Summary
Although many experts and analysts believe that B2B marketplaces have grown significantly, we believe they’re still in their infancy.
We say this because B2B marketplaces represent only 7% of online sales. As 2025 approaches, we expect these numbers to double next year.
So, if you’re a business owner looking to jump into the trend and want a piece of the pie, this blog is for you. In the following sections, we understand the key considerations you could discuss with your eCommerce website development company. Let’s get started!
7 Key Considerations for B2B Marketplaces You Must Know
#1 Marketplace platform visibility
One of the first things to consider when creating a B2B eCommerce marketplace is visibility. This will be critical to its expansion and eventual size.
B2B marketplaces are only as practical as the customers and merchants. To attract clients, they must be highly prominent across many search phrases. If you’re starting a B2B marketplace, you’ll need to invest time and money in SEO to ensure yours is noticed.
However, a marketplace’s visibility may extend beyond internet channels. A presence in B2B magazines, industry events, and social media is also necessary to recruit and retain a healthy user base.
#2 Quality control of B2B buyers and sellers
High awareness alone does not guarantee a marketplace’s success. One of the primary advantages of a B2B marketplace is that it provides firms with a ready-made network. The quality of a network is frequently more significant than its quantity.
Alibaba, a Chinese B2B marketplace, notoriously removed several counterfeit suppliers from its site a few years back. This creates a more significant dilemma for B2B marketplace owners: how to assess merchants and their products and services.
Barriers to entry are fundamental to ensuring that only the correct firms participate. An easy option is to charge a sign-up or membership fee as part of the onboarding process.
#3 Platform functionality and user experience (UX)
Attracting enough high-quality buyers to a B2B platform is a difficult challenge. Keeping them there is considerably more difficult. The user experience (UX) of a B2B marketplace is crucial for client retention. After all, B2B buyers and sellers will use eCommerce systems designed for consumers.
Just like the basics of eCommerce, you need to apply some basics to UX development for your marketplace, namely:
- Consider the presentation of product and service information
- Platform’s customization
- Page speed
- Key information
- The ease of comparison
- Reviews and ratings.
Another important feature is the internal search tool. Different B2B Bigcommerce Development Services suggest leveraging these features for long-term growth.
They will likely prefer B2B platforms with comparable features and an excellent UX. The entire conversion process from browsing to buying must be fluid and quick. Of course, design and software will be the determining factors.
#4 B2B marketing
B2B marketing differs significantly from consumer marketing. Buyers in a B2B context are frequently driven by knowledge rather than the emotionally charged language usually utilized in consumer marketing.
Similarly to websites, several marketplaces allow vendors to convey brand identity through customized storefronts. Unlike website visitors, buyers can compare rival suppliers’ goods and services side by side. Tuning these aspects improves a platform’s appearance and feel and its stickiness.
#5 Data-based insights
Platforms providing data to vendors and buyers will likely beat those without it. After all, data fuels sales. In contrast to B2C transactions, most B2B purchases are planned and justified before approval. Data is typically the finest evidence to establish a case for this.
These insights may be taken away and used for other aspects of clients’ operations. For example, they may notice that firms are more likely to demand a specific product or service. This is essential information for their sales staff when working with firms outside the platform.
#6 Payment services for B2B transactions
Payment processing in B2B marketplaces can be challenging. They are typically larger and more sophisticated than B2C sites, necessitating more term negotiation, clearance from many parties, and lengthier payment installments.
The platform is responsible for facilitating this. Third-party vendors require a smooth and safe transaction procedure to ensure their success. Buyers should be able to pay via invoice and specify Net 30 conditions for purchases.
#7 Integration
The ability to seamlessly interface with numerous software solutions can increase a platform’s marketability and client retention rate. Our experts create ERP systems using an API-first approach. This eliminates the need for the A/R team to handle additional technology and automates numerous tedious operations.
Integration with software solutions will assist the end user and influence decisions to join or continue using a marketplace. With integration possibilities, reservations about incompatibility with other business tools become selling factors. It may also create opportunities for collaboration with other software suppliers.
Conclusion
Thanks to the growth of different B2B Bigcommerce brands, we have hundreds of new marketplaces today, and their numbers continue to increase rapidly.
So, if you plan to start a B2B marketplace, there is no better time than now. However, to develop and prosper in this increasingly competitive industry, B2B marketplaces must be visible. Most B2B research is conducted through a search at some point; appearing in those results is critical.
Remember, the quality of a B2B marketplace platform is mainly determined by the organizations that purchase and sell on it. You must first take the necessary measures to launch your B2B marketplace effectively.
