they would apply to their own organization. As a result, this program brought in more than 800 qualified leads for sales in the past seven months, which is 141% of quota attainment.
The campaign was considered to be one of three winners of DemandGen’s Killer Content Award for the Interactive Content category.
Alibaba
Chinese-based Alibaba is one of the best B2B examples in e-commerce. To start with, over 18 million buyers and sellers from around 240 countries are using this platform for businesses. The e-commerce company was launched in 1999, and now owns the world’s biggest global eCommerce website. It is currently considered as the largest global e-commerce platform for small businesses, all across the world.
Alibaba showcases a huge array of goods in more than 40 industries, ranging from raw materials to finished products. The main concept of Alibaba Group is to connect B2B businesses (sellers and buyers), instead of selling products and services directly.
We consider Alibaba is on its way to be the go-to English-language platform for cross-border trade and for expanding to overseas markets.
Matt Osborn – 8 Great B2B ECommerce Sites
We can’t help but mention the fact that it’s free to join, as most of the profit is made through commissions and ads. Being a “free of charge” seller, you can’t showcase more than 50 items, meanwhile, Golden membership offers you to have a mini-website where you can display any amount of products/services. The full range of B2B eCommerce best practices are in full play at Alibaba, and its success is amazing.
Grainger
The main goal of a good online B2B eCommerce website is to make it easy for customers to work with a seller. Ease of ordering is the key at Grainger – a leading provider of industrial supplies.
What features make it easier for business buyers?
- a guest checkout option, no logging in required
- clear product availability
- easy and succinct ordering
- the extended search filtering options
- all pages contain estimated product arrival times on the product page
- a well thought-out mobile app
The mobile application allows users to upload images and have a chat with agents, as well as to scan a barcode to promptly re-order the same product. Which is irreplaceable in terms of order accuracy. It makes the purchasing process easy and convenient, reducing the time for re-orders of the same product.
The components are intuitively tied together; the ease of navigation, a quick access to categories and the product list. The search is clear and really grabs the attention. As one of the best B2B eCommerce retailers, Grainger does have some outstanding advantages over the majority of its competition. In addition, a rich customer interface enhances user experience.
“Facilities management equipment supplier Grainger has invested heavily in their eCommerce platform. Grainger’s website traffic is gigantic, and their online product range has recently crossed the one million items mark.” – Mark Boyd, the B2B online marketing expert
To have some better insight and see how Grainger has implemented the B2B eCommerce best practices, we strongly advise you to check out this research article. It contains analytics on branding and PR, keyword strategy, product range, leverage social and peer behavior, and other useful tips.
Quill
Owned by Staples, Quill is the greatest office supplier, whose website was specifically designed for B2B eCommerce. The company’s website is outstanding for its simple, user-friendly interface and a rich selection of educational and office supplies.
One of the main advantages of using this B2B website is in regularly occurring reward offers like customer-benefit coupons, special deals, etc. The benefits also include a balanced marketing package with logo design, search engine optimization, and social coupon services.
“70% of web activity is spent on the process of finding information.”
“Quill recognizes this statistic for their own site, and it is apparent that they have invested into their entire search and navigation experience. Search and Navigation is tied together, not silos. You can search then navigate, or navigate, then search for the purpose of getting their customers to exactly the right product or content.” – claims the B2B eCommerce report by Justin King.
Businesses of all sizes value Quill for the rich selection of its general office and cleaning supplies, electronics, and furniture items. Their B2B website offers a decent customer service, which is available in case of the need for help. Nevertheless, there is a great thing to do before shopping: subscribe and receive e-mails with exclusive deals, offers, and discounts.
What’s good about the Quill is that it is continuously perfecting the business customer’s shopping experience. Comprehensive categorization, guided navigations, and filterable search results make the shopping journey much easier and less time-consuming.
MasseyFerguson
MasseyFerguson is one of the best B2B ecommerce website examples that creatively uses navigation. It features an intuitive web design which presents every feature in a clear and neat fashion. There are several homepage menus that draw customers attention towards the offered solutions. You can also see the second navigation bar that showcases the specific items the company has.
Despite the fact that MasseyFerguson B2B ecommerce website features a standard horizontal navigation bar, you can also choose several other options to find the content you are looking for. The well thought-out categories and products presentation and dealer locator provide better user experience. In the meantime, the product pages remain crisp and clear, which saves time dramatically.
Just check out this drop-down menu:
Color and branding play a crucial role in forming a unique identity for the website. This B2B website employs all of the best eCommerce practices we mentioned earlier in the article.
If you want to learn more about the importance of design in B2B eCommerce website building, check out this 30+ Inspirational ECommerce Website Designs article.
The Takeaways
Though it’s very complicated to define the best B2B websites in the world, we’d like to drop a takeaway list of the 7 best ecommerce website reviews below.
…as we’ve been inspired by them as well!
- Look as Good as You Sell: 5 Best eCommerce Website Designs 2017 by Stuart Gonsal
- 12 inspiring ecommerce website designs By Tom May
- The Northern E-Commerce Awards 2016: The Winners by David Prior
- 13 Responsive B2B Website Examples By Paul Marshall
- 30+ Inspirational ECommerce Website Designs By Steven Snell
- 20 of the Very Best E-Commerce Web Sites 2017 By Awwwards Team
- 8 Great B2B ECommerce Sites by Matt Osborn
- 8 Innovative B2B Ecommerce Sites by Lori McDonald
