The Top B2B Ecommerce Trends of 2020

2020 has been a hectic year. With multiple lockdowns, it has been a struggle for many companies. However, one channel which has seen growth during this difficult time is ecommerce.

According to the Future Shoppers report 2020, B2B online purchasing has increased by 24% since 2019 and is set to keep growing.

To help your B2B ecommerce activities grow we have found some of the top B2B ecommerce trends of 2020 to inspire you and your campaigns moving forward.

B2B ecommerce is becoming commonplace

We may not be able to predict what will happen in the world next week let alone in the next few months. But, what we do know from research is that ecommerce is set to keep growing this year as lockdowns prevent sales from happening face to face.

According to The Future Shoppers Report, 44% of respondents stated that they dealt directly with sales representatives before the outbreak. Now, this figure has dramatically dropped to 16% or just 1 in 6 people.

To match this growth more companies are setting up b2b ecommerce marketplaces online to sell their products or services. Online marketplaces were once simply for B2C.

VR and AR becoming a reality for B2B

With countries locking down at multiple times, it has been difficult to show off products in showrooms or demonstrations. The implementation of virtual and augmented reality has become a vastly popular B2B ecommerce trend in 2020.

By using these types of software, companies can give their potential consumers a full 360 degree visual image of their products as well as a realistic demo to show it off. Using these methods consumers can also try out the designs or products virtually without the risk of Covid-19. This is another trend which is sure to continue into 2021.

B2B gets personal

Personalised shopping experiences and marketing can be successful if carried out correctly. In B2C ecommerce we see this nearly all the time, with recommendations for products and discounts aimed at items the consumer has bought previously.

But this is an area which is also becoming popular in B2B ecommerce.

In fact, according to Salesforce’s report, State of the Connected Customer, 72% of buyers now expect vendors to personalise engagement which shows the importance of this.

This could lead to an increase in Account Based Marketing campaigns as these are primarily personalised tools.  If you want to read more about Account Based Marketing we have written a series of blogs on this topic which you can read here.

B2B ecommerce is getting its own voice

With devices such as Alexa and Google Home, the ability for shoppers to order products without clicking a button has become smoother and more streamlined in 2020; and B2B is catching up.

This will of course be more complex for B2B focused organisations, as orders are often more complex and not as simple as “order more toilet roll”. But, with AI becoming smarter this is a certainly a potential reality for the future of B2B ecommerce.

If you are looking for advice on how you can develop your marketing strategy by making use of some of these trends we can help. From SEO to social media we can help you with all your marketing strategies to help you succeed in 2020.