It’s an exciting time to be in B2B ecommerce. In 2024, almost 50% of all B2B (business to business) sales took place online. By 2025, that rate is expected to reach 80%.
Compared to other ecommerce models like DTC (direct to consumer), the advantages of B2B ecommerce are particularly future-forward: lower costs, higher order value, and increased ability to scale. But success in this space takes substantial commitment and informed planning—reapplying the playbook of DTC or in-person B2B would be a costly mistake.
When you’re conducting five-figure deals on your smartphone, the quality of your company’s online presence is paramount. This means everything from a fast, secure storefront to thought-provoking articles and social media content that make potential customers think of you as an industry leader before they even hop on a call. Strive to have your business on buyers’ minds as much as possible—when they’re tapping “buy” on your checkout page, and when they’re researching a pressure point on their next big initiative.
B2B sales cycles are often long and complex, but they can be extremely rewarding. Because they involve so much interaction, they present lots of opportunities to get to know your customers, introduce them to different products, and build a fruitful relationship over time.
We’ve compiled a timely list of best practices to keep you on the pulse of digital B2B commerce.
1. Offer self-serve purchasing options
Speed and efficiency are at the heart of B2B ecommerce, and an online storefront equipped with self-serve options provides both.
Self-serve facilitates bulk orders, customized pricing, and personalized customer portals. It empowers buyers to place those bulk orders on a regular basis—be it daily, weekly, or monthly—saving your sales team valuable time not spent manually initiating purchases, sending invoice reminders, and other resource-draining tasks.
- Give your site a self-serve portal that exceeds modern B2B buyer expectations. Shopify provides the tools you need. For example, the laboratory supply company Filtrous enjoyed significant growth after switching from BigCommerce to Shopify and putting Shopify’s self-serve purchasing system into action, tripling their order frequency and saving 12 hours of manual work for their teams each week.
- If you don’t have transparent pricing alongside each product, instruct prospects how they can get a custom quote, and make the process clear. For instance, PATCHBOX, a brand that sells cable management systems, gives customers the option to request a quote for specific use cases, bulk orders, or different connector types.
- Intuitive buying experiences give a positive, personal touch. For example, allowing customers to save their payment, order, and shipping information eliminates the need for customers to re-enter their data each time they place an order.
2. Ensure your site is error-free and mobile-friendly
Potential buyers expect a fast and frictionless shopping experience. This presents an opportunity to seize market share from slower, outdated sites—especially when it comes to mobile. Internet traffic is shifting rapidly from personal computers to mobile devices, with mobile ecommerce projected to generate $620.97 billion in sales in 2024. How can your site reap the benefits?
- A B2B ecommerce site that runs smoothly can attract more visitors and convert them at higher rates. Data from Shopify research on site speed shows a mere half-second improvement can increase conversion rate.
- Use a responsive design to ensure your site looks great and functions properly regardless of the device a customer uses.
- Optimize your site for mobile to improve user experience. There are numerous mobile site speed optimization tactics, such as implementing browser caching, lazy loading, and mobile checkout options like Shop Pay.
- Search engines like Google prioritize fast-moving sites. On top of improving user experience, a site’s speed has a significant impact on search engine optimization (SEO) performance.
3. Optimize product listings for easy navigation
When potential buyers arrive at your site, they should feel welcome—and be able to find what they’re looking for right away.
- Well-executed product listings on your ecommerce site can attract more buyers.
- Organize products into relevant, easy-to-understand categories to make it simple for prospects to find the products they need.
- Use relevant keywords in your product descriptions and titles.
4. Improve site search functionality
When you have a multitude of product variations for sale, search accuracy is crucial. Fortunately, advances in site search technology have made it easier than ever to help customers find what they’re looking for.
- Creating a robust search experience is one of the most potent B2B website best practices. Look for an ecommerce site search solution equipped with modern methods like natural language processing (to help users find items they struggle to describe) and faceted searching (also known as smart filters) to narrow down search results.
- Studies show 69% of customers go right to the search bar the moment they visit an online store. On your site, consider using a sticky header featuring a search bar, or a secondary search bar in your footer, so it’s impossible to miss.
