Buyers Have Evolved, Suppliers Are a Step Behind
A couple of years ago, email was the most popular B2B medium, followed by eCommerce, and then phone orders. Today, the top two have switched places. And unfortunately, B2B suppliers are failing buyers. New research has found that 52 per cent of eCommerce sites are not fully meeting expectations. As more purchasing has moved online, […]
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A couple of years ago, email was the most popular B2B medium, followed by eCommerce, and then phone orders. Today, the top two have switched places. And unfortunately, B2B suppliers are failing buyers.
New research has found that 52 per cent of eCommerce sites are not fully meeting expectations. As more purchasing has moved online, order errors have disproportionately soared, suggesting that many suppliers didn’t have the scalability needed for this wide scale shift.
The research was conducted by Sapio Research on behalf of Sana Commerce. They interviewed over 1,200 B2B buyers to find out what challenges they face while buying online. The top frustrations identified were — difficulty finding relevant products (32 per cent), none or not enough product images or videos (30 per cent), and an inability to talk to someone or ask a question (28 per cent).
The research also highlights an increasing volume of order errors, with 37 per cent of buyers reporting errors with online orders at least on a weekly basis, and 11 per cent reporting errors daily. As a result, 46 per cent of respondents are finding their productivity and efficiency levels affected while they contact the supplier to fix the issue, and 46 per cent are experiencing delays in the already problematic supply chain.
When asked what they believe to be the reasons behind these order errors, 38 per cent of B2B buyers cited suppliers displaying incorrect inventory, 37 per cent blamed incorrect product information, and 35 per cent stated incorrect shipping information.
Survey respondents were also asked what was important to them in the buying process, and four in five identified the relationship between themselves and the supplier, with almost half classing it as very important. In fact, 84 per cent said they would be more inclined to buy from a supplier they had a great relationship with even if the terms of sale were not as good as a competitor. This makes the management of customer relationships more complex and customer satisfaction and retention even more crucial.
Yet, despite the obvious importance of relationships it seems that many suppliers are still getting it wrong. Thirty-nine per cent of B2B buyers identified supplier relationships as a customer experience challenge, coming only behind delivery and tracking (44 per cent).
Michiel Schipperus, CEO, Sana Commerce said, “A look at B2B buying experiences in 2021 highlights the importance of sustainable supplier relationships, which don’t end after the purchase is made. However, as purchasing has rapidly moved online, it seems that many suppliers have failed to meet expectations and let their buyers down.
“Reliability – in data, service, and information – is evidently a crucial part of a good relationship, and this is a shortcoming that seems to be causing high volumes of order errors that are not only costly to the bottom line, but also to the buyer-supplier relationship. To eradicate these problems, suppliers should ensure their eCommerce sites are fully integrated with their ERP so they’re able to provide buyers with real-time, accurate information to inform their purchasing decisions.” Relationships are critically important even when purchasing online, and successful ones are built on trust, reliability and service.
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