In the next installment in our Ask the Expert Series, Lokion UX expert, David Mabury, and guest B2B ecommerce expert, Austin Lowry examine what makes ecommerce so different and essential for B2B distributors. Below, David and Austin share four reasons why investment in ecommerce makes sense and how to get started.
For retailers and brand manufacturers, selling through an ecommerce channel is a no-brainer. Customers aren’t just asking for digital channels, they are demanding them. Retailers without a digital channel simply cannot compete and huge investments in digital sales channels are the norm. There is even an entire class of “digitally native” companies selling hundreds of millions of dollars without any physical storefronts at all.
That said, it’s not the same situation in distribution at this time. B2B transactions still require a large amount of human interaction and intelligence. Large order values, complicated quoting motions, and highly technical sales cycles oftentimes requiring engineers and other experts are the norm.
Without mountains of cash and years of work, most distributors will not displace the established players in ecommerce. The breadth of product selection, investment in product data curation, and availability of inventory for rapid fulfillment take not only money but also time to catch up.
1. Your Customers Are Already Leaving
You may have noticed that your “big MRO customer” still does business with you, but maybe they aren’t ordering as much as they should. Sure, you’re still getting RFQs from them and they call in for complicated issues, but if you look closely the smaller transactions aren’t there anymore.
What you might not know is that for simple transactions it’s just easier to use a website with high availability, low pricing, a simple and intuitive user experience, and easy fulfillment. They have started using Amazon, Grainger, Motion Industries, or any of the other established ecommerce players. They might even be using a local competitor who just launched their own site that allows them to quickly look at their order history and repurchase that drum of lubricant each week.
Slowly these transactions are leaking away from your business because your competition is giving your customers, even your most loyal customers, an easier way to do business.
2. You Are Spending Too Much Money on Commodity Transactions
In addition to siphoning off your commodity transactions to the digital channel, the competition is also paying less for that transaction. By making it easier for the customer to look up the part they need online quickly and purchase it themselves, your competitors are saving on labor costs, commission (more on this later), and our most valuable commodity, time.
How much time does your order desk spend answering the phone and keying in part numbers that a customer could do themselves? Imagine if that time could be reinvested into finding new accounts, uncovering opportunities with customers, or helping them solve difficult problems. Ecommerce is not going to completely replace your highly experienced and loyal staff any time soon, but it can give your salesforce back more time to do more valuable work.
3. Ecommerce Does Not Have to Be Expensive
The biggest objection we hear from clients is that ecommerce is simply too expensive. A half-million-dollar investment for a small or medium-sized business is a heavy investment into tools that aren’t going to bring down Goliath competitors. The good news is that now, ecommerce doesn’t have to be expensive.
In a world where Shopify, Wix, and other low-cost ecommerce providers are revolutionizing direct-to-consumer ecommerce, Lokion has created an opportunity to capture the same benefits for distributors and other B2B sellers through their Co-Commerce offering. For as little as $500 per month, distributors can have a fully-featured platform.
4. You Don’t Have to Do it Alone
The second objection to ecommerce we commonly hear is that distributors simply don’t have the staff to operate an ecommerce site and that sourcing those resources is difficult and cost-prohibitive. While that has typically been the case, Lokion Co-Commerce also solves that problem by providing knowledgeable and experienced staff that grows with your business. There is no need to find and hire expensive, full-time resources when with Co-Commerce you can scale resources as your business becomes more successful.
Before Getting Started
It can be difficult to know where to get started in large projects such as these. Fortunately, Lokion Co-Commerce is not only a software platform but also a full implementation strategy and support service.
From Implementation Success support as part of the build process to ongoing support and maintenance, Lokion’s expert team is available to ensure your project is successful. To learn more about Co-Commerce, visit our website or contact our team today.
David Mabury, Vice President of UX, Bio
A Lokionite since 2007, David Mabury leads the team responsible for strategy, user experience, user interface design, and QA. Prior to joining Lokion, he worked with interactive and advertising agencies in Memphis as well as an arts site in New York. David is a member of the Industrial Advisory Board for the Department of Computer Science at the University of Memphis.
Austin Lowry, Omnichannel Commerce Strategist, Bio
As an omnichannel commerce strategist, Austin Lowry works with organizations to deliver innovative strategic solutions that meet their goals and differentiate them from competitors. In his early career, Austin focused on corporate IT and was as a Program Manager for AutoZone B2C and B2B eCommerce. Later, he joined Oracle and helped to bring Oracle Commerce Cloud to market. Since 2017, Austin has worked with many world-class teams, focused on delivering rich experiences for enterprise clients in multiple verticals worldwide.