- Use site menus to organize your website structure further.
- For a deeper dive, consult Shopify’s ecommerce site search best practices.
5. Secure your transactions with trusted payment gateways
Businesses lose between 3% and 5% of their yearly revenue to fraud-related issues, according to recent studies, and fraud can hurt both your bottom line and your relationships with clients.
- Protecting customers’ data against breaches and fraud during B2B payments should be a top priority for every B2B ecommerce business.
- Use a compliant payment service provider with advanced security features. B2B storefronts created with Shopify have instant access to Shopify Payments, a PCI-DSS-compliant payment gateway that secures your customers’ info within a convenient shopping experience. And if B2B customers request a fraud-based chargeback, Shopify Protect covers the total order cost and chargeback fee.
- To further protect sensitive data during transactions, make sure your site serves HTTPS.
6. Simplify the checkout process for potential customers
In ecommerce, it's almost impossible to overstate the importance of the checkout page. Build a checkout experience for B2B buyers that’s as welcoming as possible.
- Eliminating any obstacles to purchase and reducing the amount of time and effort it takes for customers to check out is essential to convert and retain customers.
- Consider adding a progress indicator. Selling to wholesale customers typically involves collecting more information than DTC, and buyers are more likely to complete a multipage checkout if they’re given a visual indicator, like a progress bar, of how much they’ve already completed.
- Offer multiple payment methods and flexible terms to reduce friction at checkout. Shop Pay offers the world’s highest-converting checkout, converting up to 36% higher than the competition.
- Make it as easy as possible to complete a transaction.
7. Create content to attract and retain customers
The B2B sales process is long and often involves multiple stakeholders. The average B2B buyer spends 27% of the time in their purchasing process researching online, and they’re often looking for advice. Position your company as an expert, so when buyers are ready to buy, you’ll already be front of mind.
- Useful content—like blogs or knowledge base articles—can help you attract prospects if it ranks highly in search results. For example, the boxing and fitness equipment supplier Morgan Sports features dozens of instructional guides on its website to help fitness professionals use their gear.
- Create content that helps your current customers by addressing their goals and pain points. This can form the basis of your B2B SEO strategy to find relevant keywords. For instance, if retailers are Googling “customer retention,” you might write a blog post about best practices in customer loyalty programs.
8. Use customer insights to personalize user experiences
During a service interaction, 86% of B2B customers expect companies to be very well-versed in their personal information, according to Gartner. Fortunately, B2B ecommerce offers significant opportunities to get to know your customers.
- Personalizing the user experience makes customers feel understood and valued.
- Use data from their interactions with your brand to personalize the user experience. High-performing B2B companies tailor every touchpoint to each buyer persona, including email, social media, and website landing pages.
- Offer personalized product recommendations and pricing.
- B2B brands need data-driven insights beyond basic customer behavior, so familiarize yourself with individuals within the companies you do business with: what deals they’re associated with, what their pressure points are, and what makes them unique.
9. Offer robust customer support with knowledgeable staff
In DTC, customer support often begins and ends with a couple automated follow-up emails. B2B calls for a more bespoke, hands-on approach.
- Great customer support builds trust and loyalty.
- Make sure you have a dedicated customer support team, with dedicated account managers who offer customers assistance throughout the buying journey, beginning with onboarding.
- Provide multiple avenues for support. A forward-thinking B2B company could provide resources like videos, walk-throughs, and forums for each industry and use case.
10. Combine content and commerce to enhance the buyer experience
By 2025, a staggering 70% of B2B buyers are expected to be millennials. Millennials grew up online, so they naturally expect a customer experience that’s seamless and modern. How can you bring the personal touches they’re accustomed to from DTC ecommerce to B2B?
- Don’t just display generic manufacturer content on your site.
- Modern buyers are drawn to dynamic presentation, so use different media types like product pictures, product sheets, and video. For example, the premium office furniture brand Branch shows a personalized space plan to potential customers who fill out a questionnaire.
- Create personalized content based on groups, user reviews, and ratings. Buyers want to hear from other buyers, and presenting them with honest, thoughtful reviews of your product establishes quality and legitimacy.
11. Focus on the overall buyer journey
Create an intuitive experience across the buyer journey, prioritizing ease of use and making customers feel at home with features that respond to their needs. Apply this online beyond your site, anticipating how your customers behave in the marketplace.
- Provide intuitive self-serve experiences in customer orders and account management.
- Build a buyer-focused FAQ that answers the right questions.
- Create content that answers additional questions prospects may have.
- Use social media to engage with potential customers, experimenting with different platforms to see what resonates most with your audience.
- As you craft your brand’s online persona, it can be inspiring to learn from other companies’ success stories. Here are 16 recent examples of B2B ecommerce websites that used forward-thinking methods to improve their buyer experience.
12. Optimize your customer catalog for easy product discovery
Your customer catalog should be an active member of your sales team. How can you attract repeat customers and make them feel valued?
- Make it simple for visitors to find what they’re looking for by personalizing search by the user’s identity (industry, company, role).
- Use customized pricing and display recommended products.
- Allow customers to see purchase history and track orders.
13. Collect and analyze analytics to inform business decisions
Ecommerce companies have a wealth of data at their fingertips, and synthesizing that data into actionable insights can reveal unseen value.
- Use analytics to uncover the vivid stories about your audience, as well as insights into product, channel, and promotion performance. From there, you can improve your offerings and guide your business decisions.
- Turn insights into action by testing new initiatives and adapting them quickly as you learn more from your customers.
- Track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as conversion rate, average order value, customer retention rate, and cost per acquisition to quantify the value of your efforts.
14. Perform competitor analysis to stay ahead
Explore how your business fits into the ecommerce ecosystem. Online research offers valuable insights into how you stack up and where you can grow.
- Knowing how your competitors perform in search results helps you spot areas of opportunity. Identify where the competition falls short in giving customers what they’re looking for.
- Stay ahead of the competition with SEO strategies. B2B purchases require a greater investment than DTC purchases, so buyers will likely require more encounters with your brand online (via official sites, social media channels, etc.) before committing. Use SEO intel to increase the chances desired buyers see your brand when they search for key terms.
15. Continuously improve your ecommerce site for better customer satisfaction
B2B conversions are hard-earned wins that can bring significant, long-term gains. Your company should embrace an attitude of constant evolution.
- Collect and analyze customer feedback to identify areas of improvement.
- Use customer insights to personalize user experiences.
- Stay up to date with the latest B2B ecommerce trends and best practices.
- Maximize sales potential by learning about which B2B ecommerce features and platforms can help your business grow to its maximum potential.
Seize the opportunity of B2B ecommerce
Whether you’re pivoting from DTC or taking your in-person B2B operations online, the opportunity is clear: digital B2B is now worth an estimated $7.7 trillion. Ecommerce is revolutionizing what B2B sales can achieve. And smart ecommerce leaders are following the play-by-play.
By adopting these best practices and partnering with a best-in-class platform like Shopify, your business can realize remarkable potential: high-performing checkout pages, secure transitions, and customer relationships that are truly rewarding.
FAQ on B2B ecommerce best practices
What is B2B ecommerce?
B2B ecommerce is the process of marketing and selling products between two businesses online.
How does B2B ecommerce work?
B2B ecommerce involves digital, automated sales processes between businesses, suppliers, and distributors, bypassing traditional, in-person exchanges. This presents numerous advantages, including reduced costs, greater opportunity to scale, and better partner relationships.
What are B2B best practices?
Maintaining an ecommerce site with a robust search experience and fast, secure, mobile-friendly checkouts is a core best practice of B2B. Ecommerce leaders should also continuously collect and analyze customer feedback to identify areas for improvement.
What is the best ecommerce platform for B2B?
Shopify is a scalable ecommerce platform designed for high-volume customers. With customizable buying experiences, easy-to-use interface, powerful B2B features, and PCI-DSS compliant security measures, Shopify is among the best ecommerce platforms for B2B.